UnitedHealth’s Rocky Mountain HMO and Elevance’s Anthem HMO Colorado have filed plans to end coverage for multiple health plans in the individual market for the state.
The decisions are projected to affect 96,000 Coloradans, the Colorado Division of Insurance said in an Aug. 20 news release. All counties will continue to have plans available in the individual market despite the discontinuation notices.
About 300,000 Coloradans are enrolled in individual market plans, according to the release. The department projects that 100,000 people in the state will lose coverage due to the expiration of the ACA’s enhanced premium tax credits at the end of 2025. For those who remain enrolled, the average net increase for the majority of consumers will be more than 100% and will approach 200% for some.
“I don’t know how we can ring alarm bells any louder. Coloradans need support,” Colorado Insurance Commissioner Michael Conway said in the release. “We need our elected leaders at the General Assembly and federal level to help. We will do everything possible to stabilize the market, but without that assistance, hardworking people are going to receive devastatingly high rate increases and more than a hundred thousand people will lose coverage as a result.”
On a July 29 earnings call, UnitedHealth Group CEO Stephen Hemsley said the company plans to remain in most of its 30 current ACA markets but may exit some if it can’t achieve the rates needed to improve market morbidity.
