HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	172
TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2014
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

REQUESTING that THE HAWAII HEALTH CONNECTOR AND the INSURANCE DIVISION of the department of commerce and consumer affairs develop a plan FOR THE ORDERLY transition OF THE STATE EXCHANGE to THE FEDERAL EXCHANGE or for an alternative practical solution.

     WHEREAS, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act authorized states to create health insurance exchanges to implement certain health insurance reforms; and

     WHEREAS, in 2011, in response to Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act authorization, Hawaii established the Hawaii Health Connector as a private nonprofit entity to serve as Hawaii's health insurance exchange and implement certain health insurance reforms; and

     WHEREAS, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requires state health insurance exchanges, including the Hawaii Health Connector, to be self-sustaining by January 1, 2015; and

     WHEREAS, the Hawaii Health Connector, like most state and federal exchanges nationwide, has faced considerable challenges in implementation and marketplace adoption; and

     WHEREAS, the Interim Director of the Hawaii Health Connector has testified that due to the longstanding success of Hawaii's Prepaid Health Care Act, Hawaii does not have a sufficient number of uninsured residents for the Hawaii Health Connector to become sustainable as either a private nonprofit or a state-run entity; and

     WHEREAS, spending substantial state funds on the Hawaii Health Connector to bring it under state control is not fiscally prudent because additional money will not change core market dynamics; and

     WHEREAS, Hawaii's insurers cannot absorb the surcharges being proposed to fund the Hawaii Health Connector and any additional costs will ultimately be passed on to consumers through higher insurance premiums; and

     WHEREAS, the Hawaii Health Connector's valuable role should be educating consumers and connecting them with the best available health insurance options; and

     WHEREAS, the Hawaii Health Connector is already acting as an information gateway, and it can continue doing so at a fraction of the current expense if the State Exchange is eliminated in favor of participation in the Federal Exchange; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-Seventh Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2014, the Senate concurring, that the State should pursue alternative solutions to the current health care program; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Hawaii Health Connector and the Insurance Division are requested to provide input on the  feasibility of receiving an expedited waiver for a more functional insurance exchange for the State of Hawaii; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Hawaii Health Connector and the Insurance Division of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs are requested to propose:

     (1)  An orderly transition of the State Exchange to the Federal Exchange while preserving compliance with the Prepaid Health Care Act; and

     (2)  A plan, including a proposed operating budget, for the future functioning of the Hawaii Health Connector as strictly an informational resource to Hawaii consumers; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Hawaii Health Connector and the Insurance Division of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs are requested to submit a report to the Legislature, not later than twenty days prior to the Regular Session of 2015, on the plan for an orderly winding down process of the State Exchange and implementation of the Federal Exchange, in addition to a plan for the future functioning of the Hawaii Health Connector as strictly an informational resource to Hawaii consumers; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, the Director of Health, the Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, the Director of Finance, and the Executive Director of the Hawaii Health Connector.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Hawaii Health Connector