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Read. Follow. Verify.Wyoming directs state departments to study health insurance markets and allocates $250,000
Last action · February 13, 2026: H Did not Consider for IntroductionSponsors: Rob Geringer and 4 others
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What This Bill Proposed
Wyoming requires three state departments to jointly conduct a feasibility study on private health insurance market strategies, premium stabilization, and state employee plan access for private residents. The act appropriates $250,000 from the general fund for the study, mandates a report to the legislature by October 15, 2026, and explicitly bars any program implementation, tax subsidies, or Medicaid expansion.
Small business owners, sole proprietors, independent contractors, agricultural producers, early retirees, and rural residents facing high insurance premiums may see future policy options evaluated, though no immediate coverage changes or public subsidies are authorized.
- Wyoming frequently examines health insurance market challenges due to its small population, geographic dispersion, and limited risk pooling options. context
- State interim committees study complex insurance and health market topics between legislative sessions to prepare potential statutory reforms. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Small business owners and sole proprietors
Their insurance market options and premium volatility factors are examined by the mandated study.
State employees and officials
The study evaluates the feasibility of opening their group insurance plan to private state residents under conditions protecting against increased costs and risks.
Department of Administration and Information
Receives a $250,000 appropriation and joint responsibility for conducting the health insurance market study.
Key Facts
- The department of health, department of insurance, and department of administration and information shall jointly conduct an advisory study on health insurance markets.
- The act appropriates $250,000.00 from the general fund to the department of administration and information for the period beginning with the effective date and ending June 30, 2028.
- The departments must report on the findings of the study to the joint labor, health and social services interim committee not later than October 15, 2026.
- The study must examine whether private residents can access the state employees' and officials' group insurance plan if they pay full actuarial and administrative costs without increasing taxpayer risk.
Show all 7 facts
- The study must examine the feasibility of creating a state-level reinsurance program to mitigate premium volatility in individual or small group markets without subsidies or Medicaid expansion.
- The act explicitly prohibits expanding Medicaid, creating taxpayer-funded health insurance subsidies, mandating participation in health insurance pools, or implementing any program without further legislative authorization.
- The appropriated funds are restricted solely to actuarial and economic analysis, legal and regulatory review, comparative analysis of other low-population states, and administrative costs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this bill allow private citizens to join the state employee health insurance plan immediately?
What is the funding source and amount allocated for this study?
When are the study findings due to the legislature?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · introduced in the House.
Procedural history
3 actions- Feb 13, 2026HouseH Did not Consider for Introduction
- Feb 11, 2026HouseH Received for Introduction
- Feb 10, 2026Bill Number Assigned
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Strict Prohibition on Program Expansion
The bill explicitly restricts the study from authorizing program implementation, creating subsidies, expanding Medicaid, or mandating participation, emphasizing a strictly advisory and data-driven approach.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.wyoleg.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 35)
- Controversy20Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz15Current news / social attention level
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