A sign on Denver’s 16th Street Mall urges people to sign up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act on March 24, 2014. (Kathryn Scott Osler, Denver Post file)
Friday Health Plans is no longer accepting new enrollments in its home state.
The Denver-based health insurer ceased taking on new Colorado customers as of Tuesday, according to an announcement from the state’s Division of Insurance.
The division, which is part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies, said in a news release that it and Friday Health “agreed” on the move, which comes after other states — including Georgia, Texas, and Oklahoma — have taken similar or more drastic moves regarding the insurer.
“Even though Friday Health in Colorado is well capitalized, the company’s struggles in other states is a concern,” DORA spokesman Vincent Plymell said in an email. “Out of an abundance of caution, the Colorado DOI wants to limit any potential consumer impact should problems arise in the future for Friday Health in Colorado.”
Plymell said Friday Health has about 30,000 members in the state.
Contacted by BusinessDen, a spokesperson for Friday Health didn’t answer specific questions, but emphasized that customers who are already enrolled in a Friday Health plan for 2023 will have their coverage continue for the remainder of the year. They will also still be able to make changes to their plans, including adding members to existing policies in the event of marriages or births.
“Friday Health Plans has grown incredibly quickly in Colorado and reached our maximum expected enrollment for the 2023 plan year, which is a testament to the strength of our offering for members in the state,” the company said.
It appears to be the first time that the insurance division has forced a company to cease enrollments midyear since Colorado HealthOP in 2015.
Friday Health offered plans in five states this year: Colorado, Georgia, North Carolina, Nevada and Oklahoma. That was two fewer states than 2022, when the company also offered plans in Texas and New Mexico.
Friday Health spokeswoman Tracy Faigin told the Alamosa Valley Courier in November that the company pulled out of New Mexico because it enrolled fewer members than expected. In Texas, however, the company was asked “to pause operations” by state regulators, she said at the time.
In March, a Texas judge issued an order finding Friday Health was insolvent in the state. A receiver was appointed to liquidate the company, according to the Texas Department of Insurance’s website.
Texas accounted for 75 percent of Friday Health’s members, the company told the Alamosa newspaper last month.
In Oklahoma, the state insurance commissioner announced last month he had placed Friday Health “under supervision” of the Oklahoma Insurance Department, citing the company’s “declining financial position.”
In Georgia, Friday has been unable to enroll new members since April 13, a spokesman for the state’s insurance commissioner said. The company’s Georgia operations were placed into “administrative supervision” on March 8.
“This action is a direct result of the insolvent financial condition reported in the year-end 2022 financial statement filing received on March 3,” spokesman Weston Burleson said.
North Carolina’s insurance division didn’t respond to a request for comment Tuesday. A spokeswoman for Nevada’s insurance division said it was “unable to comment on the status of any insurer” due to state law.
Friday Health told the Colorado labor department in March that it was laying off 98 employees in the state starting April 30, citing a loss in business. The company’s headquarters are at 1777 S. Harrison St. in Denver, but it also has had a large office at 700 Main St. in Alamosa.
Friday Health was founded in 2015 as Melody Health Insurance, and changed its name in 2017, when it acquired Alamosa-based Colorado Choice Health Plans. The company first offered plans outside the state in 2019. The company has reported multiple rounds of fundraising to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, most recently a $70.95 million round last May.
Friday Health underwent a leadership change in December, when it named Beth Bierbower as CEO, replacing Sal Gentile.
A sign on Denver’s 16th Street Mall urges people to sign up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act on March 24, 2014. (Kathryn Scott Osler, Denver Post file)
Friday Health Plans is no longer accepting new enrollments in its home state.
The Denver-based health insurer ceased taking on new Colorado customers as of Tuesday, according to an announcement from the state’s Division of Insurance.
The division, which is part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies, said in a news release that it and Friday Health “agreed” on the move, which comes after other states — including Georgia, Texas, and Oklahoma — have taken similar or more drastic moves regarding the insurer.
“Even though Friday Health in Colorado is well capitalized, the company’s struggles in other states is a concern,” DORA spokesman Vincent Plymell said in an email. “Out of an abundance of caution, the Colorado DOI wants to limit any potential consumer impact should problems arise in the future for Friday Health in Colorado.”
Plymell said Friday Health has about 30,000 members in the state.
Contacted by BusinessDen, a spokesperson for Friday Health didn’t answer specific questions, but emphasized that customers who are already enrolled in a Friday Health plan for 2023 will have their coverage continue for the remainder of the year. They will also still be able to make changes to their plans, including adding members to existing policies in the event of marriages or births.
“Friday Health Plans has grown incredibly quickly in Colorado and reached our maximum expected enrollment for the 2023 plan year, which is a testament to the strength of our offering for members in the state,” the company said.
It appears to be the first time that the insurance division has forced a company to cease enrollments midyear since Colorado HealthOP in 2015.
Friday Health offered plans in five states this year: Colorado, Georgia, North Carolina, Nevada and Oklahoma. That was two fewer states than 2022, when the company also offered plans in Texas and New Mexico.
Friday Health spokeswoman Tracy Faigin told the Alamosa Valley Courier in November that the company pulled out of New Mexico because it enrolled fewer members than expected. In Texas, however, the company was asked “to pause operations” by state regulators, she said at the time.
In March, a Texas judge issued an order finding Friday Health was insolvent in the state. A receiver was appointed to liquidate the company, according to the Texas Department of Insurance’s website.
Texas accounted for 75 percent of Friday Health’s members, the company told the Alamosa newspaper last month.
In Oklahoma, the state insurance commissioner announced last month he had placed Friday Health “under supervision” of the Oklahoma Insurance Department, citing the company’s “declining financial position.”
In Georgia, Friday has been unable to enroll new members since April 13, a spokesman for the state’s insurance commissioner said. The company’s Georgia operations were placed into “administrative supervision” on March 8.
“This action is a direct result of the insolvent financial condition reported in the year-end 2022 financial statement filing received on March 3,” spokesman Weston Burleson said.
North Carolina’s insurance division didn’t respond to a request for comment Tuesday. A spokeswoman for Nevada’s insurance division said it was “unable to comment on the status of any insurer” due to state law.
Friday Health told the Colorado labor department in March that it was laying off 98 employees in the state starting April 30, citing a loss in business. The company’s headquarters are at 1777 S. Harrison St. in Denver, but it also has had a large office at 700 Main St. in Alamosa.
Friday Health was founded in 2015 as Melody Health Insurance, and changed its name in 2017, when it acquired Alamosa-based Colorado Choice Health Plans. The company first offered plans outside the state in 2019. The company has reported multiple rounds of fundraising to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, most recently a $70.95 million round last May.
Friday Health underwent a leadership change in December, when it named Beth Bierbower as CEO, replacing Sal Gentile.
