How Cruel Is Private Health Insurance? This Cruel.
November 09, 2019
ACA Highest Cost Health Insurance Plan Option For An Individual - 2020/Virginia
The Healthcare.gov enrollment period started a week ago, on November 1. Like millions of people who must pay 100% of the health insurance premium insurers charge, I held my breath and prepared for the worst. Due to technological difficulties, I wasn’t able to log on to the site on the first day. No worries, there are benefits to delaying bad news. One is that you become irrationally optimistic.
Although it’s never happened before, I thought, maybe my individual private health insurance premiums would decrease. There are several reasons why they should.
- Last month I received a $99 refund, aka, medical loss ratio (MLR) rebate, from Cigna (based on Cigna’s 2018 MLR). The MLR rebate provision of the Affordable Care Act “requires health insurers to pay rebates to policyholders if the insurer fails to spend at least 80% to 85% of total premium revenue on medical claims and health care quality improvement activities (as opposed to administrative and marketing expenses and profits).”
- Cigna is financially strong. It’s 2019 third-quarter profits and revenues were up at $38.6 billion and $35.8 billion, respectively.
- The federal government’s Health and Human Services Department reports that health care premiums overall are decreasing in 2020.
- I’ve never needed medical care in my adult life. I’ve never been ill, injured, pregnant, or taken a prescription drug.
- I’m currently paying an extortionist, unsubsidized monthly premium for my Cigna EPO health plan (per my monthly email reminder).
“This email confirms that we have processed your Cigna health insurance premium payment of $564.33 on October 31, 2019.”
It’s The Government’s Fault. No, Not Really.
I am one of a small minority of people who pay the prices you see above. But, there are several million of us—people who do not receive government, employer, or tax-subsidized health insurance. We pay the amounts you see above with after-tax dollars. And, you’ll probably notice that of my 17 health plan options, three (3) are HSA-eligible. Despite the $7,000 annual deductible for the lowest premium plan, putting money in a tax-advantaged HSA is not allowed.
Too many people jump to justify insurer, hospital, and pharmaceutical price gouging instead of admitting that it is unnecessarily cruel. Instead of blaming the people who receive the bulk of government insurance subsidies, private insurers and businesses, they blame the government. Seema Verma, Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, recently stated that high premiums are due to government regulations. This is also an argument used by many Libertarians. Sure, health plans are highly regulated and there are extensive reporting and disclosure requirement. There should be. But maintaining our private, employer sponsored health insurance model cost the federal government an estimated $280 billion in income in payroll taxes last year. And you don’t hear health insurance companies complaining about the billions they make offering Medicare and Medicaid plans. They know they are coming out ahead, regardless of any government regulations.
Conclusion
Let’s keep it that way health insurance is a disastrous policy for the country, and cruel to the millions of people who have only high-priced health insurance options.
Below are the 15 other private, individual health insurance plan options available to an individual living in Virginia in 2020.
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Denise Perkins
