New legislations aim to introduce more oversight on insurance exchange
Colorado may be placing its health insurance exchange under more scrutiny. The state’s Senate had granted approval for two bills that are designed to increase oversight of the exchanged, called Connect For Health Colorado. The exchange has managed to attract a large number of enrollees, all of whom are looking for affordable health insurance coverage. The recent success of the exchange has been praised by lawmakers, but past failures have also called into question how the exchange is operated.
First bill will allow state auditors to look into the exchange’s business operations
The first bill that was approved by the Colorado Senate grants authority to some of the state’s auditors to look into the exchange’s operations. Auditors will be able to investigate certain problem areas of the exchange and determine whether or not the exchange’s business practices are adequate and sustainable. There is not yet any clear information about what state auditors will be examining, but the bill has strong support from both Democrat and Republican legislators in the Senate.
The other bill will provide lawmakers with the ability to approve or deny employee bonuses issued by the health insurance exchange. Like other businesses, the state’s exchange provides employees with bonuses that, in some cases, are based on the exchange’s performance. Because the exchange is a quasi-public organization, however, issuing employee bonuses has come under question. During the last open enrollment period, the exchange struggled to serve state residents because of technical flaws. Many employees still received bonuses despite the exchange’s poor performance.
New bills are not expected to limit access to the health insurance exchange
The bills are awaiting further approval from the Senate before they move to the House of Representatives. If the bills are approved and passed into law, they will have an impact on how the state’s health insurance exchange operates in the future. The bills are not expected to limit access to insurance coverage for consumers, however, only increase state oversight on the exchange’s business operations.
