Title 42 — The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73not60
§18042 Federal Program to Assist Establishment and Operation of Nonprofit, Member-run Health Insurance Issuers
Title 42 › Chapter 157— QUALITY, AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE FOR ALL AMERICANS › Subchapter III— AVAILABLE COVERAGE CHOICES FOR ALL AMERICANS › Part C— State Flexibility Relating To Exchanges › § 18042
Summary
Creates a program called the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO‑OP) program to help start nonprofit, member-run health insurers that sell plans in the individual and small group markets. The Secretary must give loans for start-up costs and grants for state solvency requirements. Priority goes to applicants that will operate statewide, use integrated care models, and have strong private support. The program must try to fund at least one qualified nonprofit insurer in each State, and can fund more if money allows. Anyone who gets money must sign an agreement to meet the program rules and may not use the funds for lobbying or for marketing. If a recipient breaks the rules and does not fix it in time, they must repay 110 percent of the total loans and grants plus interest. The Secretary must award and start distributing funds by July 1, 2013, and create rules by that date saying loans are repaid within 5 years and grants within 15 years. An advisory board of 15 people will be named by the Comptroller General, must meet ethics rules, have initial appointments by 3 months after March 23, 2010, and end when its work is done or by December 31, 2015. A qualified nonprofit health insurer must be a state‑organized nonprofit member corporation that mainly issues qualified health plans in the individual and small group markets where it is licensed. It cannot be a health insurer that existed on July 16, 2009, or be sponsored by a government. It must be governed by member votes, have conflict‑of‑interest protections, focus on consumers, use any profits to lower premiums or improve benefits or care quality, and obey state rules like solvency, licensure, network adequacy, and related laws. CO‑OP insurers may form a private purchasing council to buy administrative services to save money, but the council cannot set provider payment rates and antitrust laws still apply. No government representatives or those barred under the earlier rule may serve on boards or the council. The Secretary may not take part in negotiations with providers or set reimbursement prices. The law appropriates $6,000,000,000 for the program. The Comptroller General must study insurance market competition after the reforms and report to Congress by December 31 of each even‑numbered year beginning with 2014.
Full Legal Text
Title 42, §18042
The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)(1)The Secretary shall establish a program to carry out the purposes of this section to be known as the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO–OP) program.
(2)It is the purpose of the CO–OP program to foster the creation of qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers to offer qualified health plans in the individual and small group markets in the States in which the issuers are licensed to offer such plans.
(b)(1)The Secretary shall provide through the CO–OP program for the awarding to persons applying to become qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers of—
(A)loans to provide assistance to such person in meeting its start-up costs; and
(B)grants to provide assistance to such person in meeting any solvency requirements of States in which the person seeks to be licensed to issue qualified health plans.
(2)(A)In awarding loans and grants under the CO–OP program, the Secretary shall—
(i)take into account the recommendations of the advisory board established under paragraph (3);
(ii)give priority to applicants that will offer qualified health plans on a Statewide basis, will utilize integrated care models, and have significant private support; and
(iii)ensure that there is sufficient funding to establish at least 1 qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer in each State, except that nothing in this clause shall prohibit the Secretary from funding the establishment of multiple qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers in any State if the funding is sufficient to do so.
(B)If no health insurance issuer applies to be a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer within a State, the Secretary may use amounts appropriated under this section for the awarding of grants to encourage the establishment of a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer within the State or the expansion of a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer from another State to the State.
(C)(i)The Secretary shall require any person receiving a loan or grant under the CO–OP program to enter into an agreement with the Secretary which requires such person to meet (and to continue to meet)—
(I)any requirement under this section for such person to be treated as a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer; and
(II)any requirements contained in the agreement for such person to receive such loan or grant.
(ii)The agreement shall include a requirement that no portion of the funds made available by any loan or grant under this section may be used—
(I)for carrying on propaganda, or otherwise attempting, to influence legislation; or
(II)for marketing.
(iii)If the Secretary determines that a person has failed to meet any requirement described in clause (i) or (ii) and has failed to correct such failure within a reasonable period of time of when the person first knows (or reasonably should have known) of such failure, such person shall repay to the Secretary an amount equal to the sum of—
(I)110 percent of the aggregate amount of loans and grants received under this section; plus
(II)interest on the aggregate amount of loans and grants received under this section for the period the loans or grants were outstanding.
(D)The Secretary shall not later than July 1, 2013, award the loans and grants under the CO–OP program and begin the distribution of amounts awarded under such loans and grants.
(3)Not later than July 1, 2013, and prior to awarding loans and grants under the CO–OP program, the Secretary shall promulgate regulations with respect to the repayment of such loans and grants in a manner that is consistent with State solvency regulations and other similar State laws that may apply. In promulgating such regulations, the Secretary shall provide that such loans shall be repaid within 5 years and such grants shall be repaid within 15 years, taking into consideration any appropriate State reserve requirements, solvency regulations, and requisite surplus note arrangements that must be constructed in a State to provide for such repayment prior to awarding such loans and grants.
(4)(A)The advisory board under this paragraph shall consist of 15 members appointed by the Comptroller General of the United States from among individuals with qualifications described in section 1395b–6(c)(2) of this title.
(B)(i)Any individual appointed under subparagraph (A) shall meet ethics and conflict of interest standards protecting against insurance industry involvement and interference.
(ii)The original appointment of board members under subparagraph (A)(ii) shall be made no later than 3 months after March 23, 2010.
(C)Any vacancy on the advisory board shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment.
(D)(i)Except as provided in clause (ii), a member of the advisory board may not receive pay, allowances, or benefits by reason of their service on the board.
(ii)Each member shall receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5.
(E)Chapter 10 of title 5 shall apply to the advisory board, except that section 1013 of title 5 shall not apply.
(F)The advisory board shall terminate on the earlier of the date that it completes its duties under this section or December 31, 2015.
(c)For purposes of this section—
(1)The term “qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer” means a health insurance issuer that is an organization—
(A)that is organized under State law as a nonprofit, member corporation;
(B)substantially all of the activities of which consist of the issuance of qualified health plans in the individual and small group markets in each State in which it is licensed to issue such plans; and
(C)that meets the other requirements of this subsection.
(2)An organization shall not be treated as a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer if—
(A)the organization or a related entity (or any predecessor of either) was a health insurance issuer on July 16, 2009; or
(B)the organization is sponsored by a State or local government, any political subdivision thereof, or any instrumentality of such government or political subdivision.
(3)An organization shall not be treated as a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer unless—
(A)the governance of the organization is subject to a majority vote of its members;
(B)its governing documents incorporate ethics and conflict of interest standards protecting against insurance industry involvement and interference; and
(C)as provided in regulations promulgated by the Secretary, the organization is required to operate with a strong consumer focus, including timeliness, responsiveness, and accountability to members.
(4)An organization shall not be treated as a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer unless any profits made by the organization are required to be used to lower premiums, to improve benefits, or for other programs intended to improve the quality of health care delivered to its members.
(5)An organization shall not be treated as a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer unless the organization meets all the requirements that other issuers of qualified health plans are required to meet in any State where the issuer offers a qualified health plan, including solvency and licensure requirements, rules on payments to providers, and compliance with network adequacy rules, rate and form filing rules, any applicable State premium assessments and any other State law described in section 18044(b) of this title.
(6)An organization shall not be treated as a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer unless the organization does not offer a health plan in a State until that State has in effect (or the Secretary has implemented for the State) the market reforms required by part A of title XXVII of the Public Health Service Act [42 U.S.C. 300gg et seq.] (as amended by subtitles A and C of this Act).
(d)(1)Qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers participating in the CO–OP program under this section may establish a private purchasing council to enter into collective purchasing arrangements for items and services that increase administrative and other cost efficiencies, including claims administration, administrative services, health information technology, and actuarial services.
(2)The private purchasing council established under paragraph (1) shall not set payment rates for health care facilities or providers participating in health insurance coverage provided by qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers.
(3)(A)Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the application of the antitrust laws to any private purchasing council (whether or not established under this subsection) or to any qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer participating in such a council.
(B)For purposes of this subparagraph, the term “antitrust laws” has the meaning given the term in subsection (a) of section 12 of title 15. Such term also includes section 45 of title 15 to the extent that such section 45 applies to unfair methods of competition.
(e)No representative of any Federal, State, or local government (or of any political subdivision or instrumentality thereof), and no representative of a person described in subsection (c)(2)(A), may serve on the board of directors of a qualified nonprofit health insurance issuer or with a private purchasing council established under subsection (d).
(f)(1)The Secretary shall not—
(A)participate in any negotiations between 1 or more qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers (or a private purchasing council established under subsection (d)) and any health care facilities or providers, including any drug manufacturer, pharmacy, or hospital; and
(B)establish or maintain a price structure for reimbursement of any health benefits covered by such issuers.
(2)Nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing the Secretary to interfere with the competitive nature of providing health benefits through qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers.
(g)There are hereby appropriated, out of any funds in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $6,000,000,000 to carry out this section.
(h)
(i)(1)The Comptroller General of the General Accountability Office shall conduct an ongoing study on competition and market concentration in the health insurance market in the United States after the implementation of the reforms in such market under the provisions of, and the amendments made by, this Act. Such study shall include an analysis of new issuers of health insurance in such market.
(2)The Comptroller General shall, not later than December 31 of each even-numbered year (beginning with 2014), report to the appropriate committees of the Congress the results of the study conducted under paragraph (1), including any recommendations for administrative or legislative changes the Comptroller General determines necessary or appropriate to increase competition in the health insurance market.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
The Public Health Service Act, referred to in subsec. (c)(6), is act July 1, 1944, ch. 373, 58 Stat. 682. Part A of title XXVII of the Act is classified generally to part A (§ 300gg et seq.) of subchapter XXV of chapter 6A of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see
Short Title
note set out under section 201 of this title and Tables. Subtitles A and C of this Act, referred to in subsec. (c)(6), are subtitles A (§§ 1001–1004) and C (§§ 1201–1255), respectively, of title I of Pub. L. 111–148, Mar. 23, 2010, 124 Stat. 130, 154. Subtitle A enacted sections 300gg–11 to 300gg–19, 300gg–93, and 300gg–94 of this title, transferred sections 300gg–4 to 300gg–7 and 300gg–13 of this title to sections 300gg–25 to 300gg–28 and 300gg–9 of this title, respectively, amended section 300gg–11, 300gg–12, and 300gg–21 to 300gg–23 of this title, and enacted provisions set out as a note under section 300gg–11 of this title. Subtitle C enacted subchapter II of this chapter and sections 300gg to 300gg–2 and 300gg–4 to 300gg–7 of this title, transferred section 300gg of this title to section 300gg–3 of this title, amended section 300gg–1 and 300gg–4 of this title, and enacted provisions set out as a note under section 300gg of this title. For complete classification of subtitles A and C to the Code, see Tables. This Act, referred to in subsec. (i)(1), is Pub. L. 111–148, Mar. 23, 2010, 124 Stat. 119, known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see
Short Title
note set out under section 18001 of this title and Tables. Codification Section is comprised of section 1322 of Pub. L. 111–148. Subsec. (h) of section 1322 of Pub. L. 111–148 amended section 501, 4958, and 6033 of Title 26, Internal Revenue Code.
Amendments
2022—Subsec. (b)(4)(E). Pub. L. 117–286 substituted “chapter 10 of title 5” for “FACA” in heading and “Chapter 10 of title 5 shall apply to the advisory board, except that section 1013 of title 5” for “The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall apply to the advisory board, except that section 14 of such Act” in text. 2010—Subsec. (b)(3), (4). Pub. L. 111–148, § 10104(l), added par. (3) and redesignated former par. (3) as (4).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan Program Contingency Fund Pub. L. 112–240, title VI, § 644, Jan. 2, 2013, 126 Stat. 2362, provided that: “(a) Establishment.—The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a fund to be used to provide assistance and oversight to qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers that have been awarded loans or grants under section 1322 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18042) prior to the date of enactment of this Act [Jan. 2, 2013]. “(b) Transfer and Rescission.—“(1) Transfer.—From the unobligated balance of funds appropriated under section 1322(g) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18042(g)), 10 percent of such sums are hereby transferred to the fund established under subsection (a) to remain available until expended. “(2) Rescission.—Except as provided for in paragraph (1), amounts appropriated under section 1322(g) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18042(g)) that are unobligated as of the date of enactment of this Act [Jan. 2, 2013] are rescinded.”
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 18042
Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Apr 5, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60