Meeting information needs: lessons learned from New Jersey's Individual Health Insurance Reform Program

At national and state levels, there have been significant changes in the regulations governing individual and small group health insurance markets. Reforms to the individual health insurance market in New Jersey exemplify the challenges of informing consumers about changes in the regulation of insurers, where the changes are intended to simplify and broaden access to health insurance. To best take advantage of expanded access to coverage under new regulations governing the individual health insurance market, individuals need to understand the changed rules under which carriers determine eligibility and premiums. Survey results from New Jersey indicate, however, that a significant proportion of people who purchased policies under the restructured individual health insurance market did not fully understand how the new market operates.