Health IT, Policy, Startups

Utah is managing its small business exchange like a startup that will spin off

As states go live with their health insurance exchanges this week, it’s worth taking a […]

As states go live with their health insurance exchanges this week, it’s worth taking a second look at Utah. The state’s small business heath insurance exchange lives in its economic development office. Why? It’s part of a strategy to treat it like a startup and to eventually spin it off into a quasi-government nonprofit once the exchange is self-sustaining.

In an interview with MedCity News at the Diabetes + Innovation conference in Washington DC, Robert Spendlove, the deputy chief of staff for state and federal relations talked about its strategy. He was part of a panel discussing state exchanges.

“We look at it like a young startup,” he said. “We’re the angel investor providing seed money and then it will get venture investment and then will be spun off.”

Patty Conner, the director of the state’s health information exchange, said it changed the name from health insurance exchange to Avenue H (for health) because people were confused on what an ‘exchange’ is and “the political noise actually created a negative response,” in an emailed reply to questions.

It looks a lot like the font style of Avenue Q — the Broadway musical about young metropolitan professionals.

“We rebranded with a name that would suggest a more hip, commercial name as well as a new tag line of a small business health insurance marketplace,” Conner said.

Spendlove said the strategy has increased understanding and exposure but, so far, not enrollment.

He emphasized during the discussion that each state has to do what best serves their own populations.

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