Colorado Option doctor networks are supposed to look like their customers. Do they?

Health insurance companies selling Colorado Option plans are required to collect information showing whether the doctors in their networks are representative of their customers, but so much data is missing that no one can answer whether they do. The isn’t a true public option, but a standardized health insurance plan that doesn’t charge out-of-pocket costs for some routine care. The state requires insurers selling those plans to collect data about the providers they’ve contracted with, to train their customer service workers about bias and to take other steps meant to improve care for marginalized people.

Those steps include contracting with at least half of the in their area, offering assistance to customers who have difficulty seeing or hearing, and providing their directories in multiple languages, said Vince Plymell, spokesman for the Colorado Division of Insurance. About 7% of Colorado residents reported disrespectful treatment in a health care setting, for reasons including age, income, race, disability and culture, . In general, patients feel more respected and have better outcomes, such as receiving more preventive care, when they have the .

The most recent network data in Colorado, from 2023, included information about providers’ race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex and whether they had one or more disabilities. (Biological sex and gender identity align for most people, but not all.) While the eight insurance companies selling Colorado.