Minn. Commerce Dept. Holds 'Listening' Session To Discuss Health Insurance Changes
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - The Minnesota Department of Commerce held a "listening" session Monday for people who will have to change their health insurance coverage when the Affordable Care Act goes into effect on Oct. 1.
The video conference included questions from a number of people from 38 counties in the state.
Tim Vande Hey is the deputy commissioner of the Commerce Department's insurance division.
Affordable Care Act
"These listening sessions have given us direction going forward to create a draft transition plan which we did from May 1 to June 15," Vande Hey said.
The draft was released, and they are now getting comments on it.
"We have been hearing a lot about what the choices will be," he said.
There are about 35,000 people who are insured under the Minnesota Comprehensive Health Association.
That is an insurance pool for high-risk people who were unable to get insurance elsewhere.
Vande Hey says many of them are worried that their pre-existing condition won't be covered.
"They want to keep their same doctors," he said
Vande Hey says there are about 1.3 million Minnesotans who will have made a change, either because they are under the MCHA plan or they are just uninsured.
