Dive Brief:
- Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has indicated support for a bill that would require health insurance navigators to officially register with the state, pay for and undergo a background check and provide their fingerprints.
- The intent of the legislation is to protect Pennsylvania residents, says Republican State Senator Don White, as more people look to navigators to help them wade through the health insurance purchasing process.
- White, a career insurance counselor, suggests that health insurance navigators should be required to meet similar requirements because he has heard of "problems in other parts of the country."
Dive Insight:
As White notes, navigators are often entrusted with consumers' personal health and financial information, so it follows that they should be held to a security standard much like any other insurance professional.
The Pennsylvania media outlet witf reports that the bill appears to be modeled after one presented by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative nonprofit organization.
"Governor Wolf knows navigators play an important role in educating and enrolling residents, and it is essential that they are able to continue this work," said Wolf's press secretary Jeff Sheridan in a prepared statement. "SB 293 complies with federal law, does not include unnecessary barriers for navigators and ensures that Pennsylvania residents have access to high-quality healthcare."
According to the National Review, other states have also looked at the issue of legislation amid criticism that the federal government has not done so.