Rate shock in Washington!

[Greenbeard]

Just kidding.

Premiums drop, coverage expands in Washington's exchange

Despite predictions of rate shocks, most consumers in Washington state will actually see lower premiums and enhanced coverage when they buy insurance through the state's health insurance exchange.

Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler on Tuesday released rates proposed by insurers, including Premera Blue Cross, Lifewise, Group Health Cooperative, BridgeSpan and Molina Health Care of Washington, for health plans they will sell on the state-run online marketplace, called the Washington Health Plan Finder, reported the Spokesman-Review.

And those prices don't include federal subsidies available to consumers, so the premiums that consumers will pay actually will be less than the rates proposed.

"We're pleasantly surprised with the individual rates we've seen so far," Kreidler said. "In many cases, people will get better benefits and pay less--especially if they qualify for subsidies."

Premera had predicted 70% increases. Turns out that under the rates they've now released, a 21-year-old will see a 15% decrease next year for the same plan he has this year.

Meanwhile, Oregon's exchange is showing off how competition is supposed to work: Two Oregon insurers rethink 2014 premiums as state posts first-ever rate comparison

This is what competition looks like: One health insurer wants to charge $169 a month next year to cover a 40-year-old Portland-area non-smoker. Another wants $422 a month for the same standard plan.

The new health insurance marketplace envisioned by federal health reforms doesn't formally kick in until fall. But it already is taking shape – and consumers for the first time can compare, premium by premium, identical plans by different insurers.

Soon they'll be able to compare benefit-by-benefit as well.

On Thursday, a comparison of proposed 2014 health premiums became public online, causing two insurers to request do-overs to lower their rates even before the state determines whether they're justified.

The unusual development was sparked by a comparison that used to be impossible because plan benefits varied so widely. But under the federal reforms that take effect Jan. 1, health insurance is mandated and every insurer must offer certain standard plans.

Providence Health Plan on Wednesday asked to lower its requested rates by 15 percent. Gary Walker, a Providence spokesman, says the "primary driver" was a realization that the plan's cost projections were incorrect. But he conceded a desire to be competitive was part of it.

A Family Care Health Plans official on Thursday said the insurer will ask the state for even greater decrease in requested rates. CEO Jeff Heatherington says the company realized its analysts were too pessimistic after seeing online that its proposed premiums were the highest.

"That was my question when I saw the rates was, 'Can we go in and refile these?'" he said. "We're going to try to get these to a competitive range."

Go West, young man.

 

[Luddly Neddite]

118 views to this thread and not one comment.

I, for one, am glad to be paying less and glad to have gotten two refund checks from my insurance company.

Greebeard, thank you for continuing to be the voice of facts and reason in this discussion.

 

[RKMBrown]

Let me get this straight. Libtards actually believe we can get more health care for less money by robbing money from Peter to pay for Paul's health care premiums. ROFL

 

[dblack]

Let me get this straight. Libtards actually believe we can get more health care for less money by robbing money from Peter to pay for Paul's health care premiums. ROFL

Oh, I think most liberals understand that PPACA is a corporatist fuck job.

Insurance industry shills are another matter...

 

[Greenbeard]

Another day, another set of premium figures released.

ObamaCare plans cheaper than expected in key rate filing

New insurance policies under President Obama's healthcare law will cost significantly less than expected in California.

The state released rate filings Thursday for the policies that will be sold through the health law's insurance exchange.

Experts had been especially eager to see California's rates, and it is the first large state to release price information for next year.

The average plan will carry a monthly premium of $300, regulators said. Most people will receive a subsidy to help cover part of that cost, and cheaper options are also available.

The Congressional Budget Office predicted in 2009 that premiums for a middle-of-the-road exchange plan would come to about $5,200 per year.

Other states have seen their rates track relatively close to that figure, but California's plans came in substantially lower — about $3,600 per year before subsidies.