Healthcare is the most complex domestic policy issue facing the nation today. ConnectiCare is actively working towards public policy solutions to find coverage for the uninsured and reduce health costs. Mickey Herbert, President and CEO of ConnectiCare, has been a policy leader in healthcare for thirty years and has continued in his current capacity. In 2006, Mickey Herbert co-chaired the Connecticut Health Policy Council which released a major report that provided a framework to reform Connecticut’s healthcare system. In addition, he serves on the Board of the America’s Health Insurance Plans, the industry’s national association. Mickey Herbert is a frequent public speaker on national and international health systems. Click here to request an appearance.

In Connecticut, ConnectiCare is a member of the Connecticut Health Plan Association. ConnectiCare also engages the business, government, and health communities in finding agreement on how to improve the system.

We actively seek forums to educate the community on positive improvements health plans are making to the health care industry. We participate with Insure Connecticut’s Future, CBIA, The Insurance and Financial Services Cluster, the Metro Hartford Alliance, The Business Council of Fairfield County, the Connecticut Hospital Association, and the major Chambers of Commerce.

ConnectiCare believes that disease management and wellness programs matched with expanded insurance coverage and cost containment, all need to be part of the health reform solution. The U.S. healthcare system has constantly changed, reformed, and improved. It is now entering a new era and ConnectiCare will be on the forefront to help shape the next generation of public policy.

For more information on our activities click on the following:

Connecticut Health Policy Report (January 2007)

Mickey Herbert Op-Ed Connecticut Post (May 2007)

Health Reform Principles: Connecticut Hospital Association, CBIA, CT-AHIP (March 2007)

Statement on Health Reform in Connecticut

Over the next few years, there will substantial opportunity to advance our health system in terms of costs, quality, and access. The leaders of the business community, hospitals, health providers, and the health insurers of this state are identifying solutions and are working with government to implement them.

There is an uninsured problem in the United States and Connecticut. The uninsured population ranges between 7-9% of our state’s population. There are distinct pockets of people that are highly uninsured and through targeted public-private partnership we can solve this problem.

Finding coverage for the uninsured is a less daunting policy dilemma than controlling costs. In Connecticut, we are lucky to have access to excellent physicians and hospitals. Yet as a result of this extensive system and the ever increasing technology, more people are seeking healthcare, there are more products and treatments available to consume, and as a result costs continue to rise.

Proposals such as a single payer system do not address the uninsured problem directly nor do they get to the root of the uninsured problem, increasing costs. A single payer system would only pass the problem to the government to reduce costs.

ConnectiCare and the leading health insurance companies of today are concentrating on expanding disease management and collaborating with private businesses on wellness programs to improve all our members’ health and at the same time help reduce costs.

Connecticut has one of the best healthcare systems and some of the highest quality of care in the world. Unlike many other countries, in the United States, there are minimal waits for healthcare, no lack of access to technology, and no lack of medical breakthroughs. In countries like Canada, the wait list for hip replacement surgery is nearly 10 months; for a mammogram, 2.5 months.

Connecticut currently ranks fifth nationally in terms of health status and have been moving up. Our current employer based health insurance system provides insurance to 94% of its employees, one of the strongest private sector commitments in the country. We are doing a lot of good, but we need to build on it.

Connecticut should aim to be number one nationally in health status and make healthcare a competitive advantage for the state. Further, Connecticut should seek to reduce the number of uninsured by half in the next three years.

For now, the federal government has left the health debate to the states and each one will tailor its own solution within its own budget and laws. What works for California or Massachusetts may not work for us. The size of the problem in Connecticut is much smaller than most states and as such we have more opportunity to become the best health system in the U.S.

ConnectiCare will continue to play an active role in these solutions.

Statement on Single Payer Systems

There are many practical solutions being prepared to help improve the healthcare system; a government run, single-payer system is neither practical nor financially rational.

The value of health system improvements should be measured with the needs of the state and the added costs to businesses and taxpayers. We need financially sustainable solutions to fit within our state budget and avoid increasing the tax burden. In this regards, at the estimated cost of $17 billion to create a single payer system, this is not a viable option.

A single payer system would raise taxes and create a new bureaucracy without addressing the root problem of health costs. It would further dismantle our state’s insurance industry; the largest private contributor to state jobs and the economy.

We can solve the uninsured problem in Connecticut without creating a government run health care system. The uninsured population ranges between 7 to 9% of Connecticut’s population. There are distinct pockets of people that are disproportionately uninsured and through targeted public-private programs, like HUSKY, we can solve this problem. The majority of people who are uninsured have a low income level and affordability for many essentials is a challenge.

At ConnectiCare, priority number one is to get the most value to you. We constantly drive our business operations to be more efficient and cost effective. For example, approximately 91% of our customer claims are set up for automatic processing and never touch a human hand; and as result 99.9% of our claims are paid in less than 30 days. A government run health system will not have the competition to be this efficient or the incentive to contain costs.