Between Democratic Primary And Legal Battle Over ACA, Insurers Facing Precarious Second-Half Of Year
“You have these two very low-probability, but very negative events ... that almost all investors think have a close to zero probability of actually happening but the time to get clarity on that is still quite extended. Time is the main issue here," Evercore analyst Michael Newshel said.
Bloomberg:
Health Insurers Face Tough Second Half As Policy Risks Loom
Managed-care investors hoping for a sustained rebound after the sector’s worst first-half performance in a nearly a decade are probably going to have to wait a bit longer. Last week’s face-off among candidates in the Democratic presidential primary have set the tone for a health-care debate that’s only expected to heat up throughout the year, weighing on insurer stocks. What’s more, an appeals court decision on the Affordable Care Act later this year promises even more volatility for a sector that’s seen nothing but steady earnings growth over years. (Darie, 7/1)
In other news from the health industry —
Modern Healthcare:
Kaiser, Centene And Molina Must Pay Big Risk-Adjustment Charges
Kaiser Permanente, Centene Corp. and Molina Healthcare are among the health insurers that racked up massive charges under an Affordable Care Act program meant to steady the premiums in the individual insurance market and discourage insurers from cherry-picking healthy, less costly plan members. According to Modern Healthcare's analysis of data released by the CMS late last week, Kaiser Permanente, which is integrated with Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, must pay $891.7 million into the ACA risk-adjustment program for the individual market for 2018, which will be transferred to insurers who enrolled riskier patients. (Livingston, 7/1)
