We welcomed two new board members this week. Governor Polis recently appointed Allison Neswood and Mara Baer, both of whom have impressive backgrounds in health policy and implementation work.

Allison Neswood is a Staff Attorney with the Native American Rights Fund, where she leads enforcement of voting rights for Native language minority groups. She previously worked for the Colorado Center on Law and Policy where she led initiatives to increase health equity and access to quality health care.

Mara Baer is the Founder and President of AgoHealth, LLC. Mara has worked on the implementation of the Affordable Care Act at the federal level, as well as supporting implementation of Health First Colorado through partnerships with Regional Accountable Entities and the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing.

Both Allison and Mara have a depth of knowledge and commitment to our mission, and I am delighted to have them on our board.

In the News

The Division of Insurance released preliminary information about the health insurance plans and premiums for 2023. The Denver Post and the Colorado Sun both covered the news. As a reminder, final rates come out in early to mid-October.

Take care, 

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

I shared the news that we added to our executive leadership team here at Connect for Health Colorado. Dr. T. Renata Robinson has joined our team as Chief Human Resources and Training Officer.

Her experience training leaders and advancing inclusive and equitable workplace practices will be crucial as our organization grows and as we serve a more diverse customer base.

I look forward to her contributions to our organization and our staff.

Take care, 

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

This week, I had the honor of joining Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Health and Human Services (HHS) Regional Director Lily Griego, and CMS Regional Administrator John Hannigan as they visited Colorado to discuss making health coverage more affordable and accessible, key pillars of our mission.

I joined the Administrator for a roundtable discussion hosted by the Denver Indian Center to discuss how we can best support efforts to meet the health care needs of Urban Indian communities. It was a far-reaching discussion, exploring best practices and challenges related to achieving health care equity and access. I thank all participants for their openness to explore such an important topic.

We also had the opportunity to meet with Mountain Family Health Center, one of our Assistance Network sites, to discuss the risks we will face if we don’t see Congress act on American Rescue Plan (ARP) extensions. Afterward, I joined the Administrator and Mountain Family Health Center for a national press call to share stories that illustrate how life changing the enhanced savings have been for families in rural Colorado.

Beginning last spring, we were able to offer thousands of new and existing customers increased access to savings thanks to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The federal law expanded the amount of assistance people could receive to cover some or all the cost of their health insurance premium when shopping with Connect for Health Colorado through 2022.

Those enhanced marketplace subsidies have made a huge impact on the lives of Coloradans. Across all rural counties, expanded financial assistance led to a 19 percent increase in enrollments over last year, and a 16 percent decrease in those residents’ net premiums.

I’ve heard several stories about customers who had avoided buying health insurance due to cost. If these enhanced subsidies end, people who rely on marketplaces like Connect for Health Colorado to obtain affordable health insurance will lose some or all of their financial help or no longer being able to afford their coverage.

I hope the visit highlighted the great work we are doing in our state to continue to push for 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

Now that the legislative session is over, the governor has been busy signing bills into law. It was exciting to be part of the bill signing at the Capitol for SB-81, a bill that gives us additional resources to raise awareness about the Marketplace. I again want to thank the prime bill sponsors — Representatives Will and Tipper, Senators Smallwood and Donovan – for their willingness to work with us and our Board to make sure this legislation has the greatest impact possible to increase access, affordability, and choice for people buying health insurance in Colorado.

I released a statement about what this bill means to us. We know that access to affordable health coverage starts with Coloradans knowing about the options available to them, and this law will enable us to do more outreach. With the additional marketing and outreach, we hope to keep working toward our goal of helping individuals and families attain and retain the right health care coverage for their needs and financial circumstances. Over the next several months, we will work on implementation plans and share them later this year.

Take care, 

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

This week, I had the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., to meet with CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, HHS Deputy Secretary Andrea Palm, members of the Biden Administration and Congressional staff. Several other State Based Marketplace leaders and I joined together to push for the continuation of the American Rescue Plan subsidies and benefits that recently helped so many more people gain access to affordable health plans. Because these benefits are set to expire at the end of the year, we urged Congress to renew these affordability measures for our customers.

Summer Outreach

Summer is the busy season for our staff to get out into the community. We’ll be at events across the state throughout the summer to build awareness about Connect for Health Colorado and encourage people to come shop with us during Open Enrollment. In the coming weeks, here are a few places you will find us:

• Black Pride Colorado Family Cookout on June 19
• Denver’s Juneteenth Celebration
• Denver Pride 5K on June 25
• El Paso County Fair on July 16
• Fremont County Fair on July 29

In the News

The Washington Post wrote about the recent meetings in D.C.

Take care, 

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

The 2022 legislative session wrapped up just before midnight on Wednesday. Although we know we aren’t quite finished with the pandemic, it sure was exciting to be able to participate in this year’s legislative session in person. I am thrilled I had the opportunity to see so many policy makers, advocates and friends in recent weeks while participating in the legislative process.

Connect for Health Colorado Board of Directors took a support stance on two bills that passed and will await action from the Governor to become law: Healthcare Sharing Plan Reporting Requirements (HB22-1269) and Health Exchange Education Campaign Healthcare Services (SB22-081). We also took a monitor stance on Health Benefits For Colorado Children and Pregnant Persons (HB22-1289), which also passed.

Healthcare Sharing Plan Reporting Requirements (HB22-1269) will bring more transparency to health cost sharing arrangements. The bill will help Connect for Health Colorado better support customers in attaining and retaining the right health coverage for their circumstances.

Health Exchange Education Campaign Healthcare Services (SB22-081) will provide more funding to our marketing and outreach efforts, giving us additional resources to enhance our efforts. We know that access to affordable health coverage often starts with increasing people’s awareness of the options available to them. The bill directs the additional marketing and outreach to focus on reducing the uninsured rate and improving health literacy in Colorado.

I’d like to specifically thank the prime bill sponsors — Representatives Will and Tipper, Senators Smallwood and Donovan – for their willingness to work with us and our Board to make sure this legislation has the greatest impact possible to increase access, affordability, and choice for people buying health insurance in Colorado.

Lastly, Health Benefits For Colorado Children and Pregnant Persons (HB22-1289) includes multiple health care provisions. Most notably, the bill creates a special enrollment period for uninsured pregnant persons beginning in 2024, and expands eligibility for pregnant persons and children for Medicaid and CHP+ regardless of documentation status beginning in 2025.

We look forward to seeing these bills become laws and move health policy forward in our state.

Connect for Health Colorado Board Changes

At this week’s board meeting, our Board Chair, Claire Brockbank, and board member Adela Flores-Brennan, announced they are moving on to other endeavors, and will be leaving our Board.

I’d like to take a moment to thank each of them for their numerous contributions and wish them both well in their new positions.

I am staying in close contact with Governor Polis’ team as he considers future appointments to fill these vacancies. In the meantime, I’m honored that Lorez Meinhold will be our Interim Board Chair.

In the News

The Colorado Sun has a comprehensive round up of some of the top bills passed during the legislative session.

Take care, 

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

Springtime is upon us which means we’ve had enough time to dig into our data from this year’s Open Enrollment Period. We are thrilled to share the official report, By The Numbers. In it, we provide an interactive deep dive into the overall story of the enrollment period. You’ll see our enrollment numbers overall and by county, costs for our customers, how our enrollment network helps save people money and more about our improved customer experience.  

This year, federal and state insurance subsidies boosted our enrollments. By the end of the Open Enrollment Period in January, nearly 200,000 Coloradans signed up for a 2022 plan. (Also, please note that this report doesn’t include data from our recent Special Enrollment Periods).

Tax Time Last Call!

If you know someone without health insurance, and that person hasn’t filed taxes yet, don’t forget that we have a new Special Enrollment Period opportunity called Tax Time Enrollment.  Coloradans can check a box on the state tax form to get more information about enrolling in a Marketplace plan if eligible or connecting to coverage with Health First Colorado (Colorado’s Medicaid Program).

Funding Opportunity for Enrollment Assistance Sites

A reminder that we are in an application cycle for new and returning organizations, including licensed Brokers, to operate Assistance Sites and Enrollment Centers across the state for our two-year funding cycle.  The application deadline for funding is April 25. Thank you for passing this on to any organization you know who might be interested.

In the News

A new federal rule proposed this week will make federal tax credit assistance available to families affected by the “family glitch”. Those affected are the family members of employees with employee sponsored insurance whose health coverage does not meet the federal threshold for affordability as a percentage of total household income. The Washington Post shares a summary.

Take care, 

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

As many of you know, our network of Brokers and Assisters is critical to ensuring Coloradans have help walking through the enrollment process, as well as delivering outreach and health insurance literacy education to the Colorado community. They help us make sure local communities, especially those who face barriers to health coverage, can access the plans and savings we offer.

That being said, we announced that we are accepting applications from new and returning organizations, as well as licensed Brokers, to operate Assistance Sites and Enrollment Centers across the state for our two-year funding cycle.  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/Broker Agencies and other organizations that meet the criteria for selection. The application deadline for funding is April 25.

Thank you for your help sharing this news with any organization that might be interested.

ACA Turns 12

The Affordable Care Act has now been around for 12 years – the official anniversary of the law passing was this week. It is great to honor the national law that allows us to provide tax credits.

When the ACA passed, Colorado had already been studying and building a health insurance marketplace for our state’s residents with that same mission through the Blue Ribbon Commission for Healthcare Reform. In 2011, Connect for Health Colorado was established by the Colorado General Assembly as a public, non-profit entity to create a health insurance marketplace.

In the News

Great Day Colorado did a segment on Tax Time Enrollment. The National Academy for State Health Policy shared commentary and I am quoted in this piece about the affordability for customers this year due to the American Rescue Plan.

Take care, 

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

We reported this week on the number of enrollments we’ve seen with our doors once again open. More than 6,000 Coloradans signed up for a plan using a Special Enrollment Period since the traditional Open Enrollment Period ended, bringing the total number of enrollments for 2022 coverage to nearly 205,000 so far.

And, it’s not too late to remind people that affordable coverage is within their reach, with extra savings available this year. We are currently open just through next Wednesday, March 16, for those who need coverage through our Disaster Relief Special Enrollment Period. After that, Coloradans can check a box on their state tax form which might open up an additional opportunity to enroll through Tax Time Enrollment.

Thanks for pointing people to our website and to our enrollment Assisters and Brokers to get coverage now for the rest of 2022.

Face-to-face time with our Brokers

In these times, I appreciate being able to spend part of my day in person with our Brokers at the Colorado State Association of Health Underwriters Day at the Capitol. Brokers are an essential part of our Marketplace and are a trusted resource for our customers, so celebrating recent enrollment successes and having the time to both reflect on the past year and share thoughts on what’s to come is always a treat.

In the News

Blogger Charles Gaba shared the news about our Special Enrollment Period success and the Gazette noted more about our collaboration with the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing as we begin to prepare for the end of the public health emergency.  

Take care, 

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

As we move toward spring, we have continued enrolling Coloradans in earnest after the traditional Jan. 15 end of enrollment. Of course, Coloradans with special circumstances can enroll year-round, but this year we have a few new opportunities to get even more people covered.

As a reminder, we formally launched a special enrollment period in the making since the 2020 legislative session – Tax Time Enrollment, which allows Coloradans to check a box on their state tax return that they are uninsured and interested in finding out if they qualify for free or low-cost health coverage. In addition, we are currently open just through Wednesday, March 16 for those who need coverage through our Disaster Relief Special Enrollment Period.

To make it easier to see all the ways Coloradans can enroll, we’ve updated our website and also have a toolkit with resources to help us get the word out about the Tax Time opportunity.

We know sometimes people want help through the process, so our network of Brokers and Assisters are ready to help.

In the News

AARP wrote about getting covered this year.

Thanks again for helping us get the word out.   

Take care, 

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