HealthTrust Statement Regarding Senate Bill 297

Posted: 2.28.2025

HealthTrust received the text of Senate Bill (SB) 297 late Tuesday, February 25, 2025. This bill, if passed, would shift the risk of losses from NH RSA 5-B pooled risk management programs, such as HealthTrust, to the towns, cities, school districts, counties, and other public sector organizations we serve.

Currently, HealthTrust relies upon its actuaries to determine an adequate level of contributions to cover expected claims during the future renewal period. HealthTrust actuaries also recommend a Capital Adequacy Reserve range which is used to protect against claims exceeding expectations. If the reserve is utilized, HealthTrust rebuilds the reserve funds through a Capital Risk Charge built into the upcoming rating cycles.

The reserve range for health programs in SB 297 is too narrow and too low to sufficiently protect against potential adverse claims experience, which has been particularly volatile over recent years. If this bill were to pass, and the low level of reserves proved to be insufficient, the shortfall would be borne by the Member Groups in the form of an assessment that would be required to be paid by the Group within 30 days at any time during the plan year. Such assessments may frequently occur due to the requirement that health risk management programs adhere to the narrow and low level of reserves. In other words, the bill would require HealthTrust to be undercapitalized, relying instead on Member Group assessments to prevent financial impairment.

HealthTrust opposes this bill and will present testimony at the hearing on Tuesday, March 4, at 1 p.m. in State House Room 103.

As of April 24, 2025, a dedicated SB297 page has been added to our website. Click here to view the latest news on SB297.