Indiana Takes Center Stage as CMS and SBA Announce CHOICE Arrangement

Federal leaders spotlight Indiana’s healthcare innovation legacy and the next chapter for employer-sponsored health benefits

INDIANAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the CHOICE Arrangement as the new name for the individual coverage health reimbursement arrangement (ICHRA) during a September 3 event at Hancock Health, one of Remodel Health’s ICHRA customers.

CHOICE Arrangement stands for the Custom Health Option and Individual Care Expense Arrangement. This change marks the next chapter in the evolution of a health benefits model that gives employers a new way to provide employees with tax-advantaged health coverage.

When CMS and SBA wanted to hear directly from small businesses about the challenges they face providing health insurance, they didn’t go to Silicon Valley. They didn’t go to Austin. They didn’t go to New York. They came to Indiana.

The visit highlights Indiana’s growing role in shaping the future of employer-sponsored health benefits.

“It’s fitting that the next chapter in the evolution of ICHRA is being announced here,” said Austin Lehman, CEO of Remodel Health. “From pharmaceuticals and medical devices to health benefits, Indiana has repeatedly been a place where new ideas become real solutions.”

Indiana’s healthcare innovation legacy spans decades:

• Eli Lilly is developing medicines that are transforming lives and has grown into one of the world's largest companies.
• Elevance Health serves millions of Americans from its headquarters in Indianapolis.
• Warsaw became the “Orthopedic Capital of the World.”
• Remodel Health, based in Indianapolis, became the largest ICHRA provider in the United States.
• Golden Rule helped pioneer the medical savings account, which contributed to the development of today's HSAs.

Indiana also offers a tax credit to eligible small employers that provide health benefits through an ICHRA, the first state in the nation to do so.

Employers in Indiana, including Grace College and Crossroads Church, were early adopters of the benefit model.

“Healthcare innovation doesn’t just happen on the coasts,” said Lehman. “A lot of it has been happening right here in Indiana. We’re proud to partner with Hancock Health and be part of what comes next.”

About Remodel Health

Founded in 2015, Remodel Health helped pioneer the ICHRA market and has grown into the industry's largest ICHRA administrator. Today, the company serves more than 100,000 members nationwide and partners with thousands of employers and brokers to simplify benefits administration while improving the employee experience.