Even though Obama promised many people they could keep their insurance plans many states and insurance companies are not going along with him. They were perfectly happy for him to get the blame for their actions when they rejected insurance customers. But now, the game is now on the other foot and they are angry to be taking the blame now. So, the blame is now shifted away from Obama and onto States and insurance companies refusing to reinstall lower premiums for another year.
However, all this is pretty much expected chaos when you completely change the health care system of 50 States (which in some ways are also like 50 countries). So, it should be interesting to see how this all shakes out. I wonder how Social Security and Medicare operated at first too historically?
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Could Obamacare "Fixes" Pulverize the Insurance Market?
DailyFinance-6 hours agoThis would in theory enable people to keep their current insurance ... This bill, like Obama's plan, allows but doesn't require insurers to ... If the White House plan goes forward, some insurers and some states will cooperate. ... As a result, Aetna probably won't feel too big of a financial impact from the turmoil.ObamaCare 'fix' will create more problems: Insurance honchos
New York Post-8 hours agopresident of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, said the fix will trigger rate hikes, disrupt insurance markets and some states won't go along ... industry lobby America's Health Insurance Plans, said on the same show ... supportive of Obama's effort to allow insurance companies and state ...
Show moreAfter Obamacare fix, consumers remain uncertain
Tucson Citizen-6 hours agoThe health insurance market is regulated by states, and insurance ... on whether they will make any changes to accommodate the president's rule change. ... that Americans would be able to keep their insurance policies if they liked them. ... notices say they won't go back to the individual insurance market.R.I. rejects Obama's 'fix' allowing people to keep canceled health ...
The Providence Journal-22 hours agoKathleen C. Hittner, the state's health insurance commissioner, and ... that the president's plan would raise premiums and destabilize the market. ... coverage that includes services some individuals won't need (such as ...Pelosi, fellow Democrats jump in to defend president over ObamaCare
Fox News-3 hours agoNancy Pelosi -- one of President Obama's most ardent Capitol Hill supporters ... his pledge that Americans could keep their health insurance. ... told NBC, adding Democrats nevertheless won't run from the issue. ... Democrats voting Friday on a bill to allow insurance companies to ... United States Congress ...
Show moreCancellation reversal causes insurer headaches
The Tennessean-Nov 16, 2013U.S. union vote won't affect VW plans ... Now they may be able to keep it after all. ... State insurance commissioners, the White House and the ... know until the insurance commissioner advises the carrier about what they'll allow." ... "In some cases, the premiums on the existing plans might be better and in ...
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Fox News-6 hours agoTHEY WON'T HOLD US. ... CERTAINLY AT SOME POINT WE ALL BELIEVE IN COMPROMISE ... WHEN THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES WALKS INTO ... WE'RE NOT GOING TO ALLOW YOU TO GO DOWN THAT PATH. ... PEOPLE KEEP MORE OF THEIR OWN MONEY OR LOOKING FOR ...Health-care law has changed game for Democrats looking to 2014 ...
Washington Post-31 minutes agoIn some minds, the health-care law's flubs have merged with the ... and she called the health insurance rollout “a big disappointment.” ... Tom Corbett (R), the unpopular state executive who could become the first ... The Republican measure that passed easily on Friday would allow .... Why won't you lead?
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American Press-16 hours agoSome 14 million Americans hold those individual policies, and many ... The Washington state commissioner said he won't allow that to happen. ... plan that would allow consumers to keep their existing plans indefinitely. ... Obamacare has to require younger people to buy insurance because their premiums ...Will the cure be worse than the disease?Could Obamacare "Fixes" Pulverize the Insurance Market?
by Nov 17th 2013 2:33PM
Updated Nov 17th 2013 2:34PM
That's essentially the question facing lawmakers and the health insurance industry with proposed solutions to a problem that has been predicted for several years. Millions of Americans are losing their current health insurance because of provisions in the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, that require minimum benefit levels to be met.
Now, President Obama and several members of Congress have put forward changes that will allow at least some of those individuals to keep their insurance. These changes, however, have many in the insurance industry worried that the Obamacare "fixes" will cause significant harm to the U.S. health insurance market.
Source: WhiteHouse.gov
The fixes are in -- sort of
President Obama announced on Thursday his administration's plan to allow Americans to renew individual or small group policies that don't meet the minimum benefits requirements of Obamacare. This would in theory enable people to keep their current insurance through September 2015.
However, the plan doesn't require insurers to reinstate the plans that have already been canceled. Any reinstatements of policies would also have to be approved by the state in which the plan was sold.
Meanwhile, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) has put forward a bill to force insurance companies to extend canceled plans for current policyholders indefinitely. Landrieu intends to press on with her bill despite the president's announced plan.
There's also legislation sponsored by Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) that the House of Representatives approved on Friday with some bipartisan support. This bill, like Obama's plan, allows but doesn't require insurers to continue offering policies that would be canceled because of Obamacare's provisions. However, it also would allow insurers to sell new policies that don't comply with the health reform law's minimum benefits.
Adverse effects
The president's proposal set off a firestorm of criticism. Karen Ignagni, CEO of America's Health Insurance Plans, the main trade group for the health insurance industry, said that "changing the rules after health plans have already met the requirements of the law could destabilize the market and result in higher premiums for consumers."
Cori Uccello with the American Academy of Actuaries stated that the changes could create "two parallel markets operating under different rules." Uccello noted that this scenario would threaten "the viability of insurance markets operating under the new rules." The organization's Health Practice Council also warned that Americans' premiums would rise even more than expected and the federal government could incur higher costs.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners agreed. In a prepared statement, the organization said that "allowing insurers to have different rules for different policies would be detrimental to the overall market and result in higher premiums."
These criticisms were leveled at the White House plan but would probably apply equally to the legislation the House approved. Landrieu's bill would cause even more chaos, since it would mandate that all insurers continue offering policies outside of the Obamacare requirements with no end date.
What's next?
If the White House plan goes forward, some insurers and some states will cooperate. Aetna announced that it supports efforts to allow individuals to keep their current insurance. However, the company noted that it will need help from state regulators to jump through the hoops to reinstate the plans.
Regulatory officials in at least two states -- Florida and Kentucky -- have already indicated that they will comply with the president's request. However, the insurance commissioners of Arkansas and Washington have bristled at going along in their states.
What does all of this mean for the big health insurers and their shareholders? It depends.
Aetna receives only 3% of its total revenue from individual and small group insurance. The company has taken a cautious stance on participation in the Obamacare exchanges. As a result, Aetna probably won't feel too big of a financial impact from the turmoil.
The nation's largest health insurer, UnitedHealth Group , probably won't feel too much pain, either. UnitedHealth also decided to take a wait-and-see approach on the Obamacare exchanges for the most part.
WellPoint and Humana would appear to be more likely to take a hit. Both insurers are more heavily involved in the Obamacare exchanges than many of their peers.
However, the reality is that these insurers are largely insulated from losses -- at least for now. The federal government established "risk corridors" that protect insurance companies from big losses in the first three years of the Obamacare exchange operations. Don't be surprised if the health insurance industry asks for an extension of those risk corridors with the extra confusion that could now be introduced.
To sum all of this up, some Americans might be able to keep their health insurance if they like it -- and the insurance company likes it and their state regulatory officials like it. Others won't. And the premiums could be higher than they were before. And the entire individual insurance market could be destabilized in the process.
Sometimes the cure just might be worse than the disease.
Piercing through the Obamacare confusionThe article Could Obamacare "Fixes" Pulverize the Insurance Market? originally appeared on Fool.com.
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Could Obamacare "Fixes" Pulverize the Insurance Market?
Cancellation reversal causes insurer headaches
Nov. 16, 2013 |2 CommentsDean and Mary Lou Griffin of Chadds Ford, Pa., liked the health insurance they purchased for themselves three years ago and thought they would be able to keep it. But they recently received a letter saying the plan was being canceled because it didn't cover certain benefits required under the new law. Now they may be able to keep it after all.(Photo: Matt Rourke, AP)
Consumers are hounding their insurance agents with questions about whether and when they can get their canceled insurance policies back, now that President Obama says it's OK.
But those agents have few answers. They are still waiting for clarification from insurers, who are awaiting word from their state insurance commissioners and even the White House.
The CEOs of major insurers including Cigna, Aetna and Humana, met with President Obama on Friday but left without talking to reporters about what will happen to plans that didn't meet the requirements of the Affordable Care Act. Meanwhile, the insurance commissioners for Vermont, Georgia and Washington state were among those saying they won't allow reinstatement of canceled policies.
"We've been advising our members to tell clients to sit back and wait as developments unfold over the next few days," says Jessica Waltham, senior vice president of government relations at the National Association of Health
State insurance commissioners, the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services will need to provide "details as to how they would move this policy forward," she says.
"It's been non-stop since this whole thing started (Thursday)," says John Young, director of sales at Flexible Benefit Service Corp. in Rosemont, Ill. "Everyone wants to know what effect the president's message will have and, at this point, we just don't know until the insurance commissioner advises the carrier about what they'll allow."
Young, whose company handles group insurance policies and acts as a broker
John DeGruttola, senior vice president of marketing and sales for insurer
"We went forward with the intent that this was the law of the land," says DeGruttola, whose company only sells insurance in Virginia. "Nobody was focused on the existing plans. They were not filed (with the insurance commissioner) nor were they approved."Pageend quote from:Cancellation reversal causes insurer headaches
The Tennessean-Nov 16, 2013U.S. union vote won't affect VW plans ... Now they may be able to keep it after all. ... State insurance commissioners, the White House and the ... know until the insurance commissioner advises the carrier about what they'll allow." ... "In some cases, the premiums on the existing plans might be better and in ...Show more
Sunday, November 17, 2013
Many states won't support keeping insurance rates the same
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