Employee benefits are the main way in which most Americans get their coverage. And as business owners review the policies' plans they have for their workers, they could have more people opting to get coverage through this method rather than the individual market, if premiums reach the level that they're expected to through the exchanges set up under the Affordable Care Act.
Average proposed premiums in 2015 for the individual health insurance market are expected to rise, according to new analysis from advisory services company Avalere Health.
In order to determine this Avalere reviewed the initial rate filings in nine states, including Connecticut, Indiana, Maryland, Maine, Oregon, Rhode Island and Virginia. For silver plans, premiums are anticipated to increase by $324 per month in 2014 – or roughly 8 percent – then to $350 by 2015 across the nine-state group. In isolation, Indiana could witness the largest spike at 16 percent, while average premiums in Oregon are projected to fall by 1.4 percent.
Furthermore Avalere Health found that there will be greater disparities within the states as far as prices are concerned. For example, in Indiana, the gap between the least and most expensive health policy in 2015 is projected to be nearly $380.
Matt Eyles, executive vice president for Avalere, noted that this likely won't always be the case.
"As insurers experience with exchanges grows, we expect the range of plan premiums to narrow," said Eyles. "However, given the timing of plan filings for 2015, issuers had very little data from the 2014 market to inform their pricing strategy. While average premiums are pretty steady in 2015, new market entrants are driving larger variations in some states."
Dan Mendelson, Avalere Health CEO, added that consumers need to come to the realization that business owners have long understood and come to accept.
"Health insurance premiums will generally increase to accommodate the rising cost of care," said Mendelson. "But the variability of 2015 premiums by state underscores that healthcare is local, and individuals can, and should, evaluate their options to find the best deal for them."
Marketplace enrollment three times higher than anticipated
Whether it's due to cost concerns or believing it's the best move for the company, many business owners have enrolled their workers in private health insurance exchanges set up by the ACA. BenefitsPro reported that more than 3 million employees have signed up for coverage through the insurance marketplaces at a rate that's substantially faster than what was anticipated when the open enrollment period began last October.
Rich Birhanzel, managing director of Accenture Health Administration Services, indicated during a recent America's Health Insurance Plans conference that even with the uptick in enrollments, private exchange sign-up levels will reach 40 million by 2018, as Accenture initially predicted last year.
The next open enrollment period is scheduled for mid-November. HealthCare.com recently projected that between 12 and 16 million will buy health plans through the exchanges this time around, which would double the 8 million who signed up October through the end of March. Business owners may want to adjust their numbers accordingly as Nov. 15 approaches.
