It looks like health insurers will raise rates next year for health plans offered through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act exchanges, according to a Kaiser Health News report.
However, analysts say the extent of the rate increases remains unclear, given that little is known about the health status and expected costs for the 8 million people who enrolled in PPACA plans during the 2014 sign-up period. Of those 8 million enrollees, federal officials have reported 28 percent are between 18 and 34, part of the "young invincible" demographic generally presumed to be in good health. Still, the proportion of healthy enrollees to sicker people is unclear, according to the report.
Prominent health insurer WellPoint forecasted double-digit rate hikes for 2015. Dave Axene and Elaine Corrough, fellows of the Society of Actuaries, have offered a less drastic estimate, saying health insurers will likely increase rates by 6 percent to 8.5 percent on average. Although rates will vary widely across the country, Ms. Corrough and Mr. Axene predict medium-sized single-digit rate increases, based on medical inflation and the exchange enrollee population.
Insurers offering plans through the federal exchange must file initial rate requests by late May or June, according to the report.
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