Kentucky State Specific Strategies

In 2006, the Kentucky legislature passed the Insurance Coverage, Affordability and Relief to Employers (ICARE) Act [1]. ICARE will provide a subsidy to employees of small firms (2-25 employees) of $40 to $60 per employee per month. The subsidy is reduced by increments of between $10 and $15 each year. The program is available to small firms whose employers pay at least 50 percent of total premium, who are uninsured for 12 months or have one employee with a high-cost medical condition, and whose average employee wage is less than 300 percent FPL. All carriers who currently write in the Kentucky small group market are required to offer three ICARE benefit packages including: basic, enriched, and high deductible coupled with an account. The ICARE program is authorized for four years. The program began in November of 2006.