The Division would like to provide notice that the Commissioner has adopted the following emergency regulation:
The purpose of this regulation is to establish rules for the required Colorado Option standardized bronze, silver, and gold health benefit plans to be offered by all carriers offering individual and small group health benefits plans issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2023. The individual market standardized plan shall be offered On-Exchange and Off-Exchange on the Public Benefit Corporation.
The Division of Insurance finds, pursuant to § 24-4-103(6)(a), C.R.S., that immediate adoption of this regulation is imperatively necessary to comply with state law and for the preservation of public health, safety or welfare to allow carriers sufficient time to implement their 2023 Colorado Option standardized plans. HB21-1232 was signed into law by the Governor on June 16, 2021; the law requires a robust stakeholder process to create the standardized plan, which began in July and continued through November 2021. The Division’s stakeholder process included several sessions to identify the unique concerns of the specific groups identified by the legislature in §10-16-1304(1)(d)(I), C.R.S. The length and depth of the Division’s stakeholder process made it impossible to conform with the requirements of § 24-4-103, C.R.S., and the January 1, 2022 deadline to establish the plan mandated by § 10-16-1304(1), C.R.S. Therefore, the Division adopted 21-E-16 on December 1, 2021, which is set to expire on March 31, 2022. The Department of Health and Human Services has yet to finalize the 2023 Actuarial Value Calculator, pursuant to 45 C.F.R. 156.135(g), which is necessary to ensure compliance with Federal law. Moreover, the Division is concerned about carriers’ ability to develop and implement their standardized plans within the constrained timeline afforded by the bill. By May 1, 2022, a carrier shall also notify the Division of any reason it cannot offer a standardized plan at the premium rate target for 2023, pursuant to § 10-16-1306(2), C.R.S. Therefore, because the Division must allow carriers adequate time to implement their standardized plans, as well as meet all required deadlines, compliance with the requirements of § 24-4-103, C.R.S., would be contrary to the public interest.
This emergency regulation is effective March 31, 2022.
This emergency regulation, and other Division emergency regulations, can be found on the Division's Emergency Insurance Regulations website.