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Resistance See other Resistance Articles Title: Texas proposes new rules for Obamacare ‘navigators’ To address privacy concerns raised by state leaders, the Texas Department of Insurance on Tuesday proposed additional rules for the so-called “navigators” directed to help Texans sign up for health insurance under the federal Affordable Care Act. “In Texas, we are being vigilant about safeguarding privacy and keeping personal information out of the wrong hands,” Insurance Commissioner Julia Rathgeber said in a statement. “These proposed rules address insufficiencies in federal regulations and make the training and qualifications of navigators in our state more readily apparent to consumers and service providers.” Gov. Rick Perry requested in September that the state insurance department establish additional regulations for federal navigators. Attorney General Greg Abbott, who is running for governor, reiterated Perry’s request in November, and also sent a letter signed by 12 other state attorneys general to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius voicing concerns about the privacy protections in the federal navigator program. President Obama’s signature health reform law requires most Texans to carry health insurance in 2014. Texas declined to establish a state-based insurance marketplace to help consumers find coverage, so the federal government is doing it instead. The federal health insurance marketplace, which launched on Oct. 1, has experienced myriad technical problems and requires individuals to plug in sensitive tax information, including their Social Security numbers and estimated annual income, to determine whether they qualify for tax credits to purchase coverage. To help uninsured Texans use the complicated new system, the federal government awarded nearly $11 million in August to local organizations charged with hiring and managing navigators. At least two organizations that received navigator grants in Texas have backed out of the program in response to the state’s political pressure. United Way of Tarrant County received the largest single grant in the nation, $5.9 million, to hire and oversee 75 navigators in various Texas cities, including six in Tarrant County and 11 in Dallas County. The navigators must undergo 20 to 30 hours of training, pass a certification test and renew their certification annually, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Although federal program rules already require navigators to provide information that is “fair, accurate and impartial” and prohibit conflicts of interest, the rules proposed by TDI would require navigators to undergo criminal background checks, comply with additional privacy training, and provide proof of identity and documentation that they complied with education requirements. The rules also explicitly prohibit navigators from charging consumers, selling or soliciting health insurance coverage, recommending a specific health plan, providing advice on how to compare benefits of specific plans, and engaging in certain political activities, such as campaigning or promoting a political party or candidate. “As they attempt to recruit enrollment in Obamacare, this cadre of ‘navigators’ cannot get unregulated access to people’s personal information the way they might in other states,” Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said in a statement. “Considering the litany of failures and excuses that accompanied the launch of the healthcare.gov website, we must be on guard against the continuing missteps of the Obama administration.” Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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