This is it! Open Enrollment is almost officially here. Our doors open on Monday morning to get Coloradans enrolled for 2022 health coverage.

As a reminder, the American Rescue Plan savings and the plan rates this year make finding an affordable plan easier than ever. We are relying on you all, our stakeholders, community partners, policy makers and friends, to help us get the word out. Encourage your communities to use our Quick Cost and Planfinder Tool to see how the plans and savings available. Free, virtual and in-person help is available from our certified Connect for Health Colorado enrollment experts located throughout the state. If anyone in the community you serve needs help, you can refer them to one of our experts to ensure they get the best health insurance coverage and financial help available to them.

We’ve also made it easy for you to share on social media or hand out flyers. Web and print versions of our resources are available through our Open Enrollment Online Toolkit and our Online Print Materials Store (materials are free).

Lastly, tune in to Colorado Public Radio Monday morning to hear my thoughts on about this Open Enrollment Period during the show Colorado Matters.

This is it! Open Enrollment is almost officially here. Our doors open on Monday morning to get Coloradans enrolled for 2022 health coverage.

As a reminder, the American Rescue Plan savings and the plan rates this year make finding an affordable plan easier than ever. We are relying on you all, our stakeholders, community partners, policy makers and friends, to help us get the word out. Encourage your communities to use our Quick Cost and Planfinder Tool to see how the plans and savings available. Free, virtual and in-person help is available from our certified Connect for Health Colorado enrollment experts located throughout the state. If anyone in the community you serve needs help, you can refer them to one of our experts to ensure they get the best health insurance coverage and financial help available to them.

We’ve also made it easy for you to share on social media or hand out flyers. Web and print versions of our resources are available through our Open Enrollment Online Toolkit and our Online Print Materials Store (materials are free).

Lastly, tune in to Colorado Public Radio Monday morning to hear my thoughts on about this Open Enrollment Period during the show Colorado Matters.

The Division of Insurance formally released plans and premiums for the 2022 plan year. I shared a statement that I am grateful that Coloradans will see stable and affordable prices over last year. And with the extra savings available this year through the American Rescue Plan, we will ensure Coloradans have access to affordable health coverage.

The same eight companies from 2021 are returning to offer plans for 2022. And many Connect for Health Colorado customers can expect increased plan choice when they shop for 2022 coverage. The health insurance companies’ expansions for 2022 will leave only one county with a single insurance company available— down from 10 counties in 2021, and 22 counties in 2020.

Our staff is finishing all final preparations to open our doors in just over a week, on Monday, Nov. 1. We’ve begun our marketing and advertising, getting the word out to customers to review their options in our Quick Cost and Plan Finder tool, and get ready to enroll by making an appointment with their broker or assister.

And I want to take a moment to thank you all for your support in our efforts as we put the finishing touches on preparations for enrollment season, as it feels like we were just wrapping up our summer special enrollment time.

This was a big week for the health coverage of Coloradans. We had the honor of having CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure travel to the state, as she and Governor Polis announced expanded health coverage benefits for the LGBTQIA community are now included as Essential Health Benefits. This week’s announcement means more Coloradans can rest assured that their essential health needs will be taken care of when they secure coverage through our Marketplace. The Colorado Sun does a nice job of summarizing the new benefits added to the benchmark plan, including gender-affirming services and mental health exams.

After the announcement, I joined Administrator Brooks-Lasure, Gov. Polis and many other state and local policy makers for a Roundtable on Health Equity and Access for LGBTQIA Individuals, where we dove into deeper discussions with stakeholders about the future of equity in health care.

I’m pleased we’ll be able to offer richer essential health benefits and provide more value to our health plans, no matter which plan our customers choose. It’s exciting that Colorado is acting as a leader in the health equity space and paving the way for this important work that other states across the country are now tracking.

Also this week, I attended Pro15’s annual conference. Increasing access and affordability in rural Colorado is a top priority at Connect for Health Colorado, so it’s always nice for me to have time to visit with this group in Northeast Colorado.

As you know, we are in final preparations for our Open Enrollment Period, starting Nov. 1. We will share more details about plans and prices next week and look forward to your help getting the word out and enrolling Coloradans in 2022 health coverage.

Take care, 

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

What an inspiring week. I was pleased to “see” so many of our assisters, brokers, and community partners join us for the virtual CoverCo conference. We had over 700 people register and come together for the last three days, in preparation for the ninth Open Enrollment Period.

Some highlights of the conference included diving into plan distinction, hearing from our issuer partners about plans, assisting mixed eligibility households and how to help small businesses. The keynote speakers, Dr. Dwinita Mosby Tyler and Barbara Rubel, reminded us that we have a lot of work to do to keep equity front and center, while also managing our own compassion fatigue. Dr. Tyler’s personal stories were impactful, and she shared important reminders of how we can practice inclusivity and approach our responsibilities in an equitable way.

If you missed the conference, the materials will still be in the conference platform for a few more days.

I want to specifically thank the Connect for Health Colorado staff and the planning committee who helped organize this virtual conference, as well as the speakers who took time to help us prepare for Open Enrollment.

More to come on Open Enrollment in the coming weeks.

Take care, 

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

It’s officially fall, which means we are preparing for our busiest months to come. Behind the scenes, we have a lot to report.

While we are not in a formal Open Enrollment period currently, our doors are still open to those experiencing Life Change Events. In fact, next week, we know that thousands of Coloradans will lose the free COBRA premiums offered through the American Rescue Plan. We are asking for your help reminding those in that situation that they can likely still enroll for coverage for the rest of the year.

Some other good news to share is that we have been awarded a $1.1 million federal grant to fund some of our technology work. We will use the funding for costs related to implementing the new American Rescue Plan changes to the financial help now available. Additionally, the funds will help us update our infrastructure and decision support tools, improve and provide enhanced customer support, improve the customer experience for consumers who are eligible for insurance affordability programs, support timely and accurate eligibility determinations and ensure the highest data quality in enrollment transactions

In just over a week, from Oct. 5-7, we will gather with nearly 600 assisters, brokers and community partners during our CoverCO conference. We just shared the agenda, and I think you’ll find the conference extremely helpful in preparing for Open Enrollment. From sessions like our technology updates, to broker roundtables and small business outreach, to immigrant health coverage and issuer presentations, the conference will offer a great opportunity to connect and learn. Registration is still open

Last but not least, we formally announced this week that we have added a new board member. I am thrilled to welcome Christy Blakely to our board and look forward to her contributions.

Take care,

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

In these dog days of summer, I’ve been reflecting on what we have accomplished so far this year, and it truly amazes me. We reported out this week that we enrolled an additional 36,350 people from early February when we re-opened through Aug. 15 when we officially closed our doors for the extended enrollment period.

I wanted to take a moment to thank you for that. There is a lot of hard work that has gone into helping us spread the word to community members and remind them that we have been open throughout the year; especially since people could find additional savings because of the American Rescue Plan.

But our work isn’t over. We’re continuing to enroll new customers who experience Qualifying Life Changes. Behind the scenes, Connect for Health Colorado staff are preparing for the annual Open Enrollment Period, starting on Nov. 1, 2021.

One of the main ways we help our enrollment partners prepare for the upcoming Open Enrollment is through a conference called CoverCO. This year, the conference, held Oct. 5-7, is again virtual. The sessions will help us and our partners reconnect, prepare for Open Enrollment and let attendees share ideas to improve the health and well-being of Coloradans. For those interested, registration opened this week.

Thanks again for all you do.

Take care, 

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