A Health Insurance Exchange That Won't Be a "Train Wreck"

Every week, I get an email from the Maryland Health Connection––the state run health insurance exchange.

Maryland is one of a minority of states that are building their own Affordable Care Act ("ObamaCare") exchange.

You can go to their site and sign up for these weekly updates.

Let me suggest that Maryland is an example of what an on-track and well organized effort looks like for any exchange

Rate Shock Officially on the Exchange Board’s Radar

We appreciate OPM Secretary Ben Barnes for bringing up the subject of health insurance affordability and “Rate Shock” at this week’s CT Health Insurance Exchange Board meeting by floating the idea that legislation be passed allowing a lowering of the Medical Loss Ratio. As in other states, lowering the Medical Loss Ratio will most assuredly bring health insurance costs down. The unanimous vote of the Exchange Board finally acknowledges that the high cost of health insurance products coming onto the Exchange is a factor in the overall success in attracting Connecticut residents to the Exchange to purchase health insurance.

Now let’s hope that competitive bidding known in the industry as active purchasing also be made part of the Health Insurance Exchange’s practices. Active purchasing has a proven record of controlling health insurance costs.

Kevin Galvin, Small Business for a Healthy CT