BCBSA is the only insurer selling individual plans through Alabama’s exchange in 2017, as Louisville, Ky.-based Humana and Minnetonka, Minn.-based UnitedHealthcare will exit the exchange’s individual market. More than 160,000 Alabama residents would be affected by BCBSA’s rate hikes, which represent about 5 percent of BCBSA’s members.
Requested rate increases on the insurer’s individual plans range from about 26 percent to 41 percent, depending on the plan. Requested rate increases for BCBSA’s small group plans range from about 3 percent to 5 percent. However, nearly 90 percent of customers on Alabama’s exchange receive subsidies.
BCBSA said it lost more than $250 million on ACA plans from 2014 to 2016, according to the report.
Alabama Department of Insurance officials will review rate requests and release an opinion in September.
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