High Risk Pool Flexibility Act of 2004

H.R. 5157, the High Risk Pool Flexibility Act of 2004, sought to give states more options for how they managed health insurance programs for people with pre-existing conditions. At the time, "high-risk pools" were state-run programs designed to provide coverage to individuals who were often denied private insurance due to their medical history.

The bill proposed expanding the federal definition of these pools to include "alternative mechanisms," such as programs that spread financial risk among insurance companies or provide subsidies to help lower costs for participants. For citizens, this would have allowed states to access federal grant money while using a wider variety of methods to ensure that high-risk individuals had access to health insurance options.