As the ACA's fourth open enrollment kicks off in the face of steep rate hikes and reduced competition, HHS Secretary Burwell feels compelled to engage in some "myth busting."
Fair enough, but I in turn feel compelled to, shall we say, qualify the clarifications. My two cents are in italics, below each myth-bust.
Myth #1: Health coverage on the Marketplace is unaffordable.
On the surface, headline rate changes can look spooky – but they don’t actually reflect what the vast majority of people will pay.
If you dig deeper, most consumers shopping on the Marketplace will be able to find a plan between $50 and $100 per month, thanks to financial assistance.
Well...it depends what your definition of "vast majority" is. At present there are 10.5 million marketplace enrollees, and about 1.5 million of them are unsubsidized. There are also 6.9 million enrollees in the off-marketplace individual market, however, by HHS's tallying. Off-marketplace enrollment estimates vary; Mark Farrah Associates pegged the total individual market at 20.2 million in August, which would suggest about 9 million off-marketplace.
HHS estimates that 2.5 million current off-marketplace enrollees are "potentially" eligible for subsidies, but "potential" does not mean "actual," and the actual number is probably considerably smaller, as I explained here.
If 2.5 million off-marketplace enrollees were indeed subsidy-eligible, and if the 6.9 million off-marketplace count is accurate, then about 2/3 of current individual marketplace enrollees would be eligible for subsidies. The actual percentage is probably somewhat smaller. At present, by HHS's count, barely more than half of individual market enrollees are subsidized.
It may be literally true that "the vast majority" of people shopping on the Marketplace will be subsidy eligible, but that's because most individual market customers who are subsidy ineligible are aware of that fact and don't bother with the marketplace.
The unsubsidized individual market is where the wild things are -- and will indeed be spooky for many who are not eligible for subsidies but not truly wealthy.
Fair enough, but I in turn feel compelled to, shall we say, qualify the clarifications. My two cents are in italics, below each myth-bust.
Myth #1: Health coverage on the Marketplace is unaffordable.
On the surface, headline rate changes can look spooky – but they don’t actually reflect what the vast majority of people will pay.
If you dig deeper, most consumers shopping on the Marketplace will be able to find a plan between $50 and $100 per month, thanks to financial assistance.
Well...it depends what your definition of "vast majority" is. At present there are 10.5 million marketplace enrollees, and about 1.5 million of them are unsubsidized. There are also 6.9 million enrollees in the off-marketplace individual market, however, by HHS's tallying. Off-marketplace enrollment estimates vary; Mark Farrah Associates pegged the total individual market at 20.2 million in August, which would suggest about 9 million off-marketplace.
HHS estimates that 2.5 million current off-marketplace enrollees are "potentially" eligible for subsidies, but "potential" does not mean "actual," and the actual number is probably considerably smaller, as I explained here.
If 2.5 million off-marketplace enrollees were indeed subsidy-eligible, and if the 6.9 million off-marketplace count is accurate, then about 2/3 of current individual marketplace enrollees would be eligible for subsidies. The actual percentage is probably somewhat smaller. At present, by HHS's count, barely more than half of individual market enrollees are subsidized.
It may be literally true that "the vast majority" of people shopping on the Marketplace will be subsidy eligible, but that's because most individual market customers who are subsidy ineligible are aware of that fact and don't bother with the marketplace.
The unsubsidized individual market is where the wild things are -- and will indeed be spooky for many who are not eligible for subsidies but not truly wealthy.