Health Insurance Markets Perform Better in States That Run Their Own Marketplaces
<p>Despite federal actions to undermine portions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), enrollment in the health insurance marketplaces remains strong. However, the individual insurance market is healthier in the 17 states that run their own marketplaces than it is in states that rely on the federal marketplace, say Mark A. Hall and Michael J. McCue in a new <em>To the Point</em> post. </p><p>Using new federal data, the researchers found that, for 2018, individual market insurers in states using the federal marketplace projected premiums for ACA-compliant coverage that were 21 percent higher, on average, compared to premiums in states running their own marketplaces. Medical claims, administrative expenses, and overhead costs were also higher in states using the federal marketplace.</p>
<p>“States that wish to avoid the worst effects of market destabilization flowing from the most recent set of federal health policy reversals might want to follow the lead set by states that operate their own marketplaces,” Hall and McCue write.</p>