Financially troubled Iowa health insurance cooperative CoOportunity Health may be end up being liquidated, according to an Omaha World-Herald report.
When it began two years ago, the co-op obtained federal loans equaling $130.6 million in initial capital and $15.4 million in operating funds. An additional $125.6 million was due to the insurer in 2015, but a recently passed federal budget continuation law jeopardized roughly $60 million of those additional funds, according to the report.
CMS also informed CoOportunity it would not receive all of the added funds, leaving the health insurer without sufficient capital.
Iowa's insurance commissioner claimed CoOportunity’s board of directors did not oppose the state taking over the company and trying to resolve its financial difficulties given the state's "safety net" fund for paying some claims for insolvent companies, according to the report.
CoOportunity is not entirely alone. Other co-op health insurers will also receive less financial support due to the federal spending law passed earlier this month.
Now, CoOportunity policyholders are being encouraged to switch to other insurance companies during the open enrollment period just in case the co-op is, in fact, liquidated.
Officials from the Iowa co-op health insurer had not commented at the time of the report's publishing.