Area sees big jump in insurance costs

CELINA - Health insurance costs are impacting families and individuals across the nation, especially in Ohio, according to Lt. Gov. Mary Taylor, who is also the Ohio Department of Insurance director.

Taylor hosted a teleconference Friday morning, saying the number of insurance carriers participating in the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) exchanges has shrunk significantly for 2017.

Seventeen companies had been selling on the exchanges, but only 11 will participate in 2017, she said.

"During 2016, all 88 counties in Ohio had at least four carriers to choose from on the exchange. In 2017, 20 counties will have only one carrier, and another 27 will have only two carriers," she said.

Mercer and Auglaize counties have only one option each through insurance.gov - Community Insurance Co., which is an Anthem Insurance plan.

"Before the implementation of Obamacare, we had lots of options and lots of choice, and this really wasn't an issue," Taylor said. "Consumers had not been impacted until going into 2017."

Ohio is not alone in losing options. Oklahoma has only one provider throughout the entire state, she said.

"As I've been in the southeastern and eastern part of this state, and even in the western and northwestern part of the state, where some of this impact is going to be felt most, I am already starting to hear from Ohioans with questions," she said.

In 2016 a little fewer than 250,000 Ohioans signed up through the healthcare.gov website, Taylor explained.

Figures for 2017 enrollments will not be available until the open enrollment period ends Jan. 31.

Taylor's concern is not only for those on exchange plans but also those with employer coverage.

"They are still required to provide the mandated coverage required under Obamacare," she said.

Many employers have been struggling with increasing costs to provide worker health care. Premiums have gone up 91 percent in Ohio's individual market since 2013 and over this past year, premiums increased by nearly 13 percent, according to Taylor.

"Small business has been impacted dramatically in the cost of providing health insurance to their individual employees." She said. I've talked to a lot of employers, and they are really struggling with this because they view it as being important to be able to provide health insurance to their employees, but it's getting harder and harder to do that because the cost has gone up so dramatically."

Earlier this week, the Mercer County commissioners chose to move to a high-deductible health insurance plan with a health savings account to avoid a 24 percent increase in premiums. Many municipalities within the county also have wrestled with insurance coverage decisions because of rising costs, and several private companies are rumored to have raised employee contributions to cover the higher costs.

As for coverage obtained through the exchange, Taylor related that insurance companies mostly dropped out for economic reasons.

"It's because it's not possible for them to keep their heads above water. They are losing money on the exchange. They are finding that the enrollment is not what they expected it to be, and the people who have enrolled are sicker and require more medical expenses than was originally predicted," Taylor said.

Those with questions about the exchanges are asked to go to the healthcare.gov website or call the Ohio Department of Insurance at 800-318-2596.