Acting Insurance Commissioner refuses to stop selling OMNIA plans
New Jersey’s acting Insurance Commissioner, Richard Badolato, has refused to halt the sale of OMNIA health insurance plans coming from Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey. Badolato suggests that stopping the sale of these policies would “immediately trigger chaos” in the state’s health insurance market. Earlier this month, 11 hospital systems requested that OMNIA plans no longer be allowed to be sold in the state, but New Jersey officials believe that this would be the wrong move.
Consumers are already enrolling in the state’s health insurance exchange, acquiring OMNIA plans
Many consumers have already begun signing up for OMNIA health insurance plans. These plans offer lower premiums that other plans being offered by Horizon. Halting the sale of these plans would cause major disruptions in the health care market, especially for consumers that have already opted to enroll for coverage through the state’s health insurance exchange. Horizon itself provides coverage to some 3.8 million people, many of whom have begun showing strong interest in OMNIA plans due to their inexpensive nature.
OMNIA plans are considered less expensive than other plans that are being offered through the state’s exchange
An estimated 250,000 people have enrolled in OMNIA health insurance plans. These plans place health care providers into two groups, defining them based on how much the medical care they offer costs. OMNIA plans are being sold to small businesses, government employees, and individuals interested in purchasing their own coverage. Like other plans offered through the state’s health insurance exchange, consumers could qualify for subsidies that with further reduce the cost of OMNIA insurance policies.
Hospitals believe that some policies are having a negative financial impact on health care providers
The hospital systems that have requested a halt to the sale of OMNIA insurance plans are likely to continue pursuing the issue through the state’s legal system. All of the hospitals looking to stop the sale of OMNIA plans are non-profit organizations. These hospitals believe that the plans being sold by Horizon place some hospitals under a great deal of financial strain.