TX imposes additional rules on health insurance navigators

The Texas Department of Insurance has issued state regulations for health care "navigators," the workers who assist people seeking health insurance in the federal marketplace created by the Affordable Care Act. The rules address some of the criticisms aired recently by Democrats and health care advocates, while also broadening the definition of "navigator" to allow additional organizations — not just those that received federal grants — to hire and train navigators. "These rules will help ensure Texans have confidence that anyone registered as a navigator has passed appropriate background checks and received the training they need to safeguard a consumer's most sensitive and personal information," Texas Insurance Commissioner Julia Rathgeber said in a news release issued earlier this week.