Gov. John Hickenlooper has named an interim insurance commissioner for Colorado amid uncertainties with the Obama-era Affordable Care Act — known as Obamacare — following the passage this week of the Republican tax overhaul.
Michael Conway will be the state’s insurance commissioner starting Jan. 1, the Department of Regulatory Agencies Wednesday.
He takes over for Marguerite Salazar, who had been serving as both Colorado’s insurance commissioner and DORA’s executive director following her appointment to the latter post in July.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with the selection of Michael Conway,” Salazar said in a written statement. “He has the ability to reach into the finer points of issues affecting consumers and industry, whether it is title insurance, health insurance or the details of legislation. It’s a skill that always helps resolve problems.”
Conway has been at the state’s Division of Insurance since March 2016, serving as deputy commissioner for consumer and compliance services, a role in which he guided the agency’s strategies for retaining health insurance companies on Colorado’s individual market, DORA says.
“Furthering the work that Marguerite has done for the division will be my priority,” Conway said in a written statement. “We’ve weathered some serious storms in recent years and I’m sure the coming year won’t be any different. But I know the entire DOI team is up to the challenge.”
Under the GOP tax bill, Colorado’s uninsured rate is likely to go up, according to an estimate by the liberal Center for American Progress, and some health insurance premiums could increase.