SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California™ has announced that it has retained
John Bertko as chief actuary/director
of research for the exchange.
Bertko, engaged as
a consultant under the general direction of the agency’s executive director,
will manage the collection and analysis of data, trend reporting and market
study information needed for the exchange’s policy development and health plan,
population health costs and risk assessment.
“John Bertko is a strategic
thinker, team builder and innovator, with an entrepreneurial mindset,” Covered
California Executive Director Peter V. Lee said. “He works effectively with
diverse stakeholders, and he has a passion for Covered California’s mission of
providing quality and affordable health care to all Californians.”
Bertko most
recently was an independent actuarial consultant and was the director of special
initiatives and pricing in the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance
Oversight at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), retiring
from this position as of Jan. 31, 2014.
He served as a
senior actuarial adviser on various private insurance initiatives, including
risk adjustment, insurance programs and insurance oversight activities. He
formerly was a senior fellow at the LMI Center for Health Reform, adjunct staff
at RAND, a visiting scholar at the Brookings Institution and a visiting scholar
at the Center
for Health Policy at Stanford University. He
retired as chief actuary of Humana Inc., where he managed the corporate actuarial
group and directed work by actuarial staff for Humana’s major business units,
including developing Part D, Medicare Advantage and consumer-driven health care
products. His $153,600 contract with Covered California is for one year.
About Covered California
Covered California is the state’s marketplace for the
federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Covered California, in
partnership with the California Department of Health Care Services, was charged with creating a
new health insurance marketplace in which individuals and small businesses can
get access to affordable health insurance plans. With coverage starting in
2014, Covered California helps individuals determine whether they are eligible
for premium assistance that is available on a sliding-scale basis to reduce
insurance costs or whether they are eligible for low-cost or no-cost Medi-Cal.
Consumers can then compare health insurance plans and choose the plan that
works best for their health needs and budget. Small businesses can purchase
competitively priced health insurance plans and offer their employees the
ability to choose from an array of plans and may qualify for federal tax
credits.
Covered California is an independent part of the state government whose job is to make the new market work for California’s consumers. It is overseen by a five-member board appointed by the Governor and the Legislature. For more information on Covered California, please visit www.CoveredCA.com.
