‘Special’ medical market could be big

The site will give consumers information they can use to shop for major medical plans available elsewhere, and also try to sell those consumers the company's own private-label supplemental health insurance plans.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act now requires carriers in the individual market to sell coverage on a guaranteed-issue basis. The only individual health factor carriers can use to adjust rates is age.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and state regulators have tried to discourage consumers from waiting until they get sick to pay for coverage by limiting the period when they can automatically qualify to buy coverage.

Some brokers have wondered what they will be able to offer consumers from April 1 through Nov. 15, when the 2015 open enrollment period is tentatively scheduled to begin.

Under current rules, carriers and brokers will be able to sell short-term medical insurance during the regular major medical market hiatus.

"That's not necessarily a bad solution," Smedsrud said.

Because HHS has exempted short-term medical products from the PPACA rules that apply to major medical coverage, short-term medical issuers can still use medical underwriting.

That can make the product expensive and difficult to get for older applicants, but much cheaper than unsubsidized major medical coverage for young, health applicants, according to short-term medical market studies.

See also:

• Maryland to extend enrollment
• What will brokers sell after March 31?
• Nevada to extend exchange enrollment