Illinois moves to shut down failing health insurance co-op

CHICAGO (AP) — An Illinois health insurance co-op with 49,000 policyholders in the state has become the latest casualty among a dwindling group of nonprofit alternative insurers set up under the Affordable Care Act.

The department's acting director, Anne Melissa Dowling, will work with the federal government to establish a 60-day special enrollment period for Land of Lincoln policyholders to find and purchase new health coverage.

During the transition, policyholders must continue to pay their premiums to maintain their coverage and health care providers must continue to honor their contracts for service to patients, according to a department news release.