Colorado Health Exchange Commits to Small Business by Offering Employee Choice in 2014

The Colorado Health Benefit Exchange announced Wednesday that it will move full speed ahead implementing a critical health law provision for small businesses in 2014 known as employee choice, which allows small business workers to choose from a number of plans from different insurance carriers. In the wake of the Department of Health and Human Services' proposal to possibly delay this feature in some exchanges until 2015, Colorado's decision to implement it on Day 1 of enrollment is a victory for the state's small businesses looking forward to robust marketplaces next year.

Our opinion polling found the vast majority of small employers believe allowing employees to select the health plan that's right for them is an important element of the new healthcare marketplaces. This feature is key in distinguishing the exchanges from the outside health insurance market. So is another feature the Colorado exchange has committed to offering small business customers: premium aggregation, a simplified, employer-friendly billing process. This will help simplify the health coverage payment process for Coloradan small employers.

By including employee choice and premium aggregation, the Affordable Care Act can reverse a longstanding trend that has left small employers on unequal footing for too long. These kinds of benefits have historically been reserved for large businesses and public employees, while small businesses often have to offer a one-size fits all plan with added administrative hurdles.

We are pleased to see Colorado make a commitment to its leading job creators by offering the most robust healthcare marketplace it can. This decision will go a long way in helping small businesses offer quality coverage options so they can better compete with large businesses to attract and retain the best employees the state has to offer.