Heavy financial losses have caused 12 of the original 23 health insurance co-ops created under the Affordable Care Act to close. This year will be a critical in proving their ability to survive, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel.
According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, many of the remaining co-ops lost more than $20 million in 2015. For example, Illinois' Land of Lincoln co-op lost $90.8 million last year. Evergreen Health Cooperative in Maryland lost $10.8 million.
For the remaining co-ops, 2016 performance will be crucial to survival. Although they now comprehensively cover 350,000 individuals — or almost triple their 2014 enrollment — they are also receiving significantly less in federal funding.
"Plan year 2016 is a critical year for these co-ops — they must move from startup to stability and improve their financial capabilities," said Kevin Counihan, CEO of HealthCare.gov, according to the report.