Insurers signal marketplace premium hikes for next year

Insurers have indicated that this summer they will seek significant premium increases for plans sold on the ACA marketplace (Source: “Significant premium hikes expected under Obama health law,” Associated press via Columbus Dispatch, April 28, 2016).

For example, in Virginia, a state that reports early, nine insurers returning to the HealthCare.gov marketplace are seeking average premium increases that range from 9.4 percent to 37.1 percent. Those initial estimates filed with the state may change.

More than 12 million people nationwide get coverage though the health law's markets, which offer subsidized private insurance. But the increases could also affect several million who purchase individual policies outside the government system.

This year, premiums for a benchmark silver plan rose by a little more than 7 percent on average, according to administration figures.