While they may have a point about timing, the following is a decidedly one-sided story. Here is a good explanation of the situation at this point from the New York Times.
The fact is neither Obamacare nor competition are causing premium changes as the right and left like to speculate. Claim experience is the primary driver. The first year was a guess for actuaries and underwriters and given the annual choices Americans make among plans and subsidies, setting accurate premiums is an ongoing challenge. Guess too low and you must make up lost ground; too high and it’s a question of taking a risk to lower premiums.
Similar challenges are faced by those who enroll, that is, premium versus benefits, out-of-pocket costs, provider choices and subsidy tax credits. The fact is there are too many choices, it is all too complex and confusing and the average person is not going to figure it all out or even pay attention to the decisions that must be made each year.
As far as premiums go, nothing is real at this point. Premiums are still supported by reinsurance and risk corridors which are provisions of the Affordable Care Act. It won’t be until the end of 2016 when we have premiums from insurers that stand on their own merits.
Those planning to purchase health insurance on the Obamacare exchange will soon find out how much rates have increased — after the Nov. 4 election.
Enrollment on the Healthcare.gov website begins Nov. 15, or 11 days after the midterm vote, and critics who worry about rising premium hikes in 2015 say that’s no coincidence. Last year’s inaugural enrollment period on the health-care exchange began Oct. 1.
“This is more than just a glitch,” said Tim Phillips, president of free-market Americans for Prosperity, in a Friday statement. “The administration’s decision to withhold the costs of this law until after Election Day is just more proof that Obamacare is a bad deal for Americans.
Robert Laszewski, president of Health Policy and Strategy Associates, said in a Monday column in USA Today that “when it comes to a lack of openness and transparency about Obamacare, this administration has no peer.”
Even so, details about cost increases are trickling out in states with pivotal Senate contests: Alaska, Iowa and Louisiana. All three states are wrestling with double-digit premium hikes from some state insurance companies on the exchange, which has fueled another round of Republican attacks on the Affordable Care Act.
It’s the Democrats’ bad luck that those states may be outliers. PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute reports Oct. 3 that the average premium increase this year is 5.9 percent, according to data collected from 40 states and the District of Columbia.
The most dramatic increases are underway in Alaska, where the state insurance division has cleared double-digit rate hikes for two insurers, Premera Blue Cross and Moda Health. Premera’s premiums will rise by 35 to 40 percent, although 88 percent of Alaskans on the exchange won’t feel the full effects because they qualify for federal subsidies, according to the Alaska Dispatch News.
Alaska Republican Dan Sullivan, who’s challenging Democratic Sen. Mark Begich, blasted the rate increases on his Facebook page.
The Iowa insurance commissioner approved last week premium increases for three insurance carriers: Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield, CoOpportunity Health and Coventry Health. Two of those insurers will implement double-digit hikes ranging from 11.9 to 19 percent, the Des Moines Register reports.
Republican Senate candidate Joni Ernst slammed the increases and reiterated her vow to “repeal and replace Obamacare with patient-centered health care reforms that lower costs, increase choice, and actually improve care.” She’s locked in a tight contest with Democratic Rep. Bruce Braley.
“Today’s report that Obamacare is leading to increased premiums in Iowa is bad news for the thousands of Iowans who will now have higher health care costs—some will see out-of-pocket costs rise by as much as 19 percent,” Ms. Ernst said in a Thursday statement.
via Obamacare website won’t reveal insurance costs for 2015 until after election – Washington Times.
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