Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight

The Center for Consumer Information & Insurance Oversight (CCIIO) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The agency is charged with helping implement many provisions of the Affordable Care Act, the health care reform bill that was signed into law March 23, 2010. CCIIO oversees the implementation of the provisions related to private health insurance.

CCIIO works closely with governors and the state insurance commissioners, consumers, and stakeholders to help ensure the law best serves its purpose.

Ellen Montz is the director of CCIIO. CCIIO has four group directors each of whom runs one of the main offices of CCIIO:

• The Office of Oversight is responsible for implementing, monitoring compliance with, and enforcing the new rules governing the insurance market and the new rules regarding the Medical Loss Ratio. It is also responsible for rate review at the federal level and for assisting states in cracking down on unreasonable rate increases.
• The Office of Consumer Support compiles and maintains data for healthcare.gov, providing a tool to consumers to help them find the health insurance options that best suit their needs. Consumer Support is also responsible for administering the Consumer Assistance Grant program for states and setting up the new rules that will allow consumers to appeal decisions made by their health plans.
• The Office of Insurance Programs administers the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan and associated funding to states, as well as the Early Retiree Reinsurance Program.
• The Office of Health Insurance Exchanges is responsible for writing the policies and rules governing the health insurance exchanges, establishing and implementing planning grants to states, and providing oversight for the health insurance exchanges.

CCIIO also works with the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO-OP) Advisory Board to assist and advise the HHS Secretary and Congress on HHS’s strategy to foster the creation of qualified nonprofit health insurance issuers.

Specifically, the advisory board provides advice regarding the awarding of grants and loans related to the CO-OP program. In these matters, the Board consults with all components of the HHS, other federal entities and non-federal organizations, as appropriate. It also examines relevant data sources to assess the grant and loan award strategy to provide recommendations to CCIIO.