UnitedHealth pulling out of most ObamaCare markets
http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/276787-unitedhealth-pulling-out-of-most-obamacare-markets
The insurer UnitedHealth is pulling out of the ObamaCare marketplaces in all but a “handful” of states in 2017, the company announced Tuesday.
The announcement, made by CEO Stephen Hemsley on an earnings call, follows up on the company’s statement in November that it was considering dropping out completely due to financial losses.
The moves by United, the nation’s largest health insurer, have drawn attention for what they could indicate about the sustainability of ObamaCare as whole.
But as the Obama administration has pointed out, United is actually a fairly small player on the ObamaCare marketplaces, with about 6 percent of enrollees. It also often was not priced competitively.
Still, United is far from alone among insurers in having concerns about financial losses in the ObamaCare marketplaces.
Some insurers that play a larger role in the program, such as Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in some states, have also raised the prospect of dropping off the marketplaces.
Significant premium increases are widely expected for next year as insurers try to stop their losses, though the impact for consumers is usually cushioned by ObamaCare’s tax credits.
The administration says it expects that insurers will both come and go as the new market set up by the law develops, but that the marketplace will continue to succeed.
“The Marketplace is a reliable source of coverage for millions of Americans with a robust number of plan choices,” Department of Health and Human Services spokesman Ben Wakana said in a statement. “We have full confidence, based on data, that the Marketplaces will continue to thrive for years ahead.”
Still, a Kaiser Family Foundation study on Monday found that if United pulled out of all of the 34 states in which it participated in 2016, the number of choices for consumers would decline. But premiums would not be affected greatly because United often does not offer one of the cheapest plans.
Filed under: General Problems
I hate to sound like a commercial for any big Health industry but , I have a United Health care plan through AARP and I have got to say I have had nothing but a good experience with my plan . I didn’t know untill recently that I was paying a little more for their services ( thanks Steve ) but I have congestive heart failure and a list of Spine issues and have had to have two heart ablation surgeries in less than a years time United I feel has had my back ( ok that’s a pun with the back issues ) they have always been great with any problems and their preventive care with the Silver Sneakers program , incentives for yearly checkups vaccines and home Health assessments are great for a single person living by them selves , so for me it’s good to hear that they are trying to do everything they can to keep their standard of care high and costs low .
Ok my Comercial is over I will be waiting now for a fat endorsement check to be in the mail …
lololol