We reported this week that we have seen a 9 percent increase in enrollments so far this Open Enrollment Period. But there is still time to get Coloradans covered.

Our doors remain open through next Friday, Jan. 15. With one week left to get Coloradans covered for this year, we would appreciate your help spreading the word that there is enrollment assistance available through our brokers, assisters and enrollment centers.

Specifically, we are hosting a bilingual virtual event on Saturday:  “We’ve Got You Covered – Communities Coming Together to cope with COVID/ Hoy Por Ti Mañana Por Mi – Colaborando Para Una Comunidad Más Saludable Sin COVID.” We are honored at how many community partners are participating and seeing value in our outreach efforts.

Given the pandemic, we know this year that finances might be tight for people. This is a great time to remind friends and neighbors that financial help may be available and to use our tool to compare plans and prices. We encourage people on the fence about enrolling to remember that essential health benefits are covered with plans purchased on the Marketplace, including emergency services and vaccinations.

In the News

The Denver Gazette shared the news of our enrollment increases so far this period.

Thank you for your help with the last push of this Open Enrollment Period.

This was an important week in our Open Enrollment cycle, as it marks the deadline to enroll for coverage that starts Jan. 1. While this deadline is normally Dec. 15, we extended it through the end of the day today, Friday, Dec. 18. We did so to make sure we give all of our enrollment partners a few extra days due to system issues we experienced, and to help our customers during this challenging year.

But don’t forget that our doors remain open through Jan. 15 for the 2021 plan year if people do miss this first deadline.

As this will be my last note to you all in 2020, I’d like to reflect how much I appreciate your tenacity to keep moving forward in the midst of a pandemic, helping us ensure Coloradans have what I think is so crucial: peace of mind knowing they attained the health coverage they need to protect themselves and their families.

I hope you remain healthy and safe through the holidays, and I will report back to you in the first week of January.

This week, we shared that more than 148,000 had enrolled. We are encouraged by the number of Coloradans covered so far, but we have more work to do to ensure all who need coverage by Jan. 1 enroll soon.

Enrollment partners are again hosting both in-person and virtual enrollment events this weekend. Check out the schedule and share this with those who want help enrolling. Our Customer Service Center has also extended its hours to help answer questions.

Thursday was a big push nationally to encourage enrollments. Here in Colorado Gov. Polis declared Dec. 10 as Get Covered Colorado Day, and we had a flurry of social media engagement with several community leaders helping us get the word out, using the hashtag #GetCovered2021. Thanks to all of you who participated.

Many of you have helped us identify system issues that have slowed enrollment partners and some customers down while enrolling this year. We appreciate your patience, and we are continuing to make improvements based on your feedback. This year was impacted by the pandemic in ways we did not expect, as many of you have also had to balance.

We remain busy tending to our system fixes, reminding people about the financial help and enrollment assistance available to them, and the deadlines to enroll. Thank you for continuing to point people our way to get covered.

The push to our Dec. 15 enrollment deadline is on! From Grand Junction to Fort Morgan, and Pueblo to Fort Collins, our enrollment partners across the state are hosting in-person and virtual enrollment events this Saturday. You can lead folks to our website for details on each event if they would like assistance getting enrolled. Our Customer Service Center has also extended its hours in order to help answer questions.

Also, this Sunday is our traditional outreach event we’ve called “Get Covered Sunday,” but, this year it is happening with a twist. With outreach efforts being all-virtual, the participating churches we would normally visit in-person will instead share a video message from me about Open Enrollment and the importance of health insurance.

We are also participating in a national effort to remind people to enroll this year called #GetCovered2021. We’re participating with a national coalition of organizations in order to amplify the message that now is the time to get covered. Gov. Polis has signed a proclamation to make Dec. 10 Get Covered Day in Colorado, and you can participate as well, using the hashtag #GetCovered2021 on social media.

We appreciate you reminding people that there is still time to get coverage for Jan. 1. Thanks for helping us get Coloradans covered!

With the coronavirus spreading more throughout Colorado, our teams are doing everything they can this Open Enrollment Period to get Coloradans enrolled virtually.

We are using a variety of online tools to make sure Coloradans in every corner of the state know that it’s Open Enrollment. We’ve started a message board campaign on social media, partnering with several key community leaders to help us get the word out by posting key Open Enrollment information via Instagram and Facebook. We’re sponsoring organizations and virtual events, including Southwest Denver Coalition’s holiday events and the Colorado Rural Health Center annual conference, just to name a few. And our assisters and brokers are hosting virtual enrollment events.

Thank you for also reminding your communities, constituents, friends and neighbors to review their options and enroll before the Dec. 15 deadline.

I wish you all a very safe and healthy Thanksgiving holiday and am thankful for the work you do.

Take care,

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

It’s still 2020, so it only seems appropriate that we all have a lot on our plates. Despite the Texas v. California court case causing some news as it went before the Supreme Court this week, we continue to stay focused on our current Open Enrollment Period.

It is of note this year that individuals making up to $51,040 per year or a household of four making up to $104,800 annually may be eligible for financial help to lower their monthly premiums, healthcare discounts, or both. Nearly three quarters of all Connect for Health Colorado enrollments are financially assisted.

And, since plans and prices change every year, you can point people to our Quick Cost and Plan Finder Tool to see their options.

We’re getting creative in our outreach methods this year, sponsoring more virtual events to get the word out about Open Enrollment. We sponsored the Colorado Behavioral Health & Wellness Summit this week, and this weekend, we are presenting at the Lucero Small Business Services virtual event for Latinx small business owners.

We are also working daily to strengthen the user experience and appreciate all of the hard work so many of you are putting in.

In the News

I shared some feedback on the Supreme Court case with CPR’s Colorado Matters this week and the Colorado Sun did an in-depth piece worth reading.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

We’re just about a week into this Open Enrollment Period. While election day has turned into an election week and kept the nation captivated, our staff and enrollment partners remain laser-focused at our task at hand – enrolling Coloradans in their health insurance for 2021.

If you know someone who needs help enrolling, you can direct them to our website to find all of the options for virtual enrollment assistance.

We’d also appreciate you sharing the message that plans and prices change every year, which is why we recommend customers review the options available this year. While rates remain stable for most customers, others can see savings if they chose a different plan this year.

Thanks for all that you will do to help us make this Open Enrollment a success!

Take care,

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

It’s official! Open Enrollment begins on Sunday, and we are ready to serve Coloradans who need health insurance for 2021.

Yesterday we shared the news that most Coloradans will find stable prices and increased plans and insurance carriers choices for 2021. I also shared this update during my annual pre-Open Enrollment media availability earlier this morning.

We are asking for your help to remind customers that it is a best practice to review options, since plans and prices do change from year to year. This year, single Coloradans making up to $51,040, or families of four making up to $104,800 are eligible for financial help. Plans are ready to view in our Quick Cost and Plan Finder Tool now, and our application system will be open on Sunday.

While each Open Enrollment Period has been a little different, this one is definitely unique. Our staff is working remotely, and many of our enrollment partners will help Coloradans get covered through virtual appointments. Thank you all for your adaptability, and for all you will do to help us get the word out and get Coloradans covered.

Facebook Live Today

I will be talking with Deidre Johnson, CEO and Executive Director of the Center for African American Health, at noon today to discuss this Open Enrollment Period. Join us on their FB page.

Take care,

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

We are just over a week out from the start of our Open Enrollment Period for 2021 health coverage. We are loading plan options in our Quick Cost and Plan Finder Tool and ensuring all the details are ready with our application system. Connect for Health Colorado staff are busy finalizing marketing and advertising plans to get the word out. We also know our brokers and assisters are starting to get appointments on the books to help enroll customers, so we redesigned and just launched our Open Enrollment electronic marketing materials to better support virtual appointments.

While we are getting ready here in Colorado, I also had the opportunity to share about the good work we are doing on a federal level. I testified before the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight about the flexibility we have as a state-based marketplace, the success we had with the emergency Special Enrollment period in response to COVID, and relationships we’ve built with those of you in our Assistance Network and Broker community.  You can watch the complete Ways and Means Committee hearing (I start at the 37:45 mark) or read the written testimony I submitted online.

Over the past few years, we have worked behind the scenes to create a Public Benefit Corporation, which will help us further our mission by expanding the products and services we can offer across the state. We are nearing the final stages of launching the organization. This PBC will be an important component of implementing Senate Bill 215, the Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise.

Connect for Health Colorado’s Board of Directors recently passed an important milestone in the PBC’s creation, by appointing a Board of Directors to oversee the strategic vision of this organization. I will be a member of this Board, and am pleased to announce the appointments of the following:

• Marc Arnusch, owner, Arnusch Farms;
• Mara Baer, Founder and President, AgoHealth, LLC;
• Lilia Cervantes, MD, Internal Medicine/Associate Professor, Denver Health/CU Anschutz
• Mitzi Moran, CEO, Sunrise Community Health
• Brad O’Neill, co-founder, Beyond Insurance/Golden Bee Advisors
• Amanda Massey, Executive Director, Colorado Association of Health Plans

Denver Business Journal Award

I am honored to have recently been named one of Denver Business Journal’s Most Admired CEO’s of 2020. I appreciate the recognition and am reminded how proud I am to lead an organization with a mission to increase access, affordability and choice for individuals and small employers purchasing health insurance in Colorado.

Take care,

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

Other than Open Enrollment coming soon, we have a few other orders of business to share with you.

If you attended our Board of Directors meeting this week, you might have noticed we have a new leader at the helm.

Claire Brockbank, a founder and principal partner of Segue Consulting, has recently been named Chair of our Board of Directors. Claire has 30 years of experience as a leader in the health care industry. She brings an important strategic perspective to Connect for Health Colorado as we work to increase access, affordability and choice for Coloradans purchasing health insurance in our state. She has served as a board member since 2017, and I am thrilled to have her in this role.

I’d like to thank Adela Flores-Brennan, who served as our Board Chair for the past four years and remains a vital member of our Board. I appreciate Adela’s collaboration and leadership in moving our mission forward.

Easy Enrollment

During the 2020 legislative session, you may remember that the Health Care Coverage Easy Enrollment Program passed. We have started to begin conversations on implementing this bill, and also this week, the Easy Enrollment Advisory Committee held their first meeting.  Starting in 2022, the Easy Enrollment Program will allow Coloradans to mark on their state tax return that they are uninsured and opt-in for their information to be shared with Connect for Health Colorado, so we can see if they qualify for financial help or Health First Colorado (Medicaid). Easy Enrollment can provide financial stability and improve health outcomes for thousands of residents, many of whom are unfamiliar with the sign-up process, or do not know they qualify for help.

Take care,

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