Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
HHS Head: Final Obamacare Premium Increases Will Be Lower
Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Mathews Burwell argued Thursday that premium hikes floated by health insurance companies this week will likely end up being lower once they are finalized. Republicans have seized on the higher rates to attack the healthcare law. (Sullivan, 6/4)
Minnesota health insurers are defending the dramatic premium increases they are seeking on the grounds that rates are so low that their companies have been hurt financially. Several insurance plans are asking for average rate increases that range from 13 to 73 percent, proposals that have been denounced by Minnesota politicians. Gov. Mark Dayton called the proposed rate hikes "outrageous." (Zdechlik, 6/4)
As you learned last week, a couple of big health insurers in Ohio, Medical Mutual of Ohio and Aetna, want to raise premiums for individual policies on the Affordable Care Act by double digits in 2016. Some other companies are seeking much smaller rate hikes. You can read the reasons for the hikes here. But there's more big Ohio news on the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, or Obamacare, if you prefer, this week. (Koff, 6/4)
More than 13,000 New Hampshire residents who purchased insurance under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul law could see double-digit premium hikes next year, under requests made by two insurers. In preliminary filings, Maine Community Health is proposing premium increases of about 20 percent for its 10 plans, which currently enroll 4,565 people. Minuteman Insurance has requested increases ranging from 42 to 51 percent for plans that cover 8,933 people. (Ramer, 6/5)
While some states are expecting double-digit increases in individual health care insurance premiums next year, some Washington insurers on the state exchange plan to lower their rates for 2016. Most Washington residents who buy health insurance through Washington Healthplanfinder, however, should expect to pay more next year. A big chunk of those increases is tied to an exchange user fee collected to pay to run the state exchange, Washington's answer to the federal Affordable Care Act. (Blankinship, 6/4)
