Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
30 Percent Rate Hikes Reflect Uncertainty In Affordable Care Act Marketplaces
The Wall Street Journal: Some Insurers Seek ACA Premium Increases Of 30% And Higher
Major health insurers in some states are seeking increases as high as 30% or more for premiums on 2018 Affordable Care Act plans, according to new federal data that provide the broadest view so far of the turmoil across exchanges as companies try to anticipate Trump administration policies. Big insurers in Idaho, West Virginia, South Carolina, Iowa and Wyoming are seeking to raise premiums by averages close to 30% or more, according to preliminary rate requests published Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Major marketplace players in New Mexico, Tennessee, North Dakota and Hawaii indicated they were looking for average increases of 20% or more. (Wilde Mathews and Radnosfky, 8/1)
The Hill: Some Insurers Asking For Premium Increases Of 30 Percent Or Higher: Report
Insurers in several states are pursuing premium increases nearing 30 percent or higher for ObamaCare health plans, according to a Tuesday report in The Wall Street Journal. Large insurers in West Virginia, Wyoming, Iowa, South Carolina, and Idaho are looking to up their premiums, records from the Department of Health and Human Services show. (Shelbourne, 8/1)
The Associated Press: California Health Premiums To Rise An Average 12.5 Percent
Monthly premiums for California health insurance plans sold under the Affordable Care Act will rise by an average of 12.5 percent next year, the second consecutive year of double-digit rate increases, officials said Tuesday. (Cooper, 8/1)
California Healthline: Covered California Expects 12.5% Average Rate Rise In 2018
The expected 2018 rate increase is down from 2017’s average rise of 13.2 percent, and it includes a one-time increase averaging 2.8 percentage points because of the end of a “holiday” that gave health plans a break from the tax they are required to pay under the Affordable Care Act. (Bazar and Bartolone, 8/1)
Los Angeles Times: Covered California Premiums Will Rise 12.5%, And Anthem Blue Cross Cuts Coverage
Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee said that increases in the cost of providing care were responsible for about 7 percentage points of the state’s 12.5% average rate increase. Another 3 percentage points, he said, reflected a one-time tax adjustment. But another 3 points, he said, accounts for insurers’ overall unease with the ongoing debate over scrapping, or massively modifying, the Affordable Care Act. In negotiating with insurance companies this spring, Covered California put together a kind of hold-harmless agreement. That agreement, which Covered California will take to its board this month, essentially agrees to let health insurers make up losses from unexpected changes to the insurance market that may be caused this year or next by unexpected changes in the basic fundamentals of the Obamacare market. (Karlamangla, 8/1)
The Hill: California: Health Plan Rates Could Jump If Key ObamaCare Payments End
California is one of several states that have allowed insurers to file two different sets of premium requests: One for the continuation of ObamaCare, such as CSR payments and the enforcement of the individual mandate, and one in the event both are discontinued. (Weixel, 8/1)
Bloomberg: Obamacare Premium Hikes Could Double In California If Trump Ends Subsidies
Health insurers that sell Obamacare plans in California say they’ll double premium increases for some plans next year if President Donald Trump follows through on a threat to cut off subsidies under the law. Insurers requested a 12.5 percent rate increase on average for 2018 Obamacare plans, the state’s Covered California exchange said in a statement Tuesday. Trump, however, has threatened to stop paying what are known as cost-sharing-reduction subsidies -- which insurers get to help lower-income people afford to use their plans. If that happens, insurers would increase rates by another 12.4 percent on mid-level plans, the state said. (Tracer, 8/1)
Politico Pro: Covered California 2018 Rates Mask Continued Market Uncertainty
Covered California's proposed 2018 health insurance rates — expected to rise an average 12.5 percent for the exchange's 11 plans — give the impression of stability during otherwise rocky times in state insurance markets. But exchange officials warn the price of some plans would double if the federal government stops funding critical Obamacare cost-sharing payments that defray the cost of covering low-income residents. (Colliver, 8/1)
Reuters: Anthem To Cut Back Obamacare Plan Offerings In California
U.S. health insurer Anthem Inc is pulling back from 16 of 19 pricing regions in California where it offered Obamacare options this year, state officials said on Tuesday. The move, which takes effect for 2018, means Anthem will offer Obamacare coverage in three pricing regions comprising 28 counties in California. (Erman and Berkrot, 8/1)
The Associated Press: Health Insurer Files For Rate Decrease For Alaska Market
The lone insurer offering policies on Alaska's individual health insurance market has filed for an average rate decrease of about 22 percent next year. If approved, this would be the first time the average rate has decreased under the current federal health care law in Alaska, a remote state where high health care and premium costs have been an ongoing concern. (Bohrer, 8/1)
Chicago Sun Times: Insurers Want To Hike Obamacare Rates In Illinois Up To 43 Percent
Insurers want to raise rates by up to 43 percent for Illinois customers who receive health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Among the companies seeking double-digit rate hikes on most of their plans starting next year are the three insurers that offered Obamacare coverage in Cook County this year, according to rate reviews released by the federal government on Tuesday. More than 351,000 Illinois residents are enrolled in Obamacare, with most of them — nearly 310,000 — covered by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois. (Armentrout, 8/1)
Chicago Tribune: Obamacare Rates In Illinois Could Climb Next Year
Health insurers want to raise premiums next year for Illinois consumers who buy coverage through the Obamacare exchange — in many cases citing uncertainty surrounding the health care law as a reason for the proposed jumps. Average rate increases for individual plans in Illinois could range from 5 percent to 43 percent depending on a number of factors, including the type of coverage, a consumer's age and whether the person is a smoker. The proposed rate changes released Tuesday are the result of a complex series of calculations made by insurers and will likely be finalized in coming months. (Schencker, 8/1)
The Baltimore Sun: Panel Hears Of Of Obamacare Successes, Perils In Maryland
A commission established to explore Maryland’s options to respond to a possible repeal of Obamacare heard an accounting of the program’s accomplishments in the state Tuesday as well as warnings about the effects of President Donald J. Trump’s efforts to dismantle it. The Maryland Health Insurance Coverage Protection Commission, created by the General Assembly this year, launched its efforts to prepare for change in federal health programs less than a week after a Trump-backed effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act failed in the U.S. Senate. (Dresser, 8/1)
Pioneer Press: MNsure Enrollees To Get Four Extra Weeks To Sign Up For 2018 Health Insurance
Most Americans will have from Nov. 1 to Dec. 15 this year to get 2018 health insurance on the individual market. Minnesotans will get an extra four weeks. The new Jan. 14 deadline was announced Tuesday by MNsure, Minnesota’s state-run health insurance exchange. Because Minnesota hasn’t turned its health insurance exchange over to the federal government, it has the ability to extend enrollment periods. “We heard loud and clear from stakeholders and consumers that Minnesotans needed more time to shop than the federal open enrollment period allowed,” MNsure CEO Allison O’Toole said in a statement. (Montgomery, 8/1)
Arizona Republic: Insurer: Arizona's 'Obamacare' Rates Hinge On Trump Policy Decisions
The Affordable Care Act insurer in 13 of Arizona's 15 counties plans to raise average rates across all plans a moderate 7.2 percent next year. But Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona officials said the rate increases would be flat if President Donald Trump's administration did not plan to eliminate a key Affordable Care Act funding source. (Alltucker, 8/1)
The CT Mirror: Even With Obamacare’s Survival, A Shakeup In CT Healthcare System Threatens
Even though the U.S. Senate failed to repeal the Affordable Care Act, there will potentially be changes to Connecticut’s health care system that may affect tens of thousands of state residents. Depending on what the president and his administration decide in coming days, some people may lose subsidies that would help pay their premiums, co-pays and deductibles next year. (Radelat, 8/1)
New Hampshire Public Radio: N.H. Officials Navigate 'Unprecedented' Uncertainty Around 2018 Insurance Marketplace
Insurance Commissioner Roger Sevigny says he can’t remember another time when trying to map out New Hampshire insurance markets was quite as tricky as it is today. ...Now, Sevigny and Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Jeff Meyers are tasked with figuring out how to ask the federal government for help stabilizing the state’s insurance markets in the face of projected double-digit rate increases next year without offering up any money from the state or its insurers, as Sevigny originally proposed. (McDermott, 8/1)
