The federal government granted cautious approval Tuesday for Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin (R) to unplug the state's health exchange Kynect, rerouting enrollees to the federal Healthcare.gov exchange, Courier-Journal reports.
Former Gov. Steve Beshear (D-Ky.) launched Kynect in 2013. However, current Gov. Bevin has said Kynect is unnecessary. Kentucky enrollees purchasing commercial health plans will now use Healthcare.gov, and Medicaid enrollees will use Kentucky's new online enrollment system Benefind.
CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt said in a letter to Gov. Bevin he is concerned the transition of 500,000 Kentuckians from Kynect to the federal exchange "may disrupt the seamless system of coverage that Kynect established," according to Courier-Journal. Mr. Slavitt said the federal government will watch over the transition.
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