ConnectiCare's exit will leave Anthem as the sole provider of Obamacare plans in Connecticut.
It was revealed Monday that health insurer ConnectiCare has already quit the state’s health care exchange as it threatened. But the company still wants to find a way to continue to provide Obamacare plans, and has launched a rate appeal with Connecticut's insurance department.
Access Heath CT, the state’s insurance exchange, released to the press a letter from Farmington-based ConnectiCare that was sent last Friday. The letter notifies the exchange of ConnectiCare’s decision to terminate its agreement to provide plans in 2017, after the insurance department cut the rate hike the company had asked for.
That notification was legally required within five days of the rate decision. But the letter goes on to say this is not ConnectiCare’s desired outcome, and that it is going to continue to explore all avenues to receive what it terms an actuarially sound rate so that it can continue to serve its 50,000 customers - about half of the total plans sold through the exchange.
Its hopes now seem to lie with an appeal filed Monday with Insurance Commissioner Katharine Wade.
Access Health CT CEO Jim Wadleigh and Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman issued a joint statement late Monday. "ConnectiCare’s decision is certainly a challenge," it said, "but AHCT will continue to adapt to the changing health care market with an eye on ensuring our consumers the best options."
For the moment, Access Health CT said it has sent ConnectiCare's letter to the insurance department for regulatory review, but it does expect to give more information to the public later Wednesday.
Meanwhile ConnectiCare itself released a press statement from CEO Michael Wise saying the company is actively working to stay on the exchange and has asked Access Health CT to extend its deadline so the two sides can work together.
If such a resolution isn’t found, ConnectiCare’s exit will leave Anthem as the sole provider of Obamacare plans in Connecticut. UnitedHealthcare has decided to pull out of the exchange, and co-op provider HealthyCT failed after its federal reimbursement was drastically cut.
ConnectiCare had asked the insurance department to approve a rate hike of more than 27 percent for its exchange plans, but in its final decision the department cut that back to 17.4 percent. ConnectiCare said it is already projecting losses of $20 million on its exchange plans this year.
