A cooperative health insurance provider to 14,000 customers on New Mexico's subsidized marketplace will cease operations at the start of 2021.
State insurance regulators announced Tuesday that New Mexico Health Connections will not be an option during the open enrollment period that starts Nov. 1.
People who lose their job-based insurance as a result of the economic crisis linked to COVID-19 are expected to flock to both Medicaid insurance and New Mexico's insurance exchange that provides subsidies to households with low and moderate incomes. Five insurance carriers are expected to participate in state exchange in 2021.
Health Connections CEO Marlene Baca said in a statement that claims will be paid through the end of the calendar year by the co-op that was formed in 2012.
She said the company's board decided that future growth projections were not enough to ensure successful operations.
More than 40,000 people rely on New Mexico's state-based health insurance exchange for individuals and families.