As Congress stalls on health insurance subsidies, Idahoans have a week to enroll on exchange

Idahoans have less than a week to pick or switch health insurance plans on the state's exchange, as open enrollment for Your Health Idaho ends Dec. 15.

And unless Congress extends tax credits that deeply subsidize health insurance costs, Idahoans' average premiums are expected to double on the exchange next year, possibly prompting thousands to cancel their policies.

It'll take time to see the full impact. Idahoans usually enroll in insurance plans on the exchange during the last week of open enrollment, Your Health Idaho Executive Director Pat Kelly said in an interview last week.

"Last year, we saw more than half of our enrollment occurred in the last seven days of open enrollment, and a third of that occurs on the very last day. So it's always a little bit hard to tell where we will ultimately end up until we are completely done with open enrollment," he told the Idaho Capital Sun.

On Thursday, the U.S. Senate is expected to vote on a bill by Democrats that would extend the enhanced premium tax credits for three years. But the bill likely doesn't have enough bipartisan support to pass, States Newsroom reported.

In Idaho, Kelly expects 25,000 people will cancel their policies if the subsidies aren't renewed. About 87% of the roughly 116,000 Idahoans who have insurance through the state exchange get the enhanced tax credits, according to a report by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The enhanced premium tax credits ensure people don't pay more than 8.5% of their income on health insurance for benchmark plans.

Almost 60% of Americans enrolled in health insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplaces say they can't afford a $300 annual rise in their premiums, a poll released last week by the nonpartisan health organization KFF found.

The premium prices on Your Health Idaho for health insurance plans assume that the tax credits will expire, Kelly said. Already, he said, there are signs that affordability is a big concern for Idahoans as people are downgrading plan types, more people disenrolling citing affordability as the reason, and agents and brokers saying clients are trying to wait to see what happens.

But he's encouraging Idahoans to not wait, and instead enroll now.

"We're encouraging agents to ensure that their clients enroll in a plan that works for their budget today and, of course, meets their medical needs — knowing that if things change, we'll make sure that they have an opportunity to receive all the savings that they're eligible for," Kelly said. "And of course, if that means an opportunity to change plans or enroll, we would certainly do everything we can to make that available to Idahoans."

How to get help enrolling in insurance through Your Health Idaho

There are several resources to get help enrolling in health insurance plans through Your Health Idaho, including:

Calling customer support at Your Health Idaho at 855-944-3246. The line is staffed from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays, and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. Finding an agent or broker online. Finding an enrollment event near you online.Using an affordability calculator online to explore plans.

How much are premiums rising?

Here's a few examples of how Idaho households could be affected, based on estimates from Your Health Idaho:

A family of four that earns $130,000 a year would see their annual premiums rise by $10,831 a year. Because they earn more than 400% of the federal poverty level, they wouldn't be eligible for tax credits if the enhanced credits expire. Losing tax credits would cost them $7,800 a year, and their separate premium raise would cost them another $3,031 a year. A couple that earns $85,000 a year would see their premiums jump by $18,600 a year. They'd also lose credits, because they earn more than 400% of the federal poverty level, which is the cutoff for the smaller tax credits created through the Affordable Care Act.

Find an estimate for how much your premiums would be without and without the enhanced premium tax credits on KFF's online calculator.