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Yesterday a press release was issued by Covered California, the health insurance exchange (or marketplace) established under the Affordable Care Act for residents of California.
The rates submitted to Covered California for the 2014 individual market ranged from two percent above to 29 percent below the 2013 average premium for small employer plans in California’s most populous regions. This is impressive since the 2014 products include doctor visits, prescriptions, hospital stays and more essential benefits; protecting consumers from the "gimmicks and gotchas" of many insurance policies.
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"Covered California plans include the largest current plans in the individual market, as well as new entrants, regional plans and local Medi-Cal plans that want to be part of making history," said Lee. On average, there will be five plans from which to choose. Even in rural areas where choice has been historically sparse, there will be two or three health plans. Throughout the state consumers will have a choice of Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs), Preferred Provider Organizations (PPOs) and Exclusive Provider Organizaitons (EPOs).
To get prices at such competitive points, winning health plans built their bids around the expectation of high enrollment, not high profit. Plans reduced profit margins down to two and three percent; embraced Affordable Care Act programs such as Accountable Care Organizations and Patient-Centered Medical Homes, that seek to improve care while lowering costs; found common ground with doctors, medical groups and hospitals on lower reimbursement rates to make care affordable.
On Thursday, a comparison of proposed 2014 health premiums became public online, causing two insurers to request do-overs to lower their rates even before the state determines whether they're justified.
The unusual development was sparked by a comparison that used to be impossible because plan benefits varied so widely. But under the federal reforms that take effect Jan. 1, health insurance is mandated and every insurer must offer certain standard plans.
"In the latest preview of prices for health coverage under the Affordable Care Act, Maryland’s dominant insurer says proposed premiums for new policies for individuals will rise by 25 percent on average next year."
"Taking those factors into account, CareFirst premiums for individual plans could rise as high as 150 percent next year for healthy young men and decrease slightly for someone older and sicker, Burrell said"
http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Dail...nce-rates.aspx
"The monthly cost for policies sold on the state-run exchange came in lower than the 30 percent rate increases some had anticipated, though some consumers will still experience sharply higher premiums. Blue Shield of California estimated that current customers would see rate increases of about 13 percent."
"Los Angeles Times: New California Health Insurance Rates Unveiled
Amid anxiety over rising costs from the federal healthcare law, California received better-than-expected insurance rates for a new state-run marketplace, but many consumers still won't be spared from sharply higher premiums (Terhune, 5/23)."
"The New York Times: California Puts Tentative Price On Health Policies Under New Law
State officials said that rate increases for individuals who already had insurance would not be as high as some had feared. Blue Shield of California, for example, estimated its current customers would see rate increases of about 13 percent. Some estimates had suggested rate increases could be 30 percent. The increases are largely the result of higher prices and the need to cover people who now have no insurance and are likely to have expensive medical problems (Abelson, 5/23)."
Calif. Unveils Tentative Price Tags For Health Plans On The Exchange - Kaiser Health News
"The monthly cost for policies sold on the state-run exchange came in lower than the 30 percent rate increases some had anticipated, though some consumers will still experience sharply higher premiums. Blue Shield of California estimated that current customers would see rate increases of about 13 percent."
Thanks for the link to Kaiser's summary. Kaiser is usually a good source of information on health insurance. A couple of blurbs included in that summary:
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The Washington Post: California's Likely Health Insurance Rates Under New Law Are Lower Than Expected
California health officials on Thursday unveiled the likely rates that insurers will charge under President Obama’s health-care law — and they are lower than expected, rebutting warnings by critics that many people will experience "rate shock" once the law is fully implemented. On average, a person who chooses a mid-level plan can expect to pay around $321 a month, about $100 less than the amount projected by the Congressional Budget Office when the law was being debated in Washington (Somashekhar, 5/23).
Early results around the U.S. indicate prices for exchange plans will vary widely—both from state to state and among consumers—as will the effect of the law on premiums. In states such as Vermont and Rhode Island, with regulations somewhat similar to the federal law's rules, the legislation is having little effect on premiums. In other places, like Maryland and Kentucky, there have been signs of sometimes-large rate increases. In California, "we're getting the best-case scenarios" on rates, with some "far lower" than projected in an actuarial report commissioned by the agency, said Peter V. Lee, executive director of Covered California. He said costs would go up for some consumers, and down for others (Mathews and Radnofsky, 5/23).
Reuters: California Reveals Prices For Health Insurance Under Obamacare
California unveiled prices on Thursday that consumers will pay for a selection of health plans offered through the state under the Affordable Care Act, providing a glimpse into how health care reform may look as it is rolled out across the nation. Under the federal health care reform law, Californians who do not get or cannot afford health insurance through their jobs can buy coverage through an exchange, at a group rate negotiated by state regulators (Bernstein, 5/23).
And the CNN Money take on this included something often overlooked when health insurance rates under Obamacare are discussed: federal subsidies.
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CNN Money: Obamacare Premiums In California Lower Than Predicted
Health insurers in California will charge an average of $304 a month for the cheapest silver-level plan in state-based exchanges next year, according to rates released Thursday by Covered California, which is implementing the Affordable Care Act there. But many residents will pay a lot less than that for coverage. Rates will vary by region, age and level of coverage, and many lower-income Californians will qualify for federal subsidies that will greatly lower the premiums (Luhby, 5/23).
ALL of this is pure conjecture. NO ONE will know what its going to cost us, and it is going to cost us, DEARLY, until it is implemented. Even then, its going to take SEVERAL years for everything to come out.
And any fool who actually believed this was going to reduce costs is just that: AN IGNORANT FOOL.
Obama himself said it would reduce the cost 3,000% to an applauding audience. None of them could clearly do basic math.
Did he really say that? That would actually mean you will make money.
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