Covered California offers more choices, slight hike in premiums
Since Covered California started selling insurance in late 2013, only three insurance plans sold coverage through the marketplace in
A fourth insurer, UnitedHealthcare, will offer coverage in the county for 2016, Covered California officials announced last week. The company will compete with Anthem,
"That's a very good thing," said
At the end of open enrollment this year, 67,000 people in
Preliminary pricing data for 2016 shows that premiums in plans sold through Covered California in the three counties will increase a weighted average of 4.4 percent. That's slightly higher than the statewide average increase of about 4 percent.
The lowest-priced bronze plan in
A 40-year-old single person in the three counties who makes
If the person didn't qualify for a subsidy, he or she could pay an average of
About 52 percent of the people in Covered California plans in
If they stay in the plans, they could pay a weighted average of 9 percent more in 2016 than in the current year, according to the preliminary estimates.
People who stay in the plans could see their premiums drop in price an average of 2.4 percent.
People who stay in Kaiser plans bought in Covered California could see weighted increases of 5.5 percent.
The 40-year-old making
Anthem and United would charge
Though premiums will rise on average, Covered California officials said people who pick the lowest-priced plan in a particular tier may be able to save money over their current premiums.
Some observers note a 4.4 percent increase is relatively small in the world of health insurance.
"You're certainly happier than the regions that go up 8 or 9 percent," said
In northeast
The premium price doesn't tell the whole story, said
Out-of-pocket prices could also be pushed by limited networks of doctors in some plans, she said.
"At the end of the day, the sticker price is not the bottom line for the consumer," she said.
Covered
Covered
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