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New Hampshire

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Reinsurance

  • In 2005, New Hampshire passed legislation (SC 125) establishing the New Hampshire Reinsurance Pool by January 1, 2006.  The legislation requires all health insurance carriers become members of the reinsurance pool.  The reinsurance pool board has developed a standard benefit package for small employers on which reinsurance premiums are based.  Any insurer may purchase reinsurance from the pool, with a $5,000 deductible per covered life.  The choice to reinsure is determined by individual carriers, but if pool expenses exceed premiums, all member carriers will be assessed proportionally on the number of lives they cover.

     

High-Risk Pools

  • The New Hampshire High-Risk Insurance Pool became operational in 2002. The pool is financed through participant premiums, as well as assessments of insurance plans based on a "per covered lives" basis. Premium caps for the pool are not less than 125 percent and not higher than 150 percent of the standard risk rate for comparable coverage. At the end of 2005, just over 630 persons were enrolled in the pool.

Dependent Coverage

  • Enacted legislation in 2007 (House Bill 790) allows unmarried New Hampshire young adults to remain eligible for insurance until the age of 26 regardless of educational status.

State Specific Strategies

  • In May 2008, New Hampshire Governor John Lynch signed legislation to enact HealthFirst, a program designed to make health coverage more affordable by emphasizing wellness, prevention and chronic disease management.  The state will convene an advisory group to work out the details of implementation, but the general requirements of the program includes the following:

    • The price of the plan will be set at 10 percent of the median wage – currently $262 in New Hampshire – and will include limits on out-of-pocket spending.
    • All carriers with 1,000 members in the small group market need to offer the product. At least one carrier needs to meet the target premium, or a hearing is held to determine the reasonability of the target with proposed benefits. Depending on the hearing, all carriers may be required to offer the product at the target premium.
    • The Insurance Commissioner will need to certify that the HealthFirst wellness plans create incentives for consumers, health care providers, employers and/or health carriers to:
      • Promote wellness;
      • Promote primary care, preventive care, and a medical home model;
      • Manage and coordinate care for persons with chronic health conditions or acute illness;
      • Promote the use of cost effective care; and
      • Promote quality of care by the use of evidence-based, best practice standards and patient-centered care.