Obamacare is hemorrhaging nationwide and Tennessee’s insurance commissioner is warning that her state is “very near collapse.”
“I would characterize the exchange market in Tennessee as very near collapse,” said Julie Mix McPeak. “And that all of our efforts are really focused on making sure we have as many writers in the areas as possible, knowing that might be one. I’m doing everything I can to prevent a situation where that turns to zero.”
Chattanooga-based insurance giant Blue Cross Blue Shield has suffered $500 million in losses due to the federal health exchange and its chief communications officer, Roy Vaughn, is calling it “unsustainable,” according to HotAir.com. Vaughn says BCBS is reconsidering its participation in Obamacare:
“We agree with the assessment of the ACA marketplace in Tennessee. We appreciate the support of our request to close the gap between our rates and medical expenses for ACA marketplace plans. Beyond rates as we’ve discussed with the [commissioner] we continue to have concerns about uncertainty with the ACA at the federal level. Due to these concerns we are keeping all of our options open at this point about participating in the 2017 marketplace. We anticipate making a final decision in mid-September.”
According to the report, Commissioner Vaughn had to increase premiums for the next year in order to keep insurers on the exchange in Tennessee: “BCBS asked for and received a 62% increase. Cigna received a 46.3% increase.” And even though subsidies are available to subscribers, industry experts don’t see a light at the end of the tunnel, as Bob Laszewski recently wrote:
With their backs against the wall, Blues plans might exit. They might also just keep raising the rates by large amounts knowing that the subsidized Obamacare subscribers will have these giant excess premiums paid by taxpayers no matter how big they are, while at the same time driving the millions of people that don’t get subsidies out of the market with exploding rates. A really bad outcome either way.
And more fallout can be expected. BCBS of Minnesota is leaving the exchange after suffering the same loss of $500 million like Tennessee and the insurer’s Louisiana branch is warning that the law as designed “simply does not work.”
As TruthRevolt reported on Monday, more and more states are losing insurers as they pull out due to rising costs and losses. The Obama administration has removed competition from the free market system and with it, insurance companies are being forced out, leaving multiple states with just one choice of insurer, which is no choice at all when premiums continue rising.
The Affordable Care Act is not so “affordable” after all.
