WSJ: More Health-Care Insurers Seek Big Premium Increases

On Monday the Obama administration published more information about hefty premium increases for 2016 sought by large insurers selling plans under the health law.

An article in the Wall Street Journal by Louise Radnofsky and Stephanie Armour reported major carriers from around the country are proposing big increases in the premium rates paid by consumers who buy insurance policies on their own.

Noted in the article which can be found here: 

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is looking to raise rates by averages of 29% or more. In Pennsylvania, Highmark Health Insurance Co. is asking for 30%, according to proposals submitted by insurers for the year ahead. Around the country, some of the main market leaders are looking for double digit increases.

The new requests for premiums come at a time when the political and legal future of the law hangs in the balance. The Supreme Court is set to issue a decision later this month on the validity of the law’s tax credits to offset the cost of premiums for lower-income consumers in most states in the country. 

An Employer Gets Into Health Care

In a December 12 article, Anna Wilde Mathews, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, examines the future of U.S. health care and finds the industry lines are beginning to blur. Employers are starting to take a far more active role in their workers' care.

Insurers Agree to Share Data

Seven more health insurers have agreed to disclose the details of their requests for insurance-rate increases in New York, bringing a standoff with state regulators closer to an end.

The arrangement with the health insurers—Aetna Health, EmblemHealth, Empire HealthChoice, Excellus Health Plan, HealthNow, Capital District Physicians' Health Plan, and Connecticut General Life Insurance Co.—comes after the state's largest medical insurance company, UnitedHealth, agreed to disclose such information. Read the full article...