GU-The Massachusetts and Utah Health Insurance Exchanges: Lessons Learned

Georgetown University Health Policy Institute researchers examined three key areas of the Massachusetts and Utah exhanges: the quality and choice of plans, the affordabiltiy of coverage, and the ease of enrollment. The researchers gathered selected "lessons learned" from both exchanges:

• It's not an "either-or" chocie between the Massachussetts model and the Utah model
• Policymakers must consider exhanges' interactions with broader insurance market rules
• Exchanges can be effective market innovations
• Exchanges require the participation of both consumers and health plans
• Effective "active purchasing" requires market knowledge and nimbleness in the face of consumer demands
• You get what you pay for
• Exchanges without associated subsidies can do little to make insurance more affordable
• A "defined contribution" model for employer-sponsored coverage will not necessarily attract small employers to exchanges
• Public outreach an dsimple enrollment are keys to success