Sponsored by Senator Paula Sandoval (D-Denver) and Representative Morgan Carroll (D-Aurora), the FAIR Act would require insurance companies to justify rate increases before they could take effect and would give the Insurance Commissioner the power to reject unjustified rate hikes.  The bill would also require full transparency to allow Colorado consumers and policymakers to follow their health care dollars and make informed choices based on hard data.

“As a small business owner, I know how important it is to offer health insurance to my employees,” said Sandoval. “It gets harder every year.  My rates go up and my coverage goes down, and no one can tell us why.”

“Colorado currently lacks the necessary oversight on insurance rates which leads to Colorado consumers paying more for less,” said Carroll. “This increases the number of uninsured people in our state and increases costs to both consumers and taxpayers.”

Under the bill, the commissioner is required to reject a rate increase when benefits are not reasonable in relation to the premiums charged, the rate increase is unjust, unfair, inequitable, discriminatory, excessive, or inadequate, claims experience and data do not justify the increase, or the rate filing is incomplete. The bill would also create a penalty for a person or organization that knowingly provides false or misleading information.