Lockton Companies has joined other major insurance brokers responding to changes brought on by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act by adding a private insurance exchange to its employee benefits division, Lockton Benefit Group.

The Kansas City, Mo.-based broker says it is partnering with SelectQuote Benefit Solutions to deliver a private insurance exchange for retiree medical benefits. The exchange will work with retirees, age 65 and older, and any disability Medicare recipients, to give them access to Medicare Supplement, Medicare Advantage and prescription drug plans through the Lockton Select Marketplace powered by SelectQuote Senior.

The establishment of a private health insurance exchanges may be a sign that more insurance brokers are offering alternatives to their clients of the state exchanges under PPACA. The exchanges, which are to be in place by 2014, would allow individuals and small businesses to buy health insurance online from major health insurers.

Last year, Arthur J. Gallagher announced it was forming a health exchange under partnership with Liazon Corp., a provider of private health insurance exchanges. Insurance broker Aon plc's human resource division, Aon Hewitt, launched its own insurance exchange—Corporate Health Exchange—last year. In March, Aon says it enrolled more than 100,000 employees into the program. Aon's exchange targets companies with 1,000 or more employees, whereas Gallagher expects to draw small to mid-size companies.

In a report released last year, Marsh & McLennan Companies Oliver Wyman division released a report on exchanges saying that they will become a permanent fixture in the delivery of health care world because they are “a powerful and adaptable way of meeting a variety of employer needs.”

Special Reports /

Lockton Adds Insurance Exchange for Retiree Medical Benefits

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