Local Affordable Care Act consumers may see double-digit insurance hikes
At a recent meeting in Sacramento, Covered California announced that insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act will rise an average of 12.5 percent. Officials also said Anthem, a major insurance carrier will also stop offering plans in most of the state.
“Those carrier decisions are being driven in no small part, in fact in major part, by the instability caused by President Trump,” said California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones.
President Trump has called Obama’s health law a disaster and that it’s imploding and must be fixed. He has even threatened to stop payments insurance companies get to decrease out of pocket costs for lower income consumers.
“If President Trump continues to insist on not making the cost sharing reduction payments then I will sue the administration on behalf of consumers in the state of California,” said Jones.
Pamela Fugitt-Hetrick of Santa Cruz, is a certified agent for Covered California. She was at the meeting when the announcement came down.
“The conversations coming now to our clients is it’s your doctor or your wallet,” said Hetrick.
She told KION Anthem pulling out will have major impacts on the Central Coast. She explained that Monterey County will be hit the hardest, thousands will now have to find a new carrier.
“In Monterey County Anthem and Blue Shield were kind of the top providers,” said Hetrick. “So now with one of them being gone there’s just less competition or less choice.”
Sally James is the owner of Amoureuse lingerie shop in Santa Cruz. She’s been an Affordable Care Act consumer since it came out.
“That was pretty much all that was out there for me to try and get and something I could afford,” said James.
But the new proposed hikes and changes to the plan has her reconsidering some choices.
“Any increase right now is too much,” said James.
Hetrick recommends in this time of uncertainty, that people shop around and get in person help from a Covered California Agent.
“Work with one of those agents and review everything that’s in your Covered California account,” said Hetrick. “Because if you get it wrong, you’ll pay a huge tax penalty at the end of the year.”
Open enrollment for Covered California starts in November.
