CEO Blog: Bipartisan Solutions

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

We’re proud to be a part of Colorado’s continuing tradition of finding bipartisan solutions to providing health insurance to all our residents. Today, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper with Ohio’s Gov. John Kasich and other governors of both political parties released a blueprint for stabilizing the individual health insurance market.

It puts forward both immediate and long term solutions. Their suggestions call on members of Congress to address Cost Share Reduction payments at least through 2019, reinsurance, the family glitch and other issues that have arisen under the Affordable Care Act. The proposals also would open the door for states to find solutions particular to their own situations.

The governors’ positions are very much in line with a letter we joined other state-based marketplaces in signing. The National Academy of State Health Policy summed it up in a press release this week. All this is in advance of a hearing on Wednesday and Thursday before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee.

That our Democratic governor joined a Republican governor to develop a path forward has received much media attention but we see it as a continuation of a tradition in Colorado. After all, Connect for Health was born of an idea that came from a commission formed by a Republican governor and put it into operation under a Democratic governor.

In Other News 

Among the pressing business that Congress returns to next week is reauthorization of funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which in Colorado is known as Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+). Funding is now authorized only through September. Although the program has received support from members of both political parties in the past, we are doing contingency planning for the possibility the program is not reauthorized so that we could assist with coverage for the 75,000 children and pregnant women who are now covered by CHP+.

The state department of Health Care Policy and Financing, who administers CHP+, has developed a resource for following developments in Colorado. The Colorado Health Institute has provided background on the history and the scope of the program.
Take care,

Kevin

Kevin Patterson, MURP, MPA
Chief Executive Officer
Connect for Health Colorado