Since I last reported out to you, our Board or Directors took a support stance on House Bill 1349, the Colorado Affordable Health Care Option bill. On Wednesday evening, our Chief Policy & Relationships Officer, Monica VanBuskirk, testified in support of the bill. We also issued a press release that shares more about our organization’s support for the bill. If enacted, the bill would offer a state option on our Marketplace.

Obviously, the other big news this week is continued severity of the COVID-19 virus. We shared our support for the Colorado Division of Insurance’s bulletin that will require that health insurance companies remove cost sharing on specific services related to COVID-19. Our customers will be able to:

• Access telehealth services at no cost.
• Refill an additional one-time early refill of any necessary prescriptions.
• Access COVID-19 testing at no cost (see CDPHE guidelines for testing).

As we all prepare to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, we recommend you review information from these trusted sources:

• Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
• World Health Organization  

We’re encouraging customers to contact their insurance company directly for questions about plan benefits and how best to access care.

I’ve also directed our staff to start working remotely on Monday, and we will continue to assess the situation to ensure our staff remain safe and healthy.

We will share helpful information with our customers as this health care situation continues to evolve, and will communicate any potential changes in our operations in the coming days.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

We are about halfway through the legislative session this year, and we are seeing a lot of activity in health policy.

House Bill 1349, the Colorado Affordable Health Care Option bill, was released yesterday. If enacted, the bill would a state option on our Marketplace. I issued a statement about the bill and our staff and board will take some time to review the language.

As a reminder, we have taken a position of support on two bills during this session. House Bill 1008, the Health Care Cost Sharing Consumer Protections Bill will cut down on confusion and reduce the risk of customers accidentally going without comprehensive health coverage. House Bill 1236, known as “Easy Enrollment,” would 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).

Connect for Health signed on to a letter with other state-based marketplaces as well submitting a comment letter of our own to the Department of Health and Human Services regarding the Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters. I believe these comments send a clear message about the importance of these issues in delivering our services to customers.

In the News

The Colorado Sun and 9News covered the HB-1349 release and explain in more detail about state option would work.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

You likely saw the recent Supreme Court rulings on the Public Charge process and injunctions. I issued a statement immediately following the ruling, and my team developed a resource document that includes a list of immigration attorneys. We remain concerned about the confusion this new rule will cause, and we will continue to remind our customers that the financial help we provide will not count negatively against them. 

Even with all the federal happenings, we are staying laser-focused on the services and value we provide to Coloradans. We’re continuing to lend our expertise to the health policy conversations during this legislative session to ensure that new proposals effectively work toward more access, affordability and choice for Coloradans.

For example, our staff and Board of Directors have taken a position of support on House Bill 1008, the Health Care Cost Sharing Consumer Protections Bill. This bill will cut down on confusion and reduce the risk of customers accidentally going without comprehensive health coverage. We heard testimony on the bill this week and will watch the bill as it progresses.

On a personal note, I was honored to receive a Distinguished Scholar Award from my alma mater, the School of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Colorado. I thank them for the recognition and the chance to speak with several of their students.

In the News

John Ingold from the Colorado Sun reported on HB 1008 and the Durango Herald reported on our Special Enrollment Period we are offering for certain health care ministry customers.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

While our seventh Open Enrollment period is now closed, we know our work is never really done. We will continue enrolling Coloradans with qualifying life events throughout the year.

Connect for Health Colorado staff and I visited with community leaders at the 2020 Voices of Rural Colorado this week. I was honored to speak at the reception last night about our commitment to serve rural Coloradans, and per our strategic plan, we will continue to advocate for improved rural access.

Lastly, we recently published our 2019 Annual Report, where we provide an update on our work toward our strategic goals.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

We’ve come to the end of another successful Open Enrollment period, which closed on Wednesday night. I appreciate the support around the state — I know many of you worked tirelessly to help Coloradans enroll in their 2020 health insurance.

We reported this morning that nearly 167,000 Coloradans selected health coverage for 2020, comparable to last year’s Open Enrollment period. I am proud of our work to cover as many Coloradans as possible during this enrollment period. Read more about our preliminary numbers in the press release, and we will share more numbers with you once we’ve had the time to sort through the data.

In the News

The media helped us get the word out about the Jan. 15 deadline earlier this week from the Daily Sentinel in Grand Junction, the Summit Daily in Frisco and KOA Radio in Denver.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

I hope you had a restful holiday season. As I reflect on the past year, I am grateful for your hard work and support.

As you may know, the deadline for 2020 coverage is Wednesday, Jan. 15. Our enrollment teams have not let up on the gas one bit as we head toward the finishing line. Coloradans can get free, expert help at Walk-In & Enroll events this Saturday and next Wednesday.

Congressman Jason Crow and I recently spent some time with our enrollment team in Aurora. We were happy to hear firsthand of the hard work they’ve put into this Open Enrollment season. It was a great reminder of how vital our community partners are in serving the needs of residents.

I was also pleased to join our lawmakers at the Capitol for Gov. Polis’ State of the State address yesterday. I appreciate his commitment to lowering the cost of healthcare, and I echo his call to increase access, affordability and choice on the individual market. We stand ready to advise and help implement the solutions that our state leaders create.

In the News

Vail Daily featured a letter from our Western Slope outreach manager. Univision Colorado also hosted us for a few segments this week, including a Facebook live, to reach Spanish-speaking residents. 

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

As we enter the holidays, I am happy to report that we completed our first deadline for enrollments for the Plan Year 2020, seeing strong enrollments thus far. We reported this morning through a press release that more than 153,000 Coloradans made plan selections for 2020 coverage.

But as you all know, there is still time for Coloradans to enroll, with our Open Enrollment period continuing through Jan. 15. Our Customer Service Center will serve customers throughout the upcoming holiday weeks with adapted hours: Dec. 24 from 8 a.m. – 2 p.m.; closed on Dec. 25; Dec. 31 from 8 a.m.- 2 p.m., closed on Jan. 1. And of course, customers can be in touch with one of our many enrollment experts for help enrolling.

We know there is also concern over the recent Fifth Circuit Court decision in the Texas v. Azar case regarding the Affordable Care Act. A reminder that the law remains in place while the case moves through the process, and our Marketplace is as strong as ever. Read more of my thoughts on this case and Colorado Public Radio provided additional details on the court ruling.

In the News

We appreciated the media’s help, via local TV and online, in spreading the word about the first  deadline.

Wishing you all a happy and healthy holiday season!

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

As you all know, this Sunday is the last chance for people to sign up for Jan. 1 coverage, although we do stay open until Jan. 15. We’ve been working hard to get the word out about the deadline in this final week. You may have seen that Governor Polis penned an email to our customers, and we worked with John Ingold at the Colorado Sun to help us share step-by-step guidance for signing up.

As part of the final push, I’ll be speaking at a health fair this Saturday with Congressman Joe Neguse at Colorado State University in Fort Collins about the importance of health coverage and to remind people to review their options when enrolling this year.

To ensure all questions are answered, we’ve also extended our Customer Service Center hours today through Sunday: Friday and Saturday, 8 a.m.- 8 p.m.; and Sunday noon- 8 p.m. And, of course, our statewide network of brokers, assisters and enrollment centers are available to help.

Thanks again for all you do help us with our mission to increase access, affordability, and choice for individuals purchasing health insurance in Colorado.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving with family and friends. As we come back from that holiday, we are quickly nearing the Dec. 15 deadline for Coloradans who want to be covered on Jan. 1, 2020.

Yesterday, we reported our enrollment numbers through the end of November. Nearly 42,000 Coloradans signed up for a health insurance plan in the first month of the Open Enrollment period and approximately 70 percent of applicants qualify for financial help.

We have many opportunities for Coloradans to get help enrolling before the deadline. This Sunday, I am speaking at New Hope Baptist Church as part of our larger Get Covered Sunday efforts. Our staff will visit a total of six churches in the Denver/Aurora area to help spread the word about the importance of getting covered. Our Assisters and Brokers are hosting enrollment events, Enrollment Center experts available and our Customer Service Center is ready to take calls. Find all the ways to get help on our website.

As a reminder, we encourage you to help us push the important message through your networks that folks may save money if they shop instead of auto-renewing.

Take care,

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

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

Last week, I traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with our congressional delegation about the shifting healthcare landscape of Colorado. I met with Senator Cory Gardner, as well as Representatives Joe Neguse and Scott Tipton.  I also met with staff of Senator Michael Bennet and Representative Jason Crow. We discussed policy work to increase Coloradan’s health insurance access while decreasing costs, and I encouraged them to spread the message about the financial help already available to their constituents. I also shared the progress Connect for Health Colorado is making to ensure our technology platform will be ready to meet the evolving needs of our state.

While in D.C., I also had the opportunity to continue to build my relationship and trust with our federal oversight group, the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight. I spoke with them about the system improvements we put in place this year, and they expressed that they are pleased with the consistent progress we have made to improve the usability of our website while increasing our federal compliance.

This week, we reported that nearly 24,000 Coloradans made plan selections during the first two weeks of this year’s Open Enrollment period. I’m encouraged that our message to actively compare plans is resonating with customers. Read more in our press release.

In the News

Denver’s Channel 7 shared more about how reinsurance is affecting rates this year and the importance of shopping. Univision Colorado also featured a Facebook Live segment about Open Enrollment in Spanish.

Take care,

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