As we draw near to the end of Open Enrollment on January 15 this new year, I want to take a moment to reflect on what this time means to me. As much as we rely on the calendar, Open Enrollment isn’t just about deadlines; it’s about the people we serve. Those individuals and families consistently return to Connect for Health Colorado to protect their health and finances while our tools, staff, and certified Brokers and Assisters carry them to the right plan.

After more than a decade of this work, we continue seeing new records broken. In the first two months of Open Enrollment, the number of Coloradans who enrolled in health insurance plans is already more than the total number of people who enrolled through the Marketplace for last year. That’s thanks in part to the work you do to direct Coloradans needing health insurance to our Marketplace. Thank you!

Contributing to a Community Resource
Connect for Health Colorado partners with hundreds of local organizations and sponsors community events that contribute to our mission of increasing access, affordability, and choice for those purchasing health insurance in the state. One of our partners, the Colorado Black Health Collaborative, recently released the 2024 edition of the Colorado Black Health Resources Directory, and we are proud to partner on this valuable resource.

The Directory is a free compilation of wellness resources carefully assembled by Black Coloradans for Black Coloradans seeking to connect with doctors they feel at ease with. Published since 2010, the directory has become a trusted source of reliable information for seniors, families, and individuals seeking treatment by Black health professionals. It’s so impactful that I recently joined the Colorado Black Health Collaborative to speak with Colorado Public Radio about it and the importance of health equity.

Looking into 2025
Our work doesn’t stop on January 15th. We’ll follow along with the upcoming state legislative session to monitor any changes to the health policy landscape, and we remain committed to serving our customers year-round. Coloradans will come to the marketplace throughout 2025 as they experience life change events that make them eligible to enroll in the middle of the year.

Thank you for being part of the journey. Here’s to a successful Open Enrollment and a year filled with health, happiness, and hope.

Take care, 

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

After an eventful month and a half, I’m impressed with Connect for Health Colorado’s growth. We’re seeing about 20 percent more health insurance enrollments over this time last year, an increase made even more impressive considering the enrollment record we achieved last year. I’m thankful to see that enrollments are outpacing previous years, as we announced last week on Get Covered Day, Dec. 5th.

My greatest thanks goes to you, our valued stakeholders, who diligently work to increase access, affordability, and choice for health care coverage in Colorado. As we face a new year of discussions about it all, real Coloradans are still able to afford to cover themselves and their families thanks to your hard work.

Now’s the Time To Enroll for January Coverage

As you may know, Dec. 15th is the deadline for Coloradans to enroll in a health insurance plan that begins Jan. 1st, 2025. However, Colorado offers flexibility with what we call our “in-line deadlines,” a policy allowing customers who started their plan enrollment or made account changes by Dec. 15th to enroll up to two business days after the deadline.

If you know someone who started, but couldn’t complete their enrollment by Dec. 15, please let them know they have until Tuesday, Dec. 17 to enroll, but they must call our Customer Service Center at 855-752-6749 to do so. We’re here to make the process as easy as possible.

In The Community with our Stakeholders

During Open Enrollment, we work hard to make sure our local and state stakeholders know who we are and what we do at Connect for Health Colorado. Most recently, I attended several events to hear from our Colorado counties and cities about the issues most important to them, including the Colorado Counties Incorporated Winter Conference, the Metro Mayor’s Caucus Reception, and the Black Caucus Legislative Preview. It was a great opportunity to talk to county human services directors, county commissioners, and our legislators about how to best serve people in their communities and what health care priorities are expected this legislative session. And just before the holiday, I spent a day in Durango with a health insurance Broker to talk about their business and their Open Enrollment experience so far.

Finally, I enjoyed speaking with Deborah Walker on her Rocky Mountain PBS show “Gospel Train.” We discussed Open Enrollment and the importance of enrolling in health insurance before the upcoming Dec. 15th deadline.       

It’s always a pleasure to put faces to names when I’m out and about in the state, and I’m excited to see what we all accomplish for Coloradans this season.

Take care, 

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

I want to acknowledge the questions about the future of health policy since Tuesday’s election.

We’ve successfully navigated periods of uncertainty like this several times in the past, including eight years ago, and we didn’t do it alone. You, our customers, stakeholders, and partners, make it possible to move forward together.

There are several things that we know.

• The Affordable Care Act is still the law of the land.

• Senate Bill 11-200, the state law that created Connect for Health Colorado, is still the law of the state. There are several other important state laws that ensure quality, affordable, and comprehensive health coverage for Coloradans.

• There are significant savings available to customers who enroll through the Marketplace for Plan Year 2025.

We know this may be a particularly difficult time for immigrant families to navigate. We remain committed to protecting customers’ privacy. For OmniSalud customers enrolling though Colorado Connect, we will not and have never asked for their immigration status. Colorado Connect does not share customers’ personal information with federal partners for any purpose,and the information included in the application cannot be used for immigration enforcement.

We remain steadfast in our commitment to increasing access, affordability, and choice for all Coloradans purchasing health insurance in Colorado.

As we continue getting Coloradans covered during Open Enrollment, we have an opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those who need access to health coverage and who need help getting there.

Thank you for your partnership.

Take care,

Kevin

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

As the leaves change and pumpkins appear on doorsteps, we’re approaching the official start of the annual Open Enrollment Period on November 1st. The Division of Insurance released final rates just last week. Our analysis shows that for plan year 2025, three out of five customers will find a plan for $10 per month or less.

This marks a premium affordability trend we’ve seen in the past few years, made possible by  enhanced financial help provided by the federal government. The enhanced tax credits are set to expire at the end of the 2025 plan year unless Congress takes action to extend this enhanced federal financial help.

Celebrating a Successful Partner Conference

CoverCO, the annual conference we host to prepare our partners for the Open Enrollment Period, was once again a great success. Over 570 people attended, and those included health insurance Brokers, community-based Assisters, and a variety of other community partners. The conference is a critical resource for our partners because it helps get them up to speed on all the changes to health policy and enrollment strategies since the last Open Enrollment Period.

We were especially excited to dedicate an entire day of the conference to the upcoming changes in health coverage for Coloradans who are immigrants. This year we were lucky to welcome two phenomenal keynote speakers: Ana Paula Noguez Mercado, a language justice expert who challenged many of our attendees to experience live translation for the first time, and Zach Mercurio, who reminded us how to find the meaning in our everyday work. 

Leadership Highlight in the Community

I recently spoke with the Colorado Black Chamber of Commerce and was featured in the October edition of their magazine, The Acumen. We talked about what it takes to be a leader, and I shared many of the values I practice in my own leadership at Connect for Health Colorado.  It’s an honor to be recognized for the work that has made our marketplace one of the most innovative in the nation.

We are excited to open our doors next week, and I will continue to share more about this year’s offerings as we kick things off.

Take care, 

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

Preliminary Health Insurance Prices and New Board Member Announcements

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

Last week, members of our Leadership Team attended and participated in NASHP’s State Marketplace Network summer forum in Minneapolis. Our own Chief Product Officer, Kelly Davies, was invited to present a deeper dive into our strategies for helping customers choose and stay enrolled in the right health plan for their needs. It was a pleasure to see friendly faces and to meet new marketplace colleagues. Colorado is one of a handful of states that has been operating its own marketplace since the first Open Enrollment in 2013. As such, it’s our privilege to share our lessons learned and experiences with more recently established state marketplaces.

I like to say, if you’ve experienced one state-based marketplace, you’ve experienced just one state-based marketplace. That is, each SBM plays a unique role in their state, and none of us are set up or serve our residents in the same way. But, regardless of our similarities or differences, it’s affirming to spend time with folks who do this special work. I appreciate the chance to learn how their structure allows them to operate and connect on the challenges we anticipate moving forward. I’m really looking forward to the annual conference this September and keeping these conversations going with our state marketplace partners.

Preliminary Health Insurance Prices Show Modest Increases for 2025
Earlier this week, the Colorado Division of Insurance (DOI) announced that it has completed its initial review of the health insurance plans that the companies have filed for 2025. Their preliminary review indicates that the consumer impact for all individual health plans from all companies will be an average 5.5 percent increase in premiums. While things can change as the DOI conducts its next round of analysis, I’m optimistic to see modest increases proposed for 2025.

On Thursday, July 25, the DOI will hold a virtual stakeholder meeting from 9:30-11:30 a.m. MDT, to share preliminary information regarding health insurance for 2025. You can review key information from the initial plans and register for the stakeholder meeting on the Division of Insurance’s website.

Welcoming Jennifer Brooks to Our Board of Directors
We recently announced that the Colorado House Minority Office has named Jennifer Brooks, an insurance broker, to Connect for Health Colorado’s Board of Directors. As a certified enrollment expert, Jennifer brings a vital customer focus and perspective to our discussions. Her depth of experience with the individual market paired with her dedication to advocating for our customers will contribute greatly to our Board, and I’m very pleased to welcome her to the team.

Take care,

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

Special Enrollment Period Extension

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

Last week, Connect for Health Colorado sponsored, and I attended, Colorado Municipal League’s annual conference. I realize many folks see our marketplace as just a place for people who don’t have health plan options from their job. However, in the past few years, there have been some changes that make it possible for us to offer financial help to families who have been shut out in the past, as well as ICHRAs as an alternative to traditional group health plans. So, I was eager to learn from the people who keep our towns, cities, and counties running and to share a bit more with them about our marketplace.

The conversations give me invaluable perspective on how our state is changing and how we can help solve problems regarding access to affordable health coverage in regions like northern and eastern Colorado, or at least understand them better. Since these discussions, I’ve been thinking deeply about where we can grow our marketplace presence north of metro Denver and how we can better partner with anchor institutions, like hospitals, in rural Colorado. I enjoyed sharing the luncheon with Mead Mayor Colleen Whitlow and some of the Mead Board of Trustees. It was my pleasure to sponsor the event. It was an important place for connection, and I hope to keep learning from local government employees and leaders.

People Losing Medicaid Coverage Have More Time to Enroll in Health Insurance

Earlier this week, the Colorado Division of Insurance (DOI) announced that it has extended the special enrollment window for people who are no longer qualify for Health First Colorado (Colorado’s Medicaid program) coverage due to the end of the Public Health Emergency (PHE). Folks in this situation now have through November 30, 2024 to enroll in health insurance through Connect for Health Colorado. The previous deadline was July 31.

Since last year, we’ve seen nearly 19,000 Coloradans sign up for plans on our Marketplace after losing their Medicaid coverage as a result of the pandemic protections ending. I’m truly grateful we can offer people robust financial help – with the enhanced premium tax credits in place, 3 out of 5 customers can find a plan for $10 per month or less – and an abundance of free, local enrollment assistance.

In light of the special enrollment period extension, I’d appreciate your help sharing outreach materials with your networks as part of the Keep Coloradans Covered campaign.

Take care,

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

Making strides in increasing access and affordability

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

During the last few days in April, I visited Washington D.C. for an event organized by the National Academy for State Health Policy. I was one of 19 directors of state-based marketplaces invited to visit with the White House. We received a strong show of support when we arrived. We met with the Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services, members of the Domestic Policy Council, and leadership from the department that oversees our work: the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (CCIIO). We also had the opportunity to meet with both the Republican and Democratic committees and leadership staff.

I was honored to share with our federal partners directly how much we appreciated their support for the enhanced premium tax credits as well as the regulatory changes that have increased access and affordability. We also discussed the value of state-based marketplaces, our wins, highlights of Open Enrollment, populations we’re reaching during the Medicaid Unwind, and the health equity initiatives we’re launching. I was pleased to share how Colorado has been on the forefront of using Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRAs) to get folks covered, leveraging ICHRAs with our exchange employees while our brokers use ICHRAs to help get people enrolled in rural counties.

We also shared our concerns. The biggest one being that the enhanced subsidies provided by the federal government are set to go away after Dec. 31, 2025. These enhanced premium tax credits have been in place since 2021 and have made coverage significantly more affordable. For example, this year, with financial help applied, 60 percent of our customers could find a plan for $10 or less per month. I’m doing everything I can to illustrate to our federal partners that if these enhanced subsidies end, people who rely on marketplaces like Connect for Health Colorado to obtain health insurance will be at risk of losing financial help or no longer being able to afford their coverage.

As I departed our nation’s capital, I felt immense gratitude for the opportunity to collaborate with other state-based marketplace directors and our federal partners. While we may see things from our different perspectives, it’s clear we’re aligned in trying to keep as many people covered as possible and being as creative as we can to meet customer needs.

DACA Recipients Will Be Eligible for Marketplace Plans

Last Friday, the Department of Health and Human Services published a final rule that will allow DACA recipients to enroll in a plan through Connect for Health Colorado starting later this fall. This is a really big deal and is an issue we’ve been monitoring for a while.

Currently, we offer health plans and financial help to about 11,000 people in Colorado who are undocumented, including DACA recipients, via the OmniSalud program. This program’s financial help is made possible by our state’s Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise and has been limited. I’m hopeful this change will open some of the limited financial help available in our OmniSalud program this coming year and allow even more people to get covered.

In general, I’m grateful for the strides the Administration has made in improving access and affordability through regulatory changes. And I’m very glad for this latest update that allows DACA recipients to shop on our Marketplace. Staff are already developing our plan to implement this change, and we’ll be ready to help current and new customers navigate their eligibility come fall. This change makes sense for our business, and it upholds our mission to increase access, affordability, and choice for all the people of Colorado in need of health coverage.

Take care,

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

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In The News

I had the pleasure of speaking with business reporter Analisa Romano of the Denver Business Journal about my career and how it brought me to this role as leader of Colorado’s health insurance exchange. Grab your coffee and read the profile here.

Illustrating the Impact of Financial Help in Colorado

We have provided thousands of Coloradans with increased access to savings thanks to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2023. The federal laws expanded the amount of assistance people can receive towards their health insurance premium when shopping through an Affordable Care Act health insurance marketplace—like Connect for Health Colorado— through 2025.

Some facts I shared about Colorado with our federal partners…

• Every Open Enrollment since the passage of ARPA and IRA has broken enrollment records- 2024 was our most successful Open Enrollment period in history at over 237,000 people covered. This includes a 41% increase in financially assisted enrollments from 2021.
• Customers aged 55 and older have decreased their net premiums by 73% due to the enhanced subsidies.
• Enhanced subsidies are especially impactful in rural Colorado. Expanded financial assistance led to a 40% enrollment increase between 2021 and 2024 across all rural counties, and on average, a 53% increase to their monthly financial assistance.
• Removing the income limit for financial help eligibility helps middle class Coloradans. 34,000 Coloradans in 2024 are receiving financial help for which they would have been ineligible without removal of the income limit.

Legislative session update

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

On Wednesday, we published our annual Open Enrollment report. This year’s By the Numbers report details how improvements to our technology and operations, changes to federal law, innovative state laws, and a statewide network of certified experts contributed to nearly 250,000 Coloradans signing up for a health insurance plan by the end of the Open Enrollment Period.

This year’s Open Enrollment data tells me that Connect for Health Colorado is succeeding in our efforts to expand access, affordability, and choice for Coloradans. We know we’ve still got a way to go, but the report’s findings illustrate that we are moving in the right direction. I’m very proud to look back at our eleventh Open Enrollment and see that we’re breaking our previous year’s enrollment records, increasing efficiencies, improving the customer experience in major ways, and running innovative programs that truly drive affordability and enrollments.

You can find more data about plan selection trends, average costs and savings in your county, Colorado Option plan sign ups, outreach and marketing strategies to reach eligible Coloradans, and more in the By the Numbers Open Enrollment Report for Plan Year 2024.
 
Legislative Session Update
We have just about five weeks left of legislative session, and there arethree bills that our board of directors has taken a support position on. If they become law, here’s how they will impact our customers and work:

• House Bill 1035 would not create any major impacts to our work, but it would streamline the requirements for the official reports that the Communications, Marketing, and Business Intelligence teams produce for the legislature each year. The bill has passed and is awaiting the Governor’s signature.
• Senate Bill 93 would provide continuous health coverage to people with serious medical conditions who are switching between types of coverage. This includes Coloradans transitioning from Medicaid to private health insurance. This bill has also passed and is awaiting the Governor’s signature. Read our support statement here.
• House Bill 1258 would help customers when a health insurance company leaves the market in the middle of a plan year by requiring the customer’s new health insurance company to honor their former accumulator costs, like their deductible and out-of-pocket maximum. This bill is currently in the Senate Appropriations Committee. Read our support statement here.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

On Monday, our Board of Directors took a support position for Senate Bill 24-093, Continuity of Health-Care Coverage Change. This bill will ensure that Coloradans who are no longer eligible for Health First Colorado (Colorado’s Medicaid program) or the Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) program can continue treatment for their serious medical conditions for 90 days without fear of out-of-network balance billing. We know that coverage transitions can be a stressful period for people losing Medicaid regardless of health condition, but Coloradans with serious medical conditions and those getting ongoing treatments are in an especially vulnerable situation. I hope this bill can also help provide greater peace of mind for people as they continue critical treatments.

Since the spring of 2023, we’ve seen thousands more Coloradans coming to our Marketplace after losing their Medicaid coverage. You may have heard this described as the “Medicaid unwind,” or the end of COVID-19 pandemic protections that kept Medicaid enrollees continuously enrolled even if they became ineligible. Our enrollment experts continue to be on the front lines of helping these folks, and they’ve relayed the concerns and challenges from customers about continuity of critical care. We applaud the bill sponsors, Senator Michaelson-Jenet and Representative Amabile, and the many stakeholders who worked tirelessly to craft this important legislation.

Read our full statement in support of SB24-093.

Celebrating a Technological Milestone
I’m pleased to share that, this month, Connect for Health Colorado finalized our own fully functional connection with the Federal Data Services Hub (FDSH). This is a milestone in our work to own our technology, and a new level of organizational maturity. FDSH connections are the country’s gateways to accessing federal data. We use an FDSH connection to verify information about our customers, like their identity, household income, and more. This achievement will reduce security risks and make our systems more sustainable, more resilient, and more responsive to compliance requests. This outcome has been years in the making, and I’m very proud of our staff who made it possible.

Take care,

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

Funding Opportunity for Enrollment Assistance

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

I spent the earlier portion of the week in Washington, D.C. to connect with the broker community and some of our federal partners.

I was invited to speak on a panel at NABIP’s national conference about how we’re driving positive change in Colorado. I was pleased to share about innovations we’ve pursued in our state, like the Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise and our public benefit corporation and second shopping platform, Colorado Connect. More specifically, I shared how brokers are a crucial part of our success in implementing federal and state policy changes and how we rely on them more than ever to expertly guide people through expanded financial help and plan options. As we looked closer at our broker support data over the years, we found that, on average, 60 percent of all enrollments have come through brokers– one of the highest rates of broker support in the nation.

While I was there, I also met with federal partners at CCIIO to tell them about the progress we’ve made on compliance projects and shared our strategy for approaching the upcoming compliance work we’re expecting. I’m grateful to have these big picture conversations as we plan our future work in Colorado and as we collaborate with partners to identify the right solutions to meet our shared needs.

Funding Opportunity for Enrollment Assistance
Our partners provide a crucial one-on-one service to help Coloradans get covered. They help us make sure local communities, especially those who face barriers in getting health coverage, can access the plans and savings we offer. Now through April 10, we are requesting applications from organizations to operate Assistance Sites, Certified Application Counselor locations, Enrollment Centers, and Referral Partner locations across the state.

We welcome applications from community-based organizations, medical facilities, associations, ranching and farming organizations, chambers of commerce, unions, state and local human service agencies, certified brokers and broker agencies, and other organizations. We strive to create the most robust, responsive partnership network possible, so please do check out this opportunity, or share it with people in your network who may be interested.

Take care,

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