Study Probes Cost Structure of Marketplace Health Plans

September 6, 2013 30 view(s)
Study Probes Cost Structure of Marketplace Health Plans

In about three weeks, the Obamacare Health Insurance Marketplaces will begin servicing individual and small business customers with promises of "affordable care."

Avalere Health has completed a study of the policies being offered nationwide and come up with five observations:

  • Consumers will get to choose from four levels of coverage, representing out-of-pocket expenses. A bronze plan covers 60 percent of medical expenses, a silver plan 70 percent, a gold 80 percent and a platinum 90 percent. Monthly premiums rise accordingly.
  • Monthly premiums for the least-expensive silver plans average $336, with the cheapest being in Maryland at $187 and the most expensive being in Vermont at $383.
  • Within any given state, premiums for silver plans can vary widely from insurer to insurer, with a typical gap being $418 between costliest and least costliest plans in New York.
  • About 80 percent of those customers using the exchanges will be eligible for generous government subsidies to help purchase their insurance.
  • People with incomes between 100 and 250 percent of the federal poverty level will save more by buying the silver plan than the bronze plan due to a healthier government subsidy for the better plan.
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