June 02, 2015 | By
Kathryn Mayer
For those
frustrated with how the state exchanges are going, Kevin Patterson, interim CEO
of Connect for Health Colorado, feels your pain.
Patterson told
a roomful of brokers and carrier reps during the Colorado State Association of
Health Underwriters annual symposium Tuesday that he has firsthand experience
with how frustrating it is to enroll in coverage through an exchange.
“I signed up
for coverage on the exchange, and some of it didn’t make a lot of sense. I had
to call someone to set up a password ... and it took them more than 24 hours to
call me back,” he said.
“So I
understand what people are going through. I thought it was more important to
not only hear a story but to live a story and tell you I understand why people
are pissed off.
“If I can make
something simpler [on the exchange] then I’m going to do it,” he said, noting
that the call center and boosting enrollment numbers are priorities going
forward.
Though the
exchanges — both HealthCare.gov and the state exchanges — have
improved since their disastrous launch in fall 2013, there are
still kinks to work out.
Patterson — who
was named interim CEO of Connect for Health Colorado in late April, after
serving on the Connect for Health Colorado board as an ex-officio member from
May 2013 to December 2014 — said he is still learning how to best fix some of
the problems and to help consumers and employers simply sort through “a maze of
regulations” and get the coverage they need.
But he praised
the Colorado exchange for its competition — “per capita I think we have some of
the most plans and some of the best plans in America” — and especially for its
willingness to partner with brokers.
Patterson
praised the brokers in the room for their work helping consumers and
clients navigate the world of health insurance — and PPACA — and said he
expects brokers and the Colorado exchange to act as “true partners” going
forward.
“I want to
continue to work with you all, and work much more closely together as we go
forward,” he said.
Patterson said
other state exchanges have asked him how to work well with brokers, though he
acknowledges he understands the hesitancy on the part of brokers because of
frustration with Obamacare.
But without the
help of brokers, he said, the exchanges will simply not thrive as they should.
“I don’t think
we would be where we are without you here,” Patterson said, while encouraging
brokers to communicate with him. “I think it’s important to have [the broker]
voice in all this, and I will continue to advocate for that.”
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