State to train 100 health insurance brokers to reduce uninsured population
In an effort to reduce the number of uninsured residents in three of Connecticut’s largest cities, officials Wednesday announced plans to train up to 100 licensed health insurance brokers to enroll people in coverage through the state’s health insurance marketplace.
The initiative, called Broker Academy, was announced by Gov. Ned Lamont and officials with Access Health CT, the state’s health insurance marketplace, during a virtual news conference Wednesday.
The academy will begin classes June 1 with classes of students from Bridgeport, New Haven and Hartford, officials said.
“We’ve learned the hard way, I think these last couple of years, what disparities mean and what it means when you don’t have health insurance,” Lamont said. “What it means if you don’t get access to a test or a vaccine in this period of COVID, and that not just puts you at risk, it puts your community at risk.”
Connecticut has one of the highest rates of health care coverage in the nation, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. The nonprofit’s 2020 report found that 4.8 percent of Connecticut residents lacked health insurance, the 10th lowest of any state.
The cities targeted by the Broker Academy, however, have trailed the rest of the state when it comes to health care coverage, according to James Michel, the CEO of Access Health CT. Residents in those cities are more likely to have lower incomes, he said, with less access to health care through employer-sponsored insurance.
The goal of the Broker Academy, Michel said, was to increase the number of licensed insurance brokers working in those cities to enroll people through the public health care exchange.
“Despite Connecticut’s high ranking in wealth, there are substantial disparities in the health status and in the health care delivery to lower-income Connecticut residents, especially in communities of color,” Michel said. “By activating members of this community to become brokers, Access Health Connecticut can build trust by meeting members of the community where they are, and at the same time create an economic benefit in those areas.”
The cost of the training program is estimated to be in the range of $230,000,
Michel said, which will be paid for by Access Health CT with the help of outside grants. Applicants who are accepted into the Broker Academy will not have to pay for their training.
The first class of students is expected to be licensed by the end of July before taking part in a three-month apprenticeship program with an experienced broker, according to Tammy Hendricks, the director of health equity and outreach for Access Health CT.
Training will fully conclude by the start of the next open-enrollment period on Nov. 1, Hendricks said. The brokers will be paid by commission for every person they enroll through the exchange.
Currently, 400 are brokers licensed to sell insurance through the state’s health insurance marketplace.
Two insurance companies — Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and ConnectiCare — offer plans through the exchange. However, Michel said that once the brokers are licensed to sell insurance through the marketplace, they have to offer plans through both insurers.
“The advice they give will be what is in the best interest of their customers,” Michel said. “That is their fiduciary responsibility and that is part of their training.”
Residents who earn below a certain income are eligible for subsidies through Access Health CT’s marketplace.
That amount was originally set at 400 percent of the federal poverty level, but was adjusted as part of the American Rescue Plan signed by President Joe Biden.