Contact: Luke Clarke, 720-496-2545
[email protected]

DENVER — More than 156,000 Coloradans selected healthcare coverage for 2019 through the state health insurance Marketplace through December 15, 2018, a rate 5 percent ahead of signups one year ago, according to new data released today by Connect for Health Colorado®.

“I am happy with the pace of sign-ups for health insurance plans that take effect January 1,” said Connect for Health Colorado CEO Kevin Patterson.  “But we are still enrolling Coloradans who buy their own health insurance and will continue through January 15. For anyone who does not yet have coverage in place, it’s time to go to our site and pick your coverage for next year. In four weeks, the door closes for buying your 2019 health plan.”

Coloradans have selected 156,101 medical insurance plans through the December 15 deadline. The total was 149,006 for the comparable period in 2017. Seventeen percent of the medical plan selections are by customers who are new to Connect for Health Colorado and 83 percent are renewing customers.

Connect for Health Colorado opened for business November 1 with rate increases lower than the state has seen in years, a streamlined application process that will save Coloradans time obtaining financial assistance and all seven health insurance companies returning to the individual market in 2019.

While many states have concluded their Open Enrollment periods, Open Enrollment in Colorado runs to January 15, 2019, for insurance that will take effect February 1, 2019.

“As a state-based health insurance marketplace, we are able to adjust our operations to best meet the needs of the residents of our state,” Patterson said. “This year, that has meant introducing a streamlined process for obtaining financial help, improving our online tool for choosing a health plan and extending the enrollment period beyond the holidays.”

Contact: Luke Clarke 720-496-2545

DENVER — More than 46,000 Coloradans selected health coverage through Connect for Health Colorado® during November, a number 6 percent ahead of the pace one year ago, according to new data released today.

“We started with a strong month but there are now only 12 days left to get coverage in place for Jan. 1,” said Connect for Health Colorado® CEO Kevin Patterson. “It is time for Coloradans who buy their own health insurance to act to protect their health and their family finances.”

During November, Connect for Health Colorado customers made 46,332 medical plan selections. The total was 43,881 medical plan selections for the comparable period in 2017. Fifteen percent of the plan selections are by customers who are new to Connect for Health Colorado and 85 percent are renewing customers.

Connect for Health Colorado opened for business Nov. 1 with rate increases lower than the state has seen in years, a streamlined application process that will save Coloradans time obtaining financial assistance and all seven health insurance companies returning to the individual market in 2019.

“We have a statewide network of 1,000 Brokers and Assisters who can help with these important decisions,” Patterson said. “I urge anyone in Colorado who buys their own health insurance to go now to ConnectforHealthCO.com to see what financial help they can get. Many are pleasantly surprised with what they find.”

More than 130,000 Coloradans got help paying for health insurance in 2018. Renewing customers qualifying for financial help will see their net premium – their cost after the Advance Premium Tax Credit – go down 24%, on average, in 2019.

Analysis shows that three out of four of Connect for Health Colorado customers who bought their health insurance with financial help will have an option for health insurance with a net premium (after financial help) less than $50 per month in 2019.

Open Enrollment runs from November 1, 2018, to January 15, 2019, but consumers need to enroll by December 15 to have coverage in place by January 1, 2019.

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

We are just a few weeks into our Open Enrollment Period and we have reason to be optimistic.

We reported Friday that we have seen 25,614 medical plan submissions through Nov. 15, our fastest start ever and a 13 percent increase over last year’s pace in the comparable period.

At the same time, we have been working hard to address call hold times at our Customer Service Center. After adding staff and making adjustments to the call technology, as of Friday, we’ve reduced average hold times to less than two minutes.

Our Customer Service Center will be closed Thursday so that our staff can celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday with their families. They will be working normal hours, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., on Wednesday and Friday.

We appreciate all that you do to support our work and hope that you will have time with friends and family over the holiday.

Take care,

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

Since the updated platform launch, two million people have visited the Colorado marketplace site

For media inquiries, contact: [email protected]

STONY BROOK, N.Y.  – Connect for Health Colorado®, the state’s health insurance exchange, today announced it has partnered with Softheon, a national leader in cloud-based health insurance exchange integration and services, to enhance its existing enrollment platform with intuitive guided shopping powered by decision support. Coloradans are actively using this updated platform to select new plans during the 2019 Open Enrollment.

In addition to giving users an elevated shopping experience, this technology, built with Angular 6 and hosted on an Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud, allows for greater accuracy of provider and pharmacy networks, and advanced reporting. The Connect for Health Colorado portal now uses state-of-the-art algorithms to pull more accurate estimates for monthly and yearly total out-of-pocket costs, allowing users to better budget.

«We are honored to partner with Connect for Health Colorado® to bring affordable, accessible, and plentiful healthcare to people across the state,” said Eugene Sayan, CEO & Founder of Softheon. “Our focus on machine learning allows Softheon to provide the best possible shopping experience for our users and ensure that everyone ends up with the plan that is truly best to suit their needs.”

The platform walks members through a series of questions about themselves, their financial status, typical coverage needs, doctor preferences, and necessary prescriptions. Based on these answers, the plan options are tailored to best meet the member’s unique needs.

“Our Quick Cost and Plan Finder Tool is the only place where Coloradans can go to easily compare their health insurance options side-by-side and get an estimate of what financial help they can get,” said Connect for Health Colorado Chief Executive Officer Kevin Patterson. “We are committed to providing the best possible customer experience with this technology.”

Connect for Health Colorado noted that Softheon was able to provide outstanding job training and outline a clear understanding of the work progress. Because Softheon leveraged the cloud to automatically scale to fit our product’s demands, Connect for Health Colorado did not have to continually pay for extra space. After communicating all risks and milestones, Softheon was able to meet all deadlines and was quick to resolve any issues that arose.

Since implementation, Colorado has seen more than 2 million people use their platform to shop. Going forward, Softheon will also be working with Connect for Health Colorado to implement mobile functionality and Spanish translation to further enhance the users’ shopping experience.

To learn more about Softheon, visit Softheon.com. To learn more about Connect for Health Colorado, visit connectforhealthco.com.

About Softheon

Softheon’s mission is to make healthcare affordable, accessible, and plentiful. Softheon’s cloud-based Software-as-a-Service(SaaS) and Business Process-as-a-Service (BPaaS) solutions for federal and state governments have solved complex challenges that are associated with administering public health insurance exchanges. Softheon solutions work to transform the way agencies operate by delivering unparalleled healthcare capabilities including but not limited to: Individual and SHOP Marketplaces, Special Enrollment Period (SEP) verification, Advance Premium Tax Credit (APTC) validation, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Validation, Electronic and Paper-based Payment Processing, Carrier Reconciliation Facilitation, and Federally Facilitated Marketplace (FFM) Population Analytics.

In 2018, Softheon was ranked the 23^rd fastest growing company in the United States on Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500.

Contact:  Luke Clarke 720-496-2545

DENVER – Gov. Hickenlooper has named two health policy leaders to vacancies on the Connect for Health Colorado® Board of Directors

Lorez Meinhold, Senior Policy Director at the Keystone Policy Center, was newly named to the board, and David Padrino, the Chief of Staff to the Lieutenant Governor and the state’s Deputy Chief Operating Officer, was re-appointed to a board seat he has held previously.

Ms. Meinhold, whose more than 17 years of healthcare policy experience includes service as Senior Policy Director for two Colorado governors, has worked at the local, state and national level on numerous healthcare policy initiatives. She served as Deputy Director for the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing and as Senior Program Officer for the Colorado Health Foundation, and founded a non-profit, in addition to senior policy positions with governors Bill Ritter and John Hickenlooper.

Mr. Padrino, who also serves as Chair of the Colorado Benefit Management System (CBMS) executive steering committee, was appointed to an ex-officio, non-voting seat on the Connect for Health Colorado Board that he held from 2014-2016.

“We’re excited to welcome these two distinguished and immensely qualified members to our Board,” said Board Chair Adela Flores-Brennan. “They bring broad experience in Colorado healthcare policy. Their insights will be critical as we move forward on our mission to increase access, affordability and choice to individuals and families buying health insurance in Colorado.”

The appointments fill vacancies created by the earlier departures of Davis Fansler and Kyle Brown. The Connect for Health Colorado Board has nine voting members and three ex-officio members.

Contact: Luke Clarke 720-496-2545

DENVER — More than 25,000 Coloradans selected health coverage through Connect for Health Colorado® between Nov. 1 and Nov. 15, a number 13 percent ahead of the pace one year ago, according to new data released today.

“This number of initial sign-ups is the strongest start to an Open Enrollment Period we have seen,” said Connect for Health Colorado® CEO Kevin Patterson. “By acting early, these Coloradans will ensure their health coverage is in place Jan. 1, 2019, protecting their health and their family finances.”

The two-week period saw 25,614 medical plan selections. The total was 22,650 medical plan selections for the comparable period in 2017. Twelve percent of the plan selections are by customers who are new to Connect for Health Colorado and 88 percent are renewing customers.

Connect for Health Colorado opened for business Nov. 1 with rate increases lower than the state has seen in years, a streamlined application process that will save Coloradans time obtaining financial assistance and all seven health insurance companies returning to the individual market in 2019.

“Customers are responding with this early action, but there are still many who qualify for financial assistance and don’t know it,” Patterson said. “I urge anyone in Colorado who buys their own health insurance to check ConnectforHealthCO.com to see what help they can get and to compare their health insurance options side-by-side.”

More than 130,000 Coloradans got help paying for health insurance in 2018. Renewing customers qualifying for financial help will see their net premium – their cost after the Advance Premium Tax Credit – go down 24%, on average, in 2019.

Connect for Health Colorado has introduced a streamlined financial help application that can take roughly half the time to complete as last year’s.

“We are committed to making enrolling in health insurance and getting financial help easier for everyone in our state who buys their own health insurance,” Patterson said.  “This year that financial help was like an 80% discount on health insurance premiums. Too many people assume they make too much to qualify for help.”

Analysis shows that three out of four of Connect for Health Colorado customers who bought their health insurance with financial help will have an option for health insurance with a net premium (after financial help) less than $50 per month in 2019.

Open Enrollment runs from November 1, 2018, to January 15, 2019, but consumers need to enroll by December 15 to have coverage in place by January 1, 2019.

Thinking back on our story as we look forward

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

This week’s election reminds us of our bipartisan roots and the continuing oversight of Connect for Health Colorado by representatives of both political parties.

We had the opportunity to meet early with members of both governor campaigns and we continue to work with the incoming administration.

It’s good to remember that the original idea for a state health insurance marketplace (they called it a “Connector” then) originated with a panel formed by Republican Gov. Bill Owens. A Democrat, Bill Ritter, occupied the governor’s mansion when the group delivered its recommendation and our outgoing Gov. John Hickenlooper was in office to sign the legislation when Republican and Democratic legislators passed a bill creating the Colorado Health Benefit Exchange, which does business as Connect for Health Colorado.

That bill ensures that legislators in the minority and in the majority party share seats on our 10-member legislative oversight committee and each party names members to our board of directors.

We congratulate all the voters and candidates who participated in Tuesday’s election and we look forward to working with new friends and old friends at the capitol.

In the News

Voters in Idaho, Utah and Nebraska approved measures Tuesday to expand Medicaid, increasing the number of expansion states to 36, according to a Washington Post account. Changes in administrations resulting from the election could see the total rise to 38 states.

Service Update

We have added personnel and we are fine tuning the telephone technology as we continue to see a large number of 2019 plan selections and challenging call volumes.

We are grateful for all the early interest in getting 2019 health insurance in place, but especially for your continued patience and support in this work.

Take care,

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

We launched our sixth Open Enrollment Period yesterday and we are seeing call volume well ahead of our projections and above levels that we have seen in the past. Our new eligibility and enrollment systems are handing the traffic well, but we know many of you calling our Customer Service Center are waiting on hold longer than we are comfortable with. We are working on solutions and we will communicate them to you as soon as they are identified.

We don’t know for certain what has driven so much early interest and driving the number of calls so much higher. Our analysis of the rates and plans offered by our health insurance company partners may be part of it:

• On average, Connect for Health Colorado customers renewing for 2019 with financial help will see a drop in their net premium of 24 percent.
• Three out of four customers renewing with financial help will have the option of buying 2019 coverage for less than $50/month net premium.
• Two out of three of those customers receiving financial help could purchase a bronze plan for $0 net premium.

As good as these averages are, we know there are variations in different areas of the state. It is as important as ever that our customers review all their options and look beyond the premium alone and at the total cost of coverage and their own individual situation.

Planning note: Be aware that because of the Veterans Day observance on Monday, November 12, our November board meeting will be Monday, November 19.

In the News

You have probably heard a lot about short-term health plans. The Kaiser Family Foundation put out an issue brief this week that you may find useful in your conversations on how they compare with the Qualified Health Plans sold through Connect for Health Colorado.

Take care,

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

Contact: Luke Clarke 720-496-2545

DENVER — Connect for Health Colorado opens for business Thursday, November 1, with rate increases lower than the state has seen in years, a streamlined application process that will save Coloradans time obtaining financial assistance and all seven health insurance companies are returning in 2019, in a sign of a stabilizing marketplace.

More than 130,000 Coloradans got help paying for health insurance in 2018. Renewing customers qualifying for financial help will see their net premium – their cost after the Advance Premium Tax Credit – go down 24% on average in 2019.

Connect for Health Colorado has introduced a streamlined financial help application that can take roughly half the time to complete as last year’s.

“We are committed to making enrolling in health insurance and getting financial help easier for everyone in our state who buys their own health insurance,” said Connect for Health Colorado Chief Executive Kevin Patterson. “This year that financial help was like an 80% discount on health insurance. Too many people assume they make too much to qualify for help.”

Analysis shows that three out of four of Coloradans who bought their health insurance with financial help through the Marketplace this year will have an option for health insurance with a net premium (after financial help) less than $50 per month in 2019.

Two out of three of the Connect for Health Colorado customers who qualify for financial help will be able to find a bronze level plan for $0 net premium. Bronze level plans are the lowest premium tier but come with higher deductibles and other out of pocket costs than silver and gold level plans.

The seven health insurance companies offering coverage through Connect for Health Colorado in 2018 are returning for 2019 with the similar number of plan offerings in each region of the state, a sign of a stabilizing market in Colorado.

Open Enrollment runs from November 1, 2018, to January 15, 2018, but consumers need to enroll by December 15 to have coverage in place by January 1, 2019.

About Connect for Health Colorado

Connect for Health Colorado is a public, non-profit entity established by the Colorado General Assembly in 2011 to create a health insurance Marketplace.  Since 2013, we’ve been helping individuals, families and small employers compare plans, apply for financial help and buy health insurance. As Colorado’s official health insurance marketplace, we are the only place to apply for financial help to lower the monthly cost of premiums. Customers can shop online; get help by phone or online chat from Customer Service Center representatives; and access expert, in-person help from a statewide network of certified Brokers and community-based Assisters. For more information:  ConnectforHealthCO.com

The energy and anticipation in our office is unmistakable as we gear up for Thursday’s launch of our sixth Open Enrollment Period. With our new eligibility system in place, our renewing financially assisted customers seeing an average drop of 24 percent in their net premium and all seven of our health insurance company partners returning for 2019, we have reason to be optimistic.

We will be making some final pre-Open Enrollment updates to our system during a 6-hour downtime from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. Monday (October 29) so we will be ready for November 1. After that, it’s all systems go.

Public Charge

We have been getting questions about the potential impact of proposed changes to federal regulations broadening the definition of who is a “public charge” when immigrants seek certain adjustments to their status. We have posted this one-page resource on our site, which includes contact information for several immigration attorneys who can advise Colorado families.

In the News

Two federal proposals were prominent in health insurance industry news this week. One is a proposal to allow employers to use Health Reimbursement Arrangements to assist their workers buying individual health insurance and (for employers of 50 or more) meet the requirement to provide health insurance. Healthcare Finance had this explanation.

The second was CMS guidance giving states more latitude in deciding what kind of health plans can be offered through marketplaces and be eligible for Advance Premium Tax Credit support in plan year 2020 through a 1332 waiver, as reported by Kaiser Health News.

It’s a little early to predict how these measures play out in Colorado but they bear watching.

Take care,

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