Obamacare insurance carriers in Maryland request higher rates, though not as much as last year [Baltimore Sun]

Health insurance prices may be higher in 2024 for Marylanders who buy their own coverage, but the hike is expected to be smaller than it was last year, when coronavirus pandemic-related costs prompted carriers to request rate increases averaging 11%.

The average rate increase that carriers requested from state insurance regulators this year was 5.7%. All three carriers who offered policies on the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange or sold it directly to consumers under the Affordable Care Act — also known as Obamacare — in 2023 each submitted plans for next year.

The Maryland Insurance Administration plans to hold a public hearing on the proposed rate changes in July and expects to issue decisions in September.

After analyzing the requests, the administration typically grants rate increases lower than those requested by the carriers. Last year, regulators ultimately approved rate increases of an average of 6.6% more, lower than the 11% average requested.

Rate change requests are lower than last year mainly because 2022 claims came in lower than anticipated and there’s been a reduction in the projected claims trend, the Maryland Insurance Administration said Friday in a news release.

The Maryland Insurance Administration also received a filing from a fourth carrier, Aetna Health Inc., which will be offered to people who buy their own insurance in 2024. Premiums for the lowest-cost silver plan offered by Aetna would be $328 per month for a 40-year-old living in Baltimore, the release said.

State insurance regulators celebrated Aetna’s participation, which they said means all Marylanders — no matter where they live — will have a choice of at least three carriers. That will provide additional competitive pressures to keep rate increases low, Insurance Commissioner Kathleen Birrane said in the news release.

Aetna is the second carrier to reenter the market since 2021, according to the release. Birrane attributed those decisions to the continued success of the state’s reinsurance program, which helps insurance companies pay bills from their highest-cost customers.

An extension of the program, which was originally approved for 2019-2023, is under review by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and is expected to be approved this summer, the insurance administration said in the release. If approved, the extension would last from 2024 to 2028. All carriers assumed in their plans that the program would continue covering catastrophic claims, according to the release.

“We are pleased to have another carrier selling in the Individual Market,” Birrane said in the release. “The state was down to two carriers before the state reinsurance program was implemented.”

The three carriers in the market together have around 230,000 customers.

CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, which has 134,045 members, requested an average rate increase of 6.4% for its HMO plan next year. That amounts to an extra $4 per month for customers who have the lowest-cost silver plan, raising the monthly price from $335 to $339.

In an emailed statement, a CareFirst spokesperson said the insurer recognizes that rising health care costs are a significant concern for everyone. While the state reinsurance program has been “highly effective” at stabilizing the insurance market, sustainable policy solutions that reduce the underlying cost of health care are still needed, the statement said.

“These rate increases are driven by inflation and unsustainable increases in the cost of care delivery, as well as an uptick in the prices and utilization of healthcare,” the statement said. “The higher costs for care are here to stay and require aggressive action by both policymakers and payers; therefore, CareFirst looks forward to partnering with policymakers on future initiatives to reduce the cost of care.”

CareFirst requested an average increase of 0.5% for its PPO plan, which covers about 17,000 people.

Some people who buy insurance from the state’s market are eligible for federal subsidies that reduce their monthly premium costs.

Kaiser Permanente asked for an average rate increase of 8% for its HMO plan, which serves about 60,000 people. That would raise monthly premiums for customers with a silver plan by $18 to $286 per month.

United Healthcare, which covers 20,000 people on its HMO plan, asked for a rate reduction of about 2% — a change that would bring its silver plan monthly premiums down by $28 to $339.

The announced rate changes come as nearly 35,000 Marylanders are losing coverage under Medicaid because of eligibility issues or for procedural reasons. Maryland is figuring out who still meets the requirements for maintaining coverage after pandemic-era flexibilities expired with the public health emergency last month.

Those who lost their insurance have 120 days to request to have their status reconsidered. Anyone who isn’t reenrolled in the program will be sent information on how to enroll in a policy through the Maryland health benefit exchange, or — if they’re 65 or older — how to enroll in Medicare.

Providers of health insurance for small businesses — which together cover about 373,000 people — requested an average rate increase of 7.5%.

Kaiser Permanente and United Healthcare did not respond Tuesday to requests for comment.

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