Maryland health exchange technology chief steps down
Maryland Secretary of Information Technology Isabel FitzGerald, who played an instrumental role in replacing the state’s flawed health insurance exchange system, is stepping down from her role on the exchange Dec. 18.
FitzGerald took the helm at the state’s IT department in August 2013, and she was tapped by Gov. Martin O’Malley soon after to join a team of senior officials to overhaul the insurance exchange after it failed to work as expected.
The state moved quickly since then, opting to abandon the system and replace it with one that launched successfully in Connecticut last year. Maryland Health Connection and other state officials credited FitzGerald for the successful rollout of the replacement system in November.
FitzGerald announced her decision to step down from the exchange during a board meeting earlier this week, according to a report in the Baltimore Business Journal.
The exchange has not yet said who might take her place as the exchange’s top technology leader.
Maryland was one of 14 states that developed its own health insurance exchange website as part of the Affordable Care Act rather than take the model offered by the federal government.
In February, Maryland fired its contractor, Noridian Healthcare Solutions LLC, and brought in the system Deloitte created for Connecticut in April.
“What we accomplished was absolutely amazing,” FitzGerald said during her presentation to the board, according to the Business Journal. “We did what most people said couldn’t be done — and believe me, they told me — in seven months.”
