Ten years ago, I was tapped to be interim chief executive officer of Connect for Health Colorado at a critical time for the state’s marketplace. 

Our customers were frustrated and disappointed, and we faced legislative scrutiny, questions about our financial sustainability, and challenges with systems and staffing.

Throughout my career, I had served in other interim capacities, helping stabilize organizations and teams before permanent hires were made.

But this was different. 

I knew the magnitude and possibility of the work had the opportunity to transform access to affordable health insurance for hundreds of thousands of Coloradans. That is what has kept me here in a permanent capacity for the last decade. 

I’ll tell you the truth. Those early years were rough, and the challenges we faced were overwhelming to say the least. So we focused, identified the things within our control, and we found our North Star: the customer experience.

With every decision we made and every dollar we spent, we asked ourselves, “What problem can we fix today? How can we do better for the people we serve?”

With care and purpose, we started to remake the organization.    

We brought more services in-house, added experts in user experience and product development, and created faster, smarter ways to collect feedback from the people we serve.

Every year, we faced new challenges. Every year, we learned and improved.

It was not easy, but it was worth it, and it worked.

Today, our net promoter score – the indicator of whether customers would recommend the marketplace – is no longer negative. It is in the 60s.

Our enrollment has grown by 100%, and 80% of our customers today receive financial help to lower costs.

Our customer service center has a customer satisfaction rate of 87% – nearly 40% higher than five years ago.

And maybe most importantly, people across Colorado now see us as a trusted resource for buying health insurance and navigating care.

A decade after I started this work, I am incredibly proud of what we have built together.

I acknowledge the importance and meaning of my role and my service over the last 10 years, and I know this has never been about me. 

This work is for our families, our friends, our neighbors and our communities. And none of our success would be possible without you – the Connect for Health Colorado team and our network of trusted, valued partners.

We may never know or truly understand the full meaning of the work we’ve done, how it has improved, transformed and saved lives.

Colorado’s health insurance marketplace has come a long way in the last decade. We will work to protect what we have built, and we still have more we can do to innovate and cement Connect for Health Colorado’s role as the go-to place for individuals, families, and small businesses to purchase affordable, quality health insurance in Colorado.

I am confident that our partnerships and our commitment to this work will allow us to continue to do transformative work – together. 

Take care,

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