Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Health Law Premiums Drop For Second Straight Year And More Insurers Enter Fray As Marketplace Corrects Itself
The New York Times: Obamacare Premiums To Fall And Number Of Insurers To Rise Next Year
Nearly three years into President Trump’s aggressive efforts to undermine the Affordable Care Act, prices for the most popular type of health insurance plan offered through the health law’s federal marketplace will actually drop next year, and the number of insurers offering plans will go up. Administration officials credited Mr. Trump with the resiliency of the law even as they echoed his contempt for it. (Goodnough, 10/22)
The Associated Press: More Choices And Stable Premiums For 'Obamacare' Next Year
For now, the Department of Health and Human Services is touting a second consecutive year of positive-sounding numbers. An additional 20 insurers will participate for 2020, expanding consumer choice in many states, officials said. Nearly 70 percent of customers will have three or more insurers from which to pick a plan. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 10/22)
The Wall Street Journal: Premiums For ACA Health Plans Are Set To Drop In 2020
Average rates for the most popular, middle-priced plan will fall 4% in 2020 for a 27-year-old buying health insurance on the federal exchange, although premiums will vary widely by location, federal health officials said Tuesday. Rates had also declined 1.5% in 2019, after years of double-digit-percentage premium increases. (Armour, 10/22)
CNN: Obamacare Premiums Are Dropping 4% For 2020 Plans
States that run their own exchanges are also seeing improvements for 2020. In California, for instance, rates are rising by a record low 0.8%. The Golden State restored the individual mandate, requiring residents to have insurance or pay a penalty, and expanded subsidies to middle-income Californians. Washington will see two new health insurers enter the market and rates will drop an average of 3.25%. "Despite the Trump administration's effort over the last two years to sabotage the Affordable Care Act, the record average rate decrease and interest by insurers is evidence that our market is stabilizing," said Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler. (Luhby, 10/22)
The Washington Post: Rates For The Most Common ACA Health Plans Drop For A Second Year
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma persisted in tarring the system of individual insurance created under the health-care law as unwieldy, unaffordable for too many and in need of replacement. They also praised President Trump’s guidance for making the law’s insurance exchanges work better. “The president who was supposedly trying to sabotage the law has been better at running it than the guy who wrote the law,” Azar said during a phone briefing for reporters, alluding first to Trump and then to his predecessor, President Barack Obama, who regarded the ACA as one of his main domestic accomplishments. (Goldstein, 10/22)
Politico: Premiums For Popular Obamacare Plans To Drop 4 Percent
Obamacare supporters have said the improving marketplaces are largely a sign of the law's maturing, and that the Trump administration has taken steps to undermine the law. The administration "deserves zero credit" for the law's success, said Protect Our Care, a Democratic-aligned group formed to defend Obamacare. Premiums rose sharply in the first years of Obamacare as insurers adjusted to new rules. Insurers also hiked their rates in Trump's first year amid congressional Republicans’ failed effort to repeal the law and numerous steps taken by the administration seen as undermining the marketplaces. (Goldberg, 10/22)
The Advocate: Louisiana Insurance Premiums For ACA Market To Increase By Double-Digit Percentage In 2020
Health insurance rates are going up an average 10% in the individual marketplace in Louisiana in 2020, reversing a drop in premium costs that policyholders experienced this year. On average, rates are going down 4% in 2020 among states served by the federal healthcare.gov website. About a dozen states run their own sign-up websites, but most like Louisiana rely on the healthcare.gov market, the web portal created by the Obama-era Affordable Care Act. Annual enrollment in the program starts Nov. 1 for 2020 coverage. The program offers income-based, taxpayer-subsidized private health insurance plans for people who aren't covered on the job. (Mosbrucker, 10/23)
Maryland Daily Record: Exchange Readies For Open Enrollment After Premiums Decrease Again
Maryland’s individual health insurance market, which will begin open enrollment next week, stands to gain from a second straight year of premium rate declines. Last year, premiums on the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange fell by about 11%, the first premium decrease in years, while enrollment rose 2% despite a projected decrease. (Curtis, 10/23)
The Associated Press: Pennsylvania's Individual Health Plan Premiums To Rise 4 Percent
Premiums for health insurers’ individual policies in Pennsylvania for 2020 will reflect an aggregate statewide increase of 4 percent, with an increase of 10 percent in the small group market. (10/20)
Meanwhile —
The Associated Press: Consider A Side Of Insurance With Your Health Insurance
Health insurance costs have climbed so high, there's insurance for it. More employers are offering their workers supplemental coverage for expenses that crop up when an unexpected illness or injury hits. These additional policies can help make up for lost wages due to disability leave and pay bills that regular health insurance doesn't cover. (Murphy, 10/23)
