Health insurance premiums in Oklahoma are set to increase by a whopping 76% average for residents who buy individual coverage through the online exchanges set up by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The premium hikes range from 58% to 96%.
“These jaw-dropping increases make it clear that Oklahoma’s exchange is on life support,” Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John D. Doak told reporters. “Health insurers are losing massive amounts of money. If they don’t raise rates they’ll go out of business. This system has been doomed from the beginning.”
The last man standing in the exchanges, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oklahoma filed the proposed increases with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Blue Cross will be the only carrier on the federal exchange in 2017. CMS will determine whether the increases are reasonable.
UnitedHealthcare, which accounts for 5% of the state’s 130,000 enrollees for 2016, will exit the federal marketplace by the end of the year. Blue Cross has the other 95%.
The Oklahoma Insurance Department does not have legal authority to affirm or deny rate increases for plans on the exchanges. Along with Texas, Missouri, Alabama and Wyoming, Oklahoma is a direct enforcement state with no authority to implement the ACA provisions.
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