CEO Blog: The Role of Marketplace Outreach

To Our Valued Stakeholders,

I was able to participate in a presentation on the importance of marketing and outreach in strengthening state Marketplaces, alongside the executive director for Covered California at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, this week.

Covered California’s research examined the role of marketing in attracting a healthy risk pool which helps contain rate increases by keeping risk scores low. California’s 2016 risk score was nearly as low as Colorado’s, according to this Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) report. Colorado had the nation’s lowest score, as we reported in July.

In Other News

It was good to see agreement on reauthorizing funding for the critical Children’s Health Insurance Program, CHP+ in Colorado, this week. But time is short for passing the actual legislation, as this Vox article makes clear.

Nearly 70,000 children and more than 700 pregnant women are covered by CHP+ in Colorado. The department Health Care Policy and Financing is providing updates here.

We get questions about Special Enrollment Periods and documenting the Life Change Events that trigger them. Special Enrollment Period documentation requests are addressed by insurance companies directly, and do not involve the Marketplace, but we have posted some guidance to the process for your reference. You will find it linked from our Life Change Events page.

Take care,

Kevin

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