Sacramento, CA- After postponing routine medical care in many of the pandemics, Americans are now returning to numerous clinics. This trend is beginning to emerge at higher premium rates across the country.
Health insurers in 13 states and individual markets in Washington, DC will increase rates by an average of 10% next year, according to a review of the rate declarations by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
This is a big increase after premiums have been virtually flat for several years as insurers are trying to use insurance policies to recover the costs of more people.
Price reviews included Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Road Island, Texas, Vermont, and Washington.
Larry Levitt, Executive Vice President of Health Policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, said: “Currently, there is the double pain of those who are taking advantage of more care and inflation throughout the economy.”
In California, state officials announced Tuesday that prices for 1.7 million people buying insurance through Covered California, the state-owned health insurance market, will rise by an average of 6% next year. This is a big leap after years of record lows, with an average increase of about 1% over the last three years.
According to Jessica Altman, Executive Director of Covered California, increased use of health insurance is the number one reason for the increase, accounting for 4 percentage points.
“It’s really a consistent message that other states are seeing as well, and even more so than California,” she said.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, about 14.5 million people purchased personal health insurance through the state market this year.
This is a small percentage of the total number of Americans insured, as approximately 155 million people are insured through employer-sponsored indemnity. However, Kaiser said the submissions for the individual plans were published in more detail.
The annual open registration period during which customers can purchase and purchase 2023 coverage will begin this fall. This is the annual main window where people in individual markets can buy coverage or change plans.
How much you pay for coverage depends on many factors, including where you live and the type of plan you choose.
As Congress discusses whether to expand financial assistance to consumers through the US rescue program, a rise in rates will occur — the $ 1.9 trillion economic aid package that Congress passed last year to combat the economic impact of the pandemic. ..
The American Rescue Plan included a large amount of money to keep health insurance premiums low for those who buy insurance through the state market.
California receives about $ 1.7 billion annually from its funds to avoid paying more than 8.5% of household income on monthly premiums.
Covered California analyzes that if that support expires later this year, about 3 million Americans (including 220,000 Californians) can no longer afford it, so coverage is covered. You may lose.
Without guidance on whether Congress would extend support next year, some insurers responded by aggressively raising rates in anticipation of people dropping coverage. Uncertainty accounted for half the percentage point of California’s 6% increase, according to Altman.
California officials are working hard to encourage Congress to expand its financial support through the US Rescue Program. In general, the price of health insurance depends on who buys the insurance. If most of them are sick, insurance premiums are more expensive. If a healthier person buys them, the premium will be cheaper.
According to Altman, California was able to keep its rate rising below the national average as more healthy people buy insurance through Covered California than most other states.
She said it was partly due to California law taxing people who refused to buy health insurance. But it’s also due to subsidies that keep premiums low so that more people can afford them.
“This is a major consequence of concern here,” said Altman, who said some people would be out of coverage if they did not extend federal financial assistance.
“It will be a big setback,” she said.
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Tom Murphy, a health writer for the Associated Press in Indianapolis, contributed to this report.
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