This document provides information about enrolling in health insurance through Connect for Health Colorado, the state's health insurance marketplace. It outlines the enrollment process for both employers and employees. For employers, the process involves creating an account, adding employees to a roster, creating an enrollment, selecting plan options and carrier, reviewing the enrollment, and sending a welcome message to employees. For employees, the process involves creating an account, entering an access code provided by the employer, shopping for plans during the open enrollment period, and submitting an application. The document also provides definitions of health insurance terms and describes the small business tax credit available to help make premiums more affordable.

1. How to Enroll in
Health Insurance on the
Connect for Health Colorado
Marketplace
Connect for Health Colorado
Small Business Majority
Jim Sugden
Emily Dewey
Small Business Marketplace Manager
Health Coverage Guide

2. Agenda
• The new marketplace (Connect for Health Colorado)
• Health insurance definitions
• Enrollment preparation
• Applying on ConnectforHealthCO.com
• Small business tax credit

3. About Small Business Majority
• Small business advocacy organization – founded and run
by small business owners
• National – offices in Washington, D.C., Ohio, Colorado,
Missouri, Virginia, Washington State, New York and
California
• Research and advocacy on issues of top importance to
small businesses (<100 employees) and the self-employed,
including healthcare, access to credit and clean energy
• Very focused on outreach to and education of small
business owners across the country

4. What is Connect for Health Colorado?
• Competitive marketplace for private health insurance
• Makes comparing and purchasing commercial health insurance
plans more convenient and competitive
• Provides broad array of choices in one place
• Helps you make an informed decision by creating transparency
about your options
• Only place to check eligibility for new tax credits and apply them
right away to reduce your costs
• Offers you statewide network of trained professionals to help you
access the new financial help and find the health plan that is right for
you and your family
• A new service operated by a non-profit
with the mission to help Coloradans

5. 92 Health Plans for
Small Employers
Competing for Your Business:
• Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield / HMO Colorado
• Colorado Choice Health Plans
• Colorado HealthOP
• Kaiser Permanente
• Rocky Mountain Health Plans
• SeeChange Health

6. Health Insurance 101
– Premium: The monthly amount that you must pay for your health / dental insurance
(coverage)
– Deductible: You need to pay this amount before your plans starts helping you pay for
most covered services through coinsurance.
– Annual Out of Pocket Max: This is the most you’ll pay for care during a policy period
(usually a year) before your plan starts paying 100 percent for most covered services.
– Copay: A fixed amount (for example, $15) you pay for a medical visit or for medication
that is covered under your health plan, usually when you receive the service. This is
considered part of your out-of-pocket costs, separate from premiums and deductibles.
– Coinsurance: After reaching your deductible, you may start paying a percentage of the
total cost for certain services. Coinsurance usually reflects the percentage of medical
expenses that you are responsible to cover, for dental expenses the percentage reflects
what the dental plan will cover.
Source: Cliff Craig, Connect for Health

7. Health Insurance 101
– HMO: A type of health insurance plan that usually limits coverage to care from
doctors who work for or contract with the HMO. It generally won’t cover out-of-network
care except in an emergency. An HMO may require you to live or work in its service
area to be eligible for coverage. HMOs often provide integrated care and focus on
prevention and wellness. (No Out of Network Coverage)
– PPO: A type of health plan that contracts with medical providers, such as hospitals
and doctors, to create a network of participating providers. You pay less if you use
providers that belong to the plan’s network. You can use doctors, hospitals and
providers outside of the network for an additional cost. (Out of Network Coverage but at
higher cost-sharing)
– EPO: A more restrictive type of preferred provider organization plan under which
employees must use providers from the specified network of physicians and hospitals
to receive coverage; there is no coverage for care received from a non-network
provider except in an emergency situation. (No Out of Network Coverage)
Source: Cliff Craig, Connect for Health

8. The Enrollment Process
• Gathering information
• Employer account creation
• Creating enrollment
• Employee responsibilities

9. Info You’ll Need to Enroll
• For all employees:
• For all dependents:
– Date of hire
• Date of birth
– Email address
• Social Security Number
– Date of birth
– Social Security Number
– Home address
– Salary
– Hours worked per week

10. Enrollment Process - Employer
• Create account
• Create roster (list of all employees)
• Attest to small business status (2-50 employees)
• Create census (list of employees offered coverage)
• Create enrollment
– Define enrollment period
– Select census
– Define plan selection options
– Define contribution
– Browse/select plans
– Complete enrollment

11. Enrollment Process –
Employer, cont.
• Send welcome message to employees
• Check participation rate
– At least 70% of employees must accept or decline coverage
• When enrollment period closes, submit application
– Send payment to Connect for Health
Ongoing:
• Manage enrollment
– Change roster
– Manage employee life change events
– Pay monthly premium

12. Enrollment Process –
Employees
• Receive welcome message with participation code
• Create account on employee portal
• Enter participation code to associate with employer
account
• Shop and select plan during open enrollment period
• Submit application

13. Creating an Account
• Go to www.connectforhealthco.com

14. Creating an Account, cont.

15. Creating an Account, cont.

16. Adding Employees

17. Adding Employees

18. Adding Employees

19. Adding Dependents
Click ‘Save & Continue’

20. Create Your Census

21. Create an Enrollment

22. Creating an Enrollment

23. Select Census

24. Define Plan Selection Options

25. Define Contribution

26. Filter Plans
Filters:
• Employer
contribution
• Employee
contribution
• Annual deductible
• Carrier
• Metal level

27. Review Enrollment

28. Send Welcome Message

29. Small Business Marketplace
• Despite not being subject to employer shared responsibility
provisions, the Marketplace may help make healthcare more
affordable for small employers
o How will it be different?
o Small business tax credit
o Greater employer choice- shop by price, plan, service, level of
coverage
o Pooling together of small businesses
o How will it be similar?
o Private insurance competing for business
o Option for small employers, insurance still sold outside

30. Small business tax credits
• Available to businesses with employees
• Took effect immediately (tax year 2010)
• Which businesses are eligible?
 Fewer than 25 full-time employees
 Average annual wages <$50,000
 Employer pays at least 50% of the premium cost

31. Small business tax credits
• Tax credits on a sliding scale:
o Up to 35% of premium expenses for 2010–13
o Up to 50% of premium expenses for any two years
beginning 2014
• Tax credits do not cover premium expenses of owners or
their families
• Tax credits can not be claimed by the self-employed
• Still as an amendment to your 2010 taxes, or can be
carried back to tax year 2010.

32. Resources
Contact Connect for Health Colorado:
www.connectforhealthco.com
Call center: 855-PLANS-4-YOU (855-752-6749)
For More Information:
www.smallbusinessmajority.org
healthcoverageguide.org/states/colorado/
Emily Dewey
Health Coverage Guide
Small Business Majority
edewey@smallbusinessmajority.org
Jim Sugden
SHOP Marketplace Manager
Connect for Health Colorado
jsugden@connectforhealthco.com

33. Join Our Network
Contact
• Emma Hollister, Network Coordinator
• Email: ehollister@smallbusinessmajority.org
• Direct: (202) 535-3229
Ways to Get Involved:
Connect with us!
@SmlBizMajority
• Receive a monthly newsletter
• Share your story for media requests
• Letters to the editor/Op-eds
Small Business Majority
• State events/Roundtables
• Fly-ins
• Webinars for business organizations