Nevada Public Option Implementation - Design Session 6

The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is holding a series of design sessions to implement the state public health option. Passed during the 2021 Legislative Session and signed into law by Governor Steve Sisolak on June 9, 2021, Nevada Senate Bill 420 requires the DHHs Director, in consultation with the Commissioner of Insurance and the Executive Director of the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange, to design, establish, and operate a public option health benefit plan in its nongroup markets.

Key goals of the public option plan include:
• Leverage state purchasing power to lower premiums and costs for health care for all Nevadans.
• Improve access and reduce disparities related to quality of care and outcomes for historically marginalized communities.
• Increase competition in individual health insurance rating areas to improve availability of coverage for rural Nevadans.
• Promote value-based health care financing.

The sixth Public Option Design Session was held on January 28, 2022. This was the sixth of six public sessions informing the design of the public option health benefit plan. The purpose of this session was to present proposals for design elements related to (1) licensure and oversight and (2) offering the public option in the small group market. The presentation also provided an overview of next steps in the public option implementation process, highlighting subsequent opportunities for stakeholder feedback.