GOP lawmaker has more questions for Access Health CT CEO

Article written by Paul Hughes, as it appeared in the Republican American
December 18, 2013

A ranking Republican lawmaker is seeking a hearing to get more information about the state’s health insurance exchange. Sen. Kevin C. Kelly, R-Stratford, announced on Wednesday that he wants the Insurance and Real Estate Committee to call the exchange’s chief executive officer to a public hearing to get the answers he is demanding. Kelly said more questions have arisen in his mind since Access Health CT’s CEO Kevin Counihan appeared before the insurance committee last month. He said Counihan also left some questions unanswered last month that he wants to nail down. Kelly is the ranking Republican senator on the insurance committee. He released a letter Wednesday to the committee’s Democratic co-chairs and all of its members requesting another hearing on Access Health CT. He also copied Counihan. In the letter, Kelly wrote that he is disturbed over the number of state residents who are unable to renew health insurance policies as the Affordable Care Act has started to take effect. He reiterated this concern in statements made to reporters Wednesday. Kelly is also looking for more information concerning the accuracy of the information on the Access Health CT’s website, the shopping experience on the exchange, privacy protections, and outreach to small businesses. He also has questions concerning the sustainability of the exchange in the coming years.