Connecticut Health Plan Draws Interest From Managed Care Companies, Hospital Administrators

Main Category: Caregivers / Homecare
Also Included In: Primary Care / General Practice;  Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Article Date: 10 Jan 2007 - 22:00 PDT

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Managed care companies and hospital administrators have expressed early support for Connecticut Gov. Jodi Rell's (R) plan to offer health insurance with monthly premiums of $250 or less to uninsured state residents ages 19 to 64, the Connecticut Post reports. Under the plan, called Charter Oak Health Plan, Connecticut managed care companies would offer coverage for residents who have been uninsured for at least six months and would charge the same premiums "regardless of age or health condition," according to the Post. State Department of Social Services Deputy Commissioner Michael Starkowski said the four managed care companies he contacted showed a "fairly positive response." Mickey Herbert, president of ConnectiCare, said, "We really have to see more details to see if [the plan is] feasible," He added, "The bottom line is, I think the governor needs to be applauded for getting a proposal out there with all of the talk about universal health care." Ron Bianchi, senior vice president at St. Vincent's Medical Center, said that "any insurance for people who don't have insurance is a good thing," adding, "What we don't know, though, is what this insurance will buy. A $250 a month premium is affordable. But we don't know if that will be subsidized in any way." Bianchi said, "We don't know how much it will pay providers and whether they will be paid a fair amount" (Brown, Connecticut Post, 1/4).

Editorial
Rell's health insurance plan -- "just one of many intriguing proposals floating around" -- puts her "in the game" for creating a plan to cover Connecticut's uninsured, the Hartford Courant writes in an editorial. According to the editorial, in contrast to programs in other states, such as a Massachusetts law that requires all residents to obtain health insurance, Rell's plan "has the benefit of minimal government investment, if it goes according to plan" (Hartford Courant, 1/5).

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