The Vermont Health CO-OP has announced the hiring of Christine Oliver as CEO of Vermont’s new member-owned, not-for-profit health insurance plan. Ms. Oliver currently serves as the Deputy Secretary of the Agency of Human Services, and has previously held the positions of Commissioner of the Department of Mental Health, and Deputy Commissioner for Health Care Administration in the Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration (BISHCA).
“We could not be more pleased that Christine has accepted this important role as the Vermont health insurance CO-OP moves into our start-up phase,” said Mitch Fleischer, Chair of the CO-OP Board of Directors. “She has been deeply involved in Vermont health care delivery, financing, regulation and reform for the past 6 years. She has worked collaboratively with and is highly respected by all the stakeholders. Her enthusiasm for the CO-OP’s unique mission, her integrity and remarkable skill-set will serve the CO-OP members well.”
“I am thrilled to be a part of this exciting opportunity for Vermont and Vermonters,” said Christine Oliver, the newly designated CEO. “The CO-OP is an important step in putting consumers at the center of health care reform in Vermont.”
In June 2012, the US Department of Health and Human Services announced the award of $32.8 million in loans to the Vermont Health CO-OP for the creation of a new non-profit, member-governed health insurer in Vermont. Unlike Vermont’s current health insurers, the Vermont Health CO-OP will be entirely member-owned and governed. Federal law and the organization’s founding and governing documents require direct election of the board by the individuals covered by the CO-OP’s health plans. Any financial gains realized by the CO-OP must be used exclusively on behalf of members and to re-pay the loans from the federal government.
From January through December of 2011, Ms. Oliver served as Commissioner of the Department of Mental Health, which included managing the Department’s response when Tropical Storm Irene required relocation of state offices and the State Hospital from the Waterbury complex, and development of the plan for replacement of the State Hospital with a mix of inpatient and community-based facilities. Since that time, she has served as Deputy Secretary of the Agency of Human Services, coordinating the health care reform efforts for the Agency.
From July 2006 to December 2010, Ms. Oliver was Deputy Commissioner for the Division of Health Care Administration (DHCA) at BISHCA, the agency responsible for regulating health insurance, quality of health care services and related consumer education and protection. She oversaw the annual hospital budget reviews and the certificate of need process regulating health care facility expenditures. DHCA, under Ms. Oliver, was responsible for implementation of the Affordable Care Act, and Vermont’s Act 128 – the Catamount Health Plan.
Ms. Oliver obtained her law degree in 1991 from The Ohio State University, College of Law and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, magna cum laude, from Youngstown State University where she majored in Accounting. She resides in East Montpelier with her husband and three children.
The Vermont Health CO-OP has begun the process of applying for an insurance license from the Department of Financial Regulation (formerly BISHCA), and intends to begin marketing insurance products by October 2013. CO-OP health insurance plans will be available statewide to individuals and small groups through the Vermont Health Insurance Exchange starting January 1, 2014. The CO-OP also anticipates offering plans outside of the Exchange to larger employers as well. The CO-OP will work with Vermont Managed Care to coordinate the delivery of health services through its growing network of hospitals, physicians, patient-centered medical homes, and other health care providers throughout the state of Vermont.
