Photo via Getty Images
Some Virginians seeking health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace may see a slightly higher average cost when open enrollment begins on Nov. 1.
The average cost for the second-lowest silver plan in Virginia is about $455 a month, 4.1 percent higher than the cost of a similar plan through the marketplace in 2018, according to the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMMS). Pricing for the lowest-cost plan available is expected to be $336, or 3.4 percent higher than the previous year. Pricing across the nation has fallen overall, with the average cost of a benchmark second-lowest silver plan at $406, or 1.5 percent lower than in 2018. The national average price for the lowest-cost plan is $288, or 1 percent cheaper than in 2018. The costs are estimated based on pricing to a nonsmoker aged 27. Open enrollment closes Dec. 15.
Andrew J. Barnes, an associate professor of health behavior and policy for Virginia Commonwealth University, notes that the benchmark marketplace plans rose 25 percent nationally in 2017, and by 37 percent for this year.
He notes in an email that the average premium costs in Virginia are increasing about 4 percent for Virginians in 2019. There are noticeable disparities in the rate changes nationally, such as a 26 percent drop in pricing in Tennessee, while premiums will increase 20 percent in North Dakota, he says.
For metro Richmond, two carriers are offering services through the marketplace for 2019, Cigna Connect and Virginia Premier. Virginia Premier is entering the market for the first time and is working in partnership with VCU Health and Bon Secours.
CMMS reports that 23 more insurance companies are participating on the exchange in 2019. Costs dramatically increased, and the number of insurance companies participating dropped precipitously after 2016. That year, the average cost of a second-lowest silver policy was $240 nationally, and the lowest-cost policy had a national average price tag of $195. A similar silver plan in Virginia that year cost $238, and the cheapest policy in the commonwealth on the marketplace cost $184.
The number of insurance company providers dropped from 237 in 2016 to 167 the following year in the 39 states that use healthcare.gov.
Barnes says that the increase in participation could stem from the Trump administration's efforts to deregulate the markets, which may have made them more desirable to for-profit insurers. Some of the regulatory changes include allowing "more flexibility in designing plans, including determining what benefits plans must cover," he says. He adds that it's too soon to know whether these regulatory actions are responsible for the stabilization of premium costs.
Medicaid expansion, which goes into effect in Virginia in January, may have an impact on the number of Virginians seeking coverage through the marketplace. Barnes notes that adults with a family income of less than 138 percent of the federal poverty level will be eligible for health coverage through Medicaid. He says that many people in that pool may previously have been without health insurance of any kind.
