Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Soaring Premiums May Cause Some Sticker Shock, But Effect Might Not Be As Scary As It First Seems
The Office of the Commissioner of Insurance estimates that premiums will increase an average of 36% statewide. But that’s an average of averages, and the actual increases will vary throughout the state and by health plan. The actual rates will become public on Nov. 1 when the marketplaces open. (Boulton, 10/12)
Still grappling with uncertainty about the future of national health policy, officials at Massachusetts’ health insurance exchange said Thursday they will shield consumers from unusually high rate increases in 2018. Rates will still rise for people who buy insurance through the state’s Health Connector, but less sharply than feared: 8.7 percent, on average. (Dayal McCluskey, 10/12)
With uncertainty around federal health care changes looming and the start of an open enrollment period less than three weeks away, the Health Connector and Division of Insurance prepared two sets of rates for 2018 to account for the possibility that the federal government will stop making monthly cost sharing reduction (CSR) payments. (Young, 10/12)
Insurance giant Anthem Blue Cross agreed to reduce two planned premium increases for 2018 after California regulators questioned the company’s rationale for raising rates by as much as it had initially proposed. The scaled-back rate hikes, in the individual and small-employer markets, will reduce premiums by $114 million, state officials said. (Terhune, 10/12)
