Janet Trautwein, CEO of the National Association of Health Underwriters, said in a statement Monday that NAHU members have a strong interest in the development of health exchanges.

Trautwein's statement came in response to guidelines put forth the same day by the Department of Health and Human Services on how states will need to prepare their health insurances exchanges before being fully operational in 2014.

"NAHU members provide professional expertise to millions of Americans, working on a daily basis to help individuals and employers purchase, administer and utilize health insurance coverage. As such, we have a profound interest in the development of health insurance exchanges. We will be analyzing this new guidance with particular interest in how—and to what extent—it addresses the following:

• Consumer protections for consumers purchasing from the exchange.
• The role of certified, state-licensed and independent agents/brokers in assisting and enrolling their clients in exchange-based products.
• How the exchanges will enhance the private sector health insurance marketplace.

"The establishment of health insurance exchanges is one of the most significant and far-reaching aspects of the health insurance reforms contained in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," she said. "NAHU members have been striving towards exchanges that reflect the needs of the consumers in their states. Even though exchanges don't go live until 2014, it's critically important that policymakers ensure that these new rules don't reduce consumers' insurance choices in the private market."