Politico Pro interviewed Manatt's Joel Ario, a managing director with Manatt Health Solutions, for an article on the ways in which health insurance brokers will be a major Obamacare partner in getting people covered when enrollment begins on November 15.
Politico Pro reports that the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) turned to brokers to help people sign up after healthcare.gov's crash last fall. Although many consumers need in-person help to understand the complicated forms, federal funding for Obamacare's enrollment assisters is shrinking. CMS cut the federal exchange "navigator" budget by $7 million, leaving only $60 million for the 37 states using healthcare.gov. Federally qualified health clinics, a key part of the strategy for connecting with hard-to-reach and low-income populations, have seen outreach funding cut by about two thirds, to $58 million from $150 million last year.
"The extra money for navigators and assisters in year one and year two is not going to be there forever," said Ario. "It's not by accident that the carriers have relied on agents and brokers … As time goes on, they will take a more extensive role."