High-Risk Pool Becomes New Option to AccessTN

Health care advocates are reminding uninsured Tennesseans to shop around before joining the new high-risk insurance pool for people with pre-existing conditions. It opens Thursday.

Since 2006, Tennessee has operated its own high risk pool called AccessTN. In some ways, it has more benefits than the new federal program.

AccessTN only requires an applicant to go without insurance for three months. Susan McKay of the Tennessee Health Care Campaign says the waiting period for the new high-risk pool is twice as long.

“We would prefer that people who have medical conditions, don’t have health insurance coverage, that they shouldn’t have to wait six months to get covered, but that’s the rule for the new federally-created pool.”

The federal program does have lower premiums, but there’s no assistance to people who can’t afford the rates. AccessTN has discounts of up to 60 percent if a family makes less than $75,000.

Tennessee spends $23 million a year on its own high-risk pool, and officials say there are no plans to end the state-run insurance program.

There are 3,900 members of AccessTN, which provides coverage for people who are otherwise uninsurable. Spokesman Joe Birchfield says the members wouldn’t qualify for the new federal pool.

“We have no intention of moving the AccessTN population to the federal pool. They wouldn’t qualify because they’re currently insured, and we want to take care of our current members.”

The federal high-risk pool was created as part of the recently passed health care overhaul. Some 21 states chose to opt out. Instead of running their own programs, states like Tennessee and most across the south are allowing the federal government to administer it.