I am not going to do much commenting on this item…just pretty much grab a couple of key quotes and let it go at that…and please see the different view in the previous post:
Blue Cross-Blue Shield insurer Anthem covers more than 1 million people on the exchanges and said Wednesday that it’s planning to return next year. But it indicated that could change if it doesn’t know for certain by early June that the government will fund the cost-sharing subsidies next year.
The subsidies are paid directly to insurers, and they help trim out-of-pocket costs like deductibles for customers with low incomes. Nearly three in five consumers on the exchanges qualify for this help, which totaled about $7 billion this year and is separate from the income-based tax credits people get for their insurance bill.
Anthem CEO Joseph Swedish said his company may ask for more rate increases, stop selling certain products or leave some markets if it doesn’t have some assurance on the subsidies. Indianapolis-based Anthem Inc. sells coverage on exchanges in 14 states, including key markets like California, New York and Ohio, as well as Wisconsin.
If the subsidies go away, customers could see rate hikes of 20% or more, Swedish told analysts during a conference call to discuss his company’s first-quarter results. Tack on another 3% to 5% if a health insurance tax returns from its moratorium this year.
“Funding (the subsidies) in 2018 and eliminating the health insurance tax going forward are only some of the steps necessary to ensure that the individual ACA-compliant marketplace is not further destabilized,” he said
Aside from Anthem, Molina Healthcare Inc. also has urged the government to continue the payments. Chairman and CEO Dr. J. Mario Molina said earlier this year that most of the company’s customers receive the subsidies, and they couldn’t afford coverage without them.
I will probably have a few more posts about health care in the very near future.
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