Kilili: $1 million health reform act funds for CNMI will protect consumers from unreasonable rate hikes

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan announced today that $1 million in federal funds are now available to the Northern Mariana Islands to help the Commonwealth government protect consumers from unreasonable increases in their health insurance premiums. The funding is part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the landmark health care reform bill passed by Congress and signed into law in March. The Commonwealth must apply by October 1 to receive the money.

“This $1 million grant is one of the reasons I worked so hard to make sure the people of the Northern Marianas were included in health care reform,” said Congressman Sablan.

“And I will continue to work to make sure that health care reform benefits our Commonwealth.”

On July 29th, following advocacy by the Delegates to Congress, Health and Human Services Secretary Sebelius confirmed that the five United States territories – the Northern Marianas as well as Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands – would benefit from most of the consumer protections established in the new health care law, including the Premium Review grant. The actual announcement of fund availability, however, only occurred this month.

The total funding available to the Northern Marianas is the same as that available to each state: $1 million. No match is required. The money can be used in fiscal 2010 and in fiscal 2011.

“With the local government strapped for resources the Insurance Commissioner is at a disadvantage protecting consumers. These new federal funds will help the Commissioner determine if any premium increases that insurance companies propose are unreasonable, not sufficiently justified by an increase in health care and other costs, or excessive relative to the current rate.”

The program is officially known as the Grants to States for Health Insurance Premium Review. It requires recipients “to either develop or enhance their current capacity to review and, to the extent permitted by state law, approve or deny rate increases.

“States that do not currently review rate filing will need to demonstrate in their application how they plan to develop a process to conduct meaningful rate review or otherwise enhance their oversight over insurers’ rating practices.”

The plan must also include a mechanism for disclosing rates to the public.

In her July letter Secretary Sebelius also reiterated that the Northern Mariana Islands would be eligible for funding to assist in making insurance premiums affordable through an insurance exchange.

“Under section 1323 of the Affordable Care Act,” Sebelius wrote, “each territory has the option to receive funds to make coverage affordable through an Exchange starting in 2014.”

$75 million has been set aside to subsidize health insurance premiums for residents of the U.S. territories.