Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), many consumers are making health coverage decisions for the first time. To choose among their health plan options and to find providers when seeking care, they need information about which doctors and hospitals participate in a plan’s network. Many people turn to provider directories for help, but inaccurate listings can lead to confusion and out-of-pocket costs for consumers who unwittingly obtain care outside their network.

Keeping provider information up-to-date can be challenging for a single health insurance company. It’s even more difficult for marketplaces, states, and other purchasers seeking to create consumer-friendly integrated provider directories that centralize data from multiple carriers.

To inform efforts to address this problem in California, CHCF commissioned Manatt Health to examine the policy, operational, business, and technical challenges of maintaining accurate integrated provider directories in Colorado, Maryland, New York, and Washington.

Manatt Health is preparing a report on the experiences of consumer advocates, carriers, providers, health plans, marketplaces, and agencies in those four states, as well as some considerations for California. During this free webinar, the researchers will present their findings and take questions.

The scheduled speakers are:

• Amy Adams, senior program officer, CHCF (moderator)
• Jonah Frohlich, managing director, Manatt Health
• Keith Nevitt, senior analyst, Manatt Health

A recording of the webinar and the presentation slides are available below.