Colorado Health Insurance Laws

Colorado health insurance law includes a number of provisions that directly affect providers. In state of Colorado there is no requirement for individual health insurance policies to be guaranteed but Colorado does have Risk pools which are state-sponsored programs that can help people purchase health coverage who have been declined application because of their history of medical problems. These pools are for people who can afford to buy health insurance, but are not able to get underwritten in the private insurance market because of their pre-existing health condition.(CoverColorado (303) 863-1960 or toll-free 1-866-787-9129 )

Also if you are declined for coverage because of pre-existing conditions, you will be eligible for the Colorado Uninsurable Health Insurance Plan, (CUHIP). It is a state-run program as well for people in this particular situation.

Colorado mini-COBRA and State Continuation Coverage

If you’ve lost your job, don’t panic about losing your health coverage. You could be eligible for the continuation of your health benefits through Colorado mini-COBRA.

A federal law COBRA provides a vital bridge between health plans for qualified employees, their spouses, and their dependent children in health insurance crisis, such as unemployment, divorce, or death.

If you voluntarily resign from a job or are terminated for any reason other than “gross misconduct” you are guaranteed the right to continue your former employer’s group plan as individual or family health care coverage for 18-36+ months (depending on qualifying events) under Colorado mini-COBRA regulations. Benefits are same as group program HIPAA individual-plan, conversion benefits are based on the program selected and there is no expiration.

Remember that if your employer has more than 20 workers but doesn’t offer health coverage, or offers coverage to only certain groups of employees and you’re not one of them, you, your spouse or children won’t be eligible for COBRA. You need to be covered under an employer’s health plan when one of the qualifying events occurs to be eligible.

How healthy is living in Colorado?

In 2006, Colorado improved it’s rating by one, being named the16th most healthy of the 50 states, this according to a survey by United Health Foundation. According to the report, Colorado has a lower number of obese people with only 17.8 percent of the population, low cancer deaths with 180.6 per 100,000 people, amd low cardiovasular deaths at 274 per 100,000.

Challenges identified by the report include low spending for public health at only $92 a person and limited access to adequate prenatal care.

Colorado posted a increases in immunizations — now 83.4 percent compared to 77.1 percent a year earlier. Also noteworthly was a decrease in smokers sinc e 1990: from 28.6 percent of the population down to 14.7 percent.

Of concern, however, is an increasing population of uninsured: up since 1990 by more than 4 points to 17 percent of the state’s population; only 15 states have a higher percentage of their citizens who are not insured.

The cost of clinical care in Colorado is moderate compared to other states and the quality of care is high, See state snapshot here.

Recent Colorado Health Insurance News

Open Source Medical Records

[...] In general, I'm a fan of as much transparency as possible in health care. I think that patients, doctors, and payers (both public and private health insurance) should have access to information related to treatment, diagnoses, and cost - as quickly as possible and as clearly as possible. Open source medical records is one step towards transparency, and I like that. [...]

Cavalcade Of Risk – Colorado Rocky Mountain High Edition

We’re in the midst of a beautiful Colorado summer, and the words to John Denver’s Rocky Mountain High (one of our official state songs) were running through my head over the weekend. So this week’s Cavalcade is a tribute to all the beauty that Colorado has to offer. I’m including a few photos we’ve taken over the years, so not only will you learn all sorts of new stuff about risk and risk management, but you’ll get a virtual tour of Colorado at the same time [...]

Weeding Out The Worst Health Insurance Policies

[...] The new regulations won't have much of an impact on good-quality policies from reputable health insurance carriers. Those plans already provide solid coverage for essential services. But removing the worst policies from the market - or forcing them to improve their coverage - will protect consumers who might otherwise have bought those plans thinking that they were as good as all the other options. And that's a good thing.

If You Ever Get A Rock Stuck In Your Nose

[...] A lot has been said about over-utilization of health care lately, and the need to reduce both cost and utilization in order to make our health care system sustainable. But I have to wonder how many urgent care clinic front desk people would be willing to give out free advice like that, and how many would have just taken our insurance info and sent us in to see the doctor?

Sharing Instead Of Duplicating

[...] some doctors are nervous about such a system because they fear that they would earn less money overall. But he goes on to point out that earning a little less money might be well worth it if your job is easier and you get to spend far less time repeating tasks that someone else has already done. In addition, there would be less paperwork (electronic or otherwise) for health insurance companies to process, which should result in lower administrative expenses.

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Open Source Medical Records

[...] In general, I'm a fan of as much transparency as possible in health care. I think that patients, doctors, and payers (both public and private health insurance) should have access to information related to treatment, diagnoses, and cost - as quickly as possible and as clearly as possible. Open source medical records is one step towards transparency, and I like that. [...]

Cavalcade Of Risk – Colorado Rocky Mountain High Edition

We’re in the midst of a beautiful Colorado summer, and the words to John Denver’s Rocky Mountain High (one of our official state songs) were running through my head over the weekend. So this week’s Cavalcade is a tribute to all the beauty that Colorado has to offer. I’m including a few photos we’ve taken over the years, so not only will you learn all sorts of new stuff about risk and risk management, but you’ll get a virtual tour of Colorado at the same time [...]

Weeding Out The Worst Health Insurance Policies

[...] The new regulations won't have much of an impact on good-quality policies from reputable health insurance carriers. Those plans already provide solid coverage for essential services. But removing the worst policies from the market - or forcing them to improve their coverage - will protect consumers who might otherwise have bought those plans thinking that they were as good as all the other options. And that's a good thing.

If You Ever Get A Rock Stuck In Your Nose

[...] A lot has been said about over-utilization of health care lately, and the need to reduce both cost and utilization in order to make our health care system sustainable. But I have to wonder how many urgent care clinic front desk people would be willing to give out free advice like that, and how many would have just taken our insurance info and sent us in to see the doctor?

Sharing Instead Of Duplicating

[...] some doctors are nervous about such a system because they fear that they would earn less money overall. But he goes on to point out that earning a little less money might be well worth it if your job is easier and you get to spend far less time repeating tasks that someone else has already done. In addition, there would be less paperwork (electronic or otherwise) for health insurance companies to process, which should result in lower administrative expenses.

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