Through its work over the past decade, IHPS has earned the reputation as a leading expert in the design, development, and operation of health insurance Exchanges.

Our work has often focused on the development of small employer Exchanges offering worker choice of health plans, often under the auspices of not-for-profit organizations with employer/consumer boards of directors or of independent state agencies and boards.

We are now assisting several States and others in the design, development and implementatin of Exchanges under recently enacted federal health reforms.

IHPS staff have significant experience in the design, development, and operation of health insurance Exchanges. Our focus is to assist with the design of Exchanges that combine public subsidy funds with private contributions to cover the uninsured. As part of this work, we can assist with:

• policy work on the federal and state level to support the development of Exchanges;
• the development of feasibility analyses ;
• design of program structures, including the development of participation rules and health plan offerings;
• development of rating structures and subsidy schedules that result in affordable access and equitable treatment of lower income workers while protecting against adverse market forces;
• identification, criteria evaluation selection of insurers and administrative vendors; and
• insights and information for educational and outreach materials.

Most Recent

"Designing Health Insurance Market Constructs for Shared Responsibility: Insights from California." Health Affairs, 24 March 2009

Health Affairs subscribers can access this article here.

Others can access this article (and two related articles) through the California Healhcare Foundation's website by clicking here.

What Health Insurance Exchanges or Choice Pools Can and Can't Do About Risks and Costs (IHPS, May 2009)

Pools as Mandated Coverage Venues

An Implementation and Alternate Scenario Analysis of California's Health Insurance Act of 2003 (SB2) (IHPS, April 2005)

Purchasing Pools as Vehicles for Subsidies

Three Options for Insuring all Californians (California HealthCare Foundation, October, 2006)

Massachusetts-Style Coverage Expansion: What Would It Cost in California? (California HealthCare Foundation, April 2006)

The Potential for a Small-Employer Purchasing Pool in Wisconsin: Issues and Options for Overcoming Barriers to the Development of the Private Employer Health Care Coverage Program (PEHCCP) (IHPS, January 2003)

Private Purchasing Pools to Harness Individual Tax Credits for Consumers (The Commonwealth Fund, December 2000)

Potential Tasks for Implementing Premium Assistance through a Consumer Choice Health Purchasing Group (IHPS, May 2000)

Coordination of Title XXI Coverage with Employer-Based Coverage through Consumer-Choice Health Purchasing Groups (IHPS, January 1999)

Resource Documents and Other

Consumer-Choice Purchasing Pools: Past Tense, Future Perfect? (Health Affairs, January/February 2001)

Creating Consumer Choice in Healthcare: Measuring and Communicating Health Plan Performance Information (IHPS, March 1998) Includes: "The Necessary Ingredients for a Consumer Choice Purchasing Group"

Medicare Consumer Information and Risk Selection - The Feasibility of Medicare Consumer Cooperatives (IHPS, March 1997)

A Guide to Facilitating Consumer Choice (Health Affairs, Winter 1996)

Medicaid and Cooperative Healthplan Purchasing Organizations (IHPS, December 1996)

Health Network and Alliance Status Report: Cooperative Health Care Purchasing Strategies in the Era of Accountability (IHPS, 1995)

Health Network and Alliance Status Report: Cooperative Health Care Purchasing Strategies in the Era of Accountability (IHPS, 1995)

Resource Manual: Implementing Healthplan Purchasing Cooperatives (IHPS, 1995)

Purchasing Pools to Reach Uninsured Working Families (May 2000)
Blazing the Consumer-Choice Trail (April 1999)
A Matter of Choice (May 1998)
Spanning Diverse Puchasing Roles (May 1997)
Developing Measures for Quality (May 1996)
Medicaid and Cooperative Healthplan Purchasing Organizations (December 1996)
Harnessing the Power of Consumer Choice (July 1995)
Tailoring Healthplan Purchasing and Choice Strategies for Your Market (December 1995)
Purchasing Strategies for Better Value, Service and Accountability (December 1994)
Putting Health Purchasing Alliances into Action (June 1993)
Implementing Alliances and Cooperatives: What to Do and How to Do It (May 1994)

Contact IHPS for additional information.