On Thursday, the House voted on H.R. 3362, the Exchange Information Disclosure Act. This bill passed the House in a bipartisan vote of 259 to 154.
H.R. 3362 requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit to Congress, and to make available to state governors, state insurance commissioners, and the public, weekly reports that describe the consumer interactions with healthcare.gov or any subsequent website established by the federal government for enrollment in a qualified health plan (QHP) or receipt of premium tax credit.
Arizona Congressman Matt Salmon voted in favor of the bill. He said, “This bill provides the transparency and accuracy that has been lacking since the rollout of Healthcare.gov. The legislation allows Congress, and the American people, to get at the real numbers of ObamaCare and allows us to receive timely targeted reporting so we can better assess the progress of this failing law. Stronger and better oversight is the least we can do for the American taxpayer whose dollars are funding this federal takeover of the healthcare system.
“Ultimately, I believe the only solution is to repeal this destructive law and replace it with market-based solutions to drive down costs for patients and consumers,” concluded Salmon. “The fact is, simply repealing ObamaCare is not enough; real and pragmatic reform of our healthcare system will be necessary going forward.”
The report is to include the following:
1. A state-by-state breakdown of:
•The number of unique website visits
•The number of web chat logins
•The number of individuals who create an account
•The number of individuals who enrolled in a QHP or Medicaid, including a breakdown of those individuals enrolled in Medicaid and whether the individual was previously eligible or who became eligible under ObamaCare
•The number of individuals who have effectuated enrollment in a QHP through payment of the first monthly premium
•The age of individuals who have effectuate enrollment in a QHP through payment of the first monthly premium
•The number of enrollees in each zip code
•The level of coverage obtained
2. A detailed description of the problems identified with website functionality, actions taken to address these problems, identity of the contractors involved in remedying these issues, how these actions are being paid for, and the federal officials overseeing the effort
3. A description of separate problems with the website, including
•Logging in
•Enrolling
•Transferring to state Medicaid programs
•Calculating advance premium tax credits or cost sharing reductions
•Determining eligibility for QHPs, tax credits/cost sharing reductions, Medicaid, or CHIP
•Verifying income or identity
•Transferring information to health insurance issuers
•Consumer privacy and data security