CMS Allocating $49M To High-Risk Health Insurance Pools In 31 States

Main Category: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 25 Jul 2008 - 5:00 PDT

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HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt on Monday said CMS will divide $49 million in grants among 31 states with high-risk health insurance pools as part of the Bush administration's plan for expanding access to care, the Salt Lake Tribune reports (Rosetta, Salt Lake Tribune, 7/23). High-risk pools provide health coverage for people who are uninsured and unable to obtain private health insurance because of serious medical conditions (Hartford Courant, 7/23). The money will be distributed based on the number of uninsured people in each state and the number of individuals enrolled in each pool (Salt Lake Tribune, 7/23).

Although premiums for high-risk policies are very high, the pools still typically operate at a loss. The grant money can be used to help offset the losses, support disease management programs for people with chronic conditions and subsidize premiums for people with lower incomes (Hartford Courant, 7/23).

State pools must meet certain criteria for eligibility, such as capping premiums at no higher than 200% of the standard charge in the private market. Some states subsidize these premiums (Gentry, Florida Health News, 7/22).

An "Ask the Experts" on high-risk insurance pools is available online at kaisernetwork.org.

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

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