Insurance navigator bill advanced

Senators advanced a bill from general file May 16 that would regulate individuals and entities applying for and acting as navigators in the state’s health benefit exchange.

The exchange will be established in Nebraska under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which requires that all exchanges include programs to assist individuals in navigating the new system.

Nebraska’s exchange must be operational by Oct. 1, 2013, and states have the authority to license and regulate navigators.

LB568, introduced by Omaha Sen. Burke Harr, would establish a regulatory system within the state Department of Insurance for navigators in Nebraska.

A Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee amendment, adopted 35-0, became the bill. Under the amendment, navigators would be required to be licensed by the department and could:
• conduct public education activities;
• distribute fair and impartial general information concerning enrollment in qualified health plans and public insurance programs offered in the exchange;
• facilitate enrollment in qualified health plans without suggesting a particular plan;
• provide referrals to appropriate state or federal agencies; and
• provide information in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner.

Harr said that once the exchange is in place, the state will have until January 2014 to sign up approximately 217,000 people who will be eligible to purchase health insurance through the new system.

Many of those individuals never will have had health insurance before, Harr said, and will need the assistance of navigators to understand the process. Others may lack English language or literacy skills, he said.

“The bill provides accountability and oversight for those who assist the working poor,” Harr said.

An initial navigator license fee would be established by the department and could not exceed $50 for an individual license and $100 for an entity. Licenses would be issued for two years and could be renewed for a fee, conditional on ongoing training and continuing education requirements.

Navigators would be prohibited from:
• engaging in any activities that would require an insurance producer license;
• offering advice about which health plan is better or worse for a particular individual or employee;
• recommending or endorsing a particular health plan;
• advising consumers about which health plan to choose;
• providing information or services related to health plans not offered in the exchange;
• accepting compensation dependent on whether a person enrolls in or purchases a qualified health plan; or
• failing to respond to an inquiry from the director.

Lincoln Sen. Danielle Conrad opposed the bill and the amendment during debate May 15. She offered a motion to recommit LB568 to the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee, followed by a series of amendments.

Conrad said that all of the prohibited navigator activities outlined in the bill already are actionable under state and federal law, so there is no reason for the Legislature to rush into regulating navigators at the state level.

She said the committee had worked hard on the bill, but that ever-changing federal regulations regarding health exchanges make it unclear how the state should proceed.

“I think at this stage in the game we have far more questions than we have answers,” Conrad said.

The Legislature adjourned for the day before voting on the motion. When lawmakers reconvened May 16, Conrad said that several senators were working on a compromise amendment that would be offered on select file. As a result, she withdrew the motion to recommit the bill to committee and the additional amendments.

LB568 advanced to select file on a 37-0 vote.