GOP health plan to hit Chattanooga hard, could cost families thousands in subsidies

March 20--Chattanooga would be one of the hardest hit cities in America for the drop in financial help in buying health insurance under the Republican health care plan moving through the U.S. House of Representatives, according to a study released today.

WalletHub analysts estimate a median income family filing a joint tax return and buying individual health insurance on the exchange marketplace in Chattanooga would see a $5,786 reduction in premium support by the government under the GOP-backed American Health Care Act compared with the Affordable Care Act, or ObamaCare.

WalletHub said Chattanooga was the fifth hardest hit city among the 457 U.S. cities analyzed using data from the Congressional Budget Office and the Kaiser Family Foundation.

For Chattanooga, the study said the median income family would receive a $5,000 tax subsidy under the GOP plan, which is less than half of the $10,786 subsidy such a family now gets under Obamacare.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the GOP plan would raise the average health-insurance premium for an individual policyholder by 15 to 20 percent just one or two years from now and lower federal subsidies. In contrast, the CBO projected, average Obamacare premiums would decrease 10 percent by 2026.

Among mid-sized cities, Chattanooga ranked the third highest in the subsidy gap from the new GOP plan, behind only Anchorage, Alaska and Syracuse, N.Y.

The cities that would benefit the most are affluent communities, since they would get slightly higher subsidies under the Republican plan and no subsidies at all under Obamacare.

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This story was updated March 20 at 11:20 p.m.

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