Convened to discuss issues surrounding creation of a Health Insurance Exchange, the meetings were not open to the public

A technical advisory work group that was convened to advise Department of Human Services staff canceled their last meeting and wrapped up early. The group was convened to discuss issues surrounding creation of a Health Insurance Exchange. A Health Insurance Exchange is an entity that was required first by Oregon law (HB 2009 in 2009), then by the Federal Health Care Reform bill.

Generally speaking, a Health Insurance Exchange is an organized marketplace set up for the purchase of health insurance. Exchanges are typically governmental or quasi-governmental entities through which insurance is sold. Because they serve so many people, a broad risk pool is created that allows individual purchasers to access better rates than they could alone, thus facilitating the expansion of coverage to more people. These broader pools may also create ways for small employers to purchase employee insurance at reasonable rates. Exchanges themselves are not insurance companies; rather, they contract with private carriers to sell coverage that meets certain standards.

Oregon's task in creating an exchange has been complicated in some areas, and simplified in others, as a result of the enactment of the federal law. The technical advisory group was convened to discuss issues surrounding creation of a Health Insurance Exchange. The meetings were not open to the public.

Group members included:
Andy Anderson
Senior Vice President and CFO
Cascade Corporation

Barbara Christensen
Chief Sales and Marketing Officer
Providence Health Plans

Aelea Christofferson
Owner
ATL Communications, Inc

Mark Danburg-Wyld
Senior Actuarial Analyst
PacificSource Health Plans

Laura Etherton
Advocate
Oregon State Public Interest Research Group

Patrick O'Keefe
Partner/Account Manager
Cascade Insurance Center

Anna Roberts
Organizer
SEIU Local 49

Nita Werner
President and CFO
Ornelas Enterprises, Inc.
Oregon Health Policy Board member

Some members of the work group had served on last interim's Health Fund Board committees and two members participated in the writing of a minority report on the Exchange subcommittee of the Finance committee. Members of the group were careful to point out that the group did not make recommendations to staff; rather, they met to raise potential issues and discuss possible scenarios.

The next step for the exchange will be creation of a draft plan, which will be presented to the Oregon Health Fund Board in August. Stakeholders will be able to provide comment on the plan, which will then be revised and presented to the Legislature in December for introduction into the 2011 Legislature.