Barack Obama
In this Oct. 20, 2016 file photo, President Barack Obama speaks about the Affordable Care Act, at Miami Dade College in Miami. President Barack Obama is leaving the White House in just a few months, but his namesake health care law will still be generating headlines. With premiums rising significantly and some insurers bailing out, the 2017 sign-up season that starts Nov. 1, 2106, could get tricky. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
(Susan Walsh)
Some Pennsylvanians who obtain their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act will contend with steep rate hikes and fewer choices as they head into the annual open enrollment period, which begins Nov. 1.
An Associated Press analysis of data compiled by Avalere Health, a health care consulting company, shows that some of the 440,000 Pennsylvania consumers who buy insurance through healthcare.gov will face some of the highest premium increases in the nation.
"Choice is going down, and as a result, premiums are going up," said Caroline Pearson, senior vice president at Avalere.
Here's a look at Pennsylvania's health care marketplace for 2017:
SKYROCKETING PREMIUMS
Most exchange consumers do not pay full price for their medical insurance. In Pennsylvania, about 75 percent receive a tax subsidy that caps their premium, shielding them from rate hikes.
But that means 1 in 4 can expect to pay more -- in some cases, a lot more -- for health insurance next year.
Consumers in Adams, Berks, Lancaster and York counties will see their premiums more than double -- to $743 for a 50-year-old single nonsmoker -- for the benchmark silver plan.
Another 12 counties -- Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Fulton, Juniata, Lebanon, Perry, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia -- will be hit with premium increases exceeding 50 percent.
Statewide, the average benchmark price will rise by 34 percent, to $462, though that's still lower than the national average of $543.
DWINDLING CHOICES
Pennsylvania had a relatively robust health insurance market last year, with Affordable Care Act consumers in all but one of Pennsylvania's 67 counties having at least three insurers from which to choose.
The bottom has fallen out for 2017, as insurers including Aetna and United Healthcare exit the market.
According to the analysis by AP and Avalere Health:
Consumers in only four counties will have their choice of at least three insurers next year.Two insurers will operate in 45 counties.In 18 counties -- including Philadelphia -- consumers will be down to a single insurance provider.
Ron Ruman, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Insurance Department, noted that some insurers who left the federal exchange will continue to offer plans off it.
"We would be the first to say that rising premiums and less choice is not an ideal situation for consumers," said Antoinette Kraus, director of the Pennsylvania Health Access Network, which helps people get insurance through the Affordable Care Act. "I think people are worried."
THE BOTTOM LINE
Shop around. Consumers who do not qualify for tax subsidies may be able to find a cheaper plan off the federal exchange. Subsidies phase out at $97,200 for a family of four, and $47,520 for an individual.
"If you make too much to get a subsidy, there might be a better deal if you go to an agent," Ruman said.