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Washington Health Benefit Exchange enrollment down for the first time

Qualified health plan (QHP) enrollment through the Washington Health Benefit Exchange is down for the first time (year over year), according to the Exchange’s Spring 2019 enrollment report. (The Fall report has not yet been released.) In February 2019, total QHP enrollment was 196,328. That’s down from 212,736 in February 2018. Additionally, the number of […]

In long-term care policy, Washington is out on its own

An article in Stateline today looks at options for paying for long-term care and includes a roundup of state activity on the topic. Of course, Washington adopted a public long-term care insurance program this year that will be funded with a payroll tax (we wrote about it in a recent policy brief). Other states are […]

Your periodic reminder that Exchange health plans selected are not the same as paid enrollment

Today the Washington Health Benefit Exchange announced that a record 230,591 people have selected qualified (private) health plans (QHP) through the Exchange. Dec. 15 was the deadline to sign up for coverage to begin Jan. 1, but enrollment is open until Jan. 15. That means that the number of plans selected will increase. However, it […]

Uncertainty in the health insurance market and the role of subsidies

Yesterday the Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) announced that no insurer has filed to participate in the individual health insurance market in Grays Harbor or Klickitat counties in 2018. According to the OIC, as of March, 1,119 people in Klickitat County and 2,227 people in Grays Harbor County purchased insurance through the individual market. The […]

Exchange enrollment still increasing, with growth from non-subsidized customers

The Washington Health Benefit Exchange’s new Spring enrollment report shows that in February 2017, 182,232 customers had purchased qualified (private) health plans (QHP). The chart below shows the monthly enrollment numbers, as revised by the current report. (These are all plans that have been paid for.) Interestingly, there were fewer enrollments in December 2016 than […]

Policy Today podcast: All About Prescription Drug Prices

HCA and OFM offer prescription drug purchasing ideas for the state

Last week we released a report on prescription drug spending and Medicaid, and their impacts on the state budget. Coincidentally, the Health Care Authority (HCA) and Office of Financial Management (OFM) released a report to the Legislature the same day, called, “Review of Prescription Drug Costs and Summary of Potential Purchasing Strategies.” Legislators had asked […]

New Washington health exchange report shows steady enrollment so far in 2016

Yesterday the Washington Health Benefit Exchange sent out a press release headlined, “Washington Healthplanfinder Sees Jump in Enrollment.” I thought they must be announcing initial enrollment numbers for the first few weeks of the current open enrollment period (which runs from Nov. 1, 2016 through Jan. 31, 2017). But no—this is just their regular Fall […]

New Special Report: How Medicaid and Prescription Drug Spending Impact the State Budget

Today we're out with a new Special Report on Medicaid, prescription drug spending and the state budget. You can read it here. Here are some highlights: Medicaid, through the state Health Care Authority (HCA), now provides health insurance for almost two million Washington state residents, and makes up over 16 percent of the state budget. […]

Auditor: Washington Health Benefit Exchange has reimbursement and reserves issues

Today the State Auditor’s Office (SAO) released a performance audit of the Washington Health Benefit Exchange. The main issues uncovered are that the Exchange hasn’t been fully reimbursed by Medicaid for Medicaid services and that it does not have reserves or a long-term financial plan. The audit also notes, though, that the Exchange’s operating costs […]