At the January 23, 2014 Covered California Board meeting I made public comments regarding the numerous applications for enrollment that had failed to be transmitted to chosen health insurance carriers. I have documented the numerous instances where I’ve enrolled individuals and families into a Covered California health plan only to learn the health insurance company never received the data.
Lost applications
After hours on the phone with the carriers and Covered California trying to resolve the situation of these “lost” applications, I attended the Board meeting to make my frustrations known. View my comments on the YouTube video I posted below.
I don’t know if my comments did any good to shift the focus of the Covered California Board into investigating their IT failure. Somewhere in the system there needs to be accountability for the applications to be properly sent by Covered California and received by the carrier.
Covered California monopoly
Covered California has a monopoly for getting subsidized individual and family health insurance in the state. They are the gate-keeper for these folks to get health care services after they mandated that all non-grandfathered, non-ACA compliant plans be cancelled in California by carriers participating in the state exchange. Covered California can’t pretend their responsibility ends when they believe they have transmitted the enrollment data to the carrier.
Covered California is the gate-keeper to health care
Numerous families have had to cancel doctor appointments and have had problems accessing care and prescription medications because of the numerous problems at Covered California and the health insurance companies. While the bulk of the concern and discussion at the board meeting centered on the lack luster Spanish speaking population’s enrollment in Covered California, there needs to be equal attention paid to families that have had to delay care because of lack of insurance promised by Covered California.
Covered California ignores pregnant woman’s plea for health insurance