House of Delegates Passes O'Malley-Brown Administration's Health Care Reform Package
Legislation moves health reform forward in Maryland, establishes health benefit exchange to reduce costs, expand access and improve quality of care
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (March 28, 2011) – Today, the House of Delegates overwhelmingly passed the O’Malley-Brown Administration’s Health Care Reform Package (HB 166 and HB170), a major step forward for efforts to implement federal health care reform in Maryland.
The Health Care Reform Package, championed by Lt. Governor Brown, co-chair of Maryland’s Health Care Reform Coordinating Council, will establish a framework for Maryland’s health benefit exchange and give the Maryland Insurance Commissioner the authority to enforce consumer protections in the Affordable Care Act, which have already gone into effect. The exchange will provide individuals and small businesses one-stop shopping for affordable insurance options by allowing private insurers to offer competitive plans in a fair and transparent marketplace where consumers will be able to compare rates, benefits, and quality to find plans that best suit their needs.
“Today’s passage is a significant step forward in our efforts to implement health care reform and make Maryland the healthiest state in the nation,” said Lt. Governor Brown. “We have worked hard to build consensus among stakeholders to address their concerns and ensure a more effective and efficient health benefit exchange. Enacting our health care reform package will help reduce costs, expand access, and improve the quality of care for all Marylanders. I thank the General Assembly for their hard work on this critical legislation.”
All States are required to have their health benefit exchange certified by the federal government by Jan 1, 2013 and operational by January 1, 2014. States who do not establish an exchange will be required to participate in the federal exchange. Maryland’s Exchange will help individuals and small employers shop for, select, and enroll in high-quality, affordable private health plans that fit their needs at competitive prices. Exchanges will help low-income Marylanders and small businesses access to federal subsidies and tax credits to make coverage more affordable.
“The establishment of the health exchange is an important first step toward implementing federal health reform,” said Delegate Peter A. Hammen, Chairman of the House Health and Government Operations Committee. “This legislation keeps Maryland at the forefront nationally in expanding coverage and encouraging transparent competition in the insurance market, ensuring that Maryland’s consumers are receiving the best value for their health care premiums.”
“The Administration, bringing stakeholders together, has developed a model Health Benefit Exchange that puts Maryland in a great position to begin work on implementing federal health reform,” said Senator Thomas M. Middleton, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
According to research by the independent Hilltop Institute, implementing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will save Maryland an estimated $850 million and cut the number of Marylanders without health insurance in half by 2020.
"This legislation establishes the structure of the state's exchange as a public corporation," said DHMH Secretary Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein. "It will establish a transparent process for key issues and recommendations to move forward and will allow Maryland to qualify for key federal funding."
The legislation creates a nine member Governing Board that is appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. The Board will appoint an Executive Director who can hire core staff and begin to establish those functions and duties which are required as part of the Affordable Care Act. These include developing the necessary components to determine eligibility for Medicaid, creating seamless information sharing systems and providing access to federal subsidies. Other provisions, which are subject to existing state legislation, will be addressed in the 2012 Legislative Session by the General Assembly based on recommendations from the Exchange’s advisory groups.
“Governor O’Malley, Lieutenant Governor Brown, and the General Assembly have led an open, collaborative process and created ample opportunities for stakeholders to provide input on the path to creating an exchange,” said CareFirst President and CEO Chet Burrell. “The result is a solid first step in creating a mechanism to increase access to affordable health coverage in Maryland, and we look forward to working with the Administration, legislators and the exchange regarding its design and operation.”
By December 23, 2011, the Exchange must study and report back to the Governor and General Assembly on a number of key issues that will impact the operation of Maryland’s Exchange. These include: the role of health insurance brokers, the types of health insurance plans to be offered by the Exchange, the design and role of the small business exchange, whether the individual and small group markets should be merged and the mechanism for ensuring financial sustainability by 2015.
“I am pleased that Lt. Governor Brown, Secretary Sharfstein and the General Assembly reached out to our members to learn about our concerns,” said Jonathan Anders chairman of the Joint Legislative Committee representing the interests of life and health insurance brokers in Maryland. “We support the legislation pending before the General Assembly and appreciate that it recognizes that Maryland’s exchange should build on, rather than replace, the current system of health insurance distribution that works so well in our State. There are many issues that require further study and we look forward to working with the Lt. Governor and the General Assembly to build an Exchange that will connect more Marylander’s to affordable insurance.”
The O’Malley-Brown health care reform package also includes measures to improve the quality of insurance by aligning Maryland law with the consumer protections in the Affordable Care Act, which have already gone into effect. These include: barring insurers from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions, eliminating lifetime limits on essential benefits, requiring insurance companies to cover certain preventive services like mammograms and flu shots, and allowing young adults to stay on their parents’ policies until age 26.
The House passed the Health Benefit Exchange bill by a vote of 115-22 and the Consumer Protections - Conformance with Federal Law bill by a vote of 93-44. The Senate will discuss the Health Benefit Exchange bill Monday evening and hold a vote on the Consumer Protections - Conformance with Federal Law bill.
