Republicans Send Insurers Letters Asking Who's Paid

Republican members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee have sent letters to every insurer participating in the federal marketplace to request specific enrollment data, including how many people have paid their first month’s premium, how many individuals were previously uninsured and how many plans received a subsidy.

On Tuesday, the Health and Human Services Department said that as of March 1, 4.2 million people had enrolled in the exchanges, but would not discuss how many have paid their premium, which is sent directly to the insurance company they select.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service says that they do not yet have data available to report on the number of uninsured singing up, and did not respond to a query about those who may or may not have paid their premiums.

“In the wake of the law’s troubled rollout, officials have tried for months to backtrack and redefine metrics for success,” says committee Chairman Fred Upton of Michigan. “If the administration won’t provide transparency, we will work with every insurance provider to get the real picture the White House seemingly wants to hide from the public.”

In a February 26 press briefing aboard Air Force One, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said that information about who has paid for the health insurance can best be directed to private insurance companies that are collecting those payments.

Also see CMS Expects Last-Minute Enrollment Bump in HIX

“We may be in a position down the line to try to provide some greater insight into that,” he said. “But the fact of the matter is these payments are being made to private insurance companies, so data about what the rate of payment is can be directed to those insurance companies that are responsible for collecting those payments.”

This story originally appeared on Health Insurance Exchange.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Security risk Compliance Digital distribution Core systems
MORE FROM DIGITAL INSURANCE