Colorado's Health Insurance Market (2016)

Health insurance is a method of paying for health care services that spreads the risk and costs across a group of covered persons. In exchange for premiums and other cost-sharing mechanisms, such as deductibles and co-payments, health insurance companies pay for the costs of covered services. Health insurance carriers set premiums, deductibles, and co-payments at a level that covers the estimated health care costs incurred by all members of the group. This issue brief provides an overview of the private health insurance market in Colorado and federal and state health insurance regulations.