This is all very well, Secretary Burwell...
The message here is that monthly premium price is all that matters. Based on current enrollment, a large subset of those who can find a plan for $75 per month can find only a bronze plan below that ceiling. Most bronze plans have deductibles north of $6,000. Meanwhile, anyone who can get a bronze plan for under $75 is eligible for Cost Sharing Reduction (CSR) subsidies, which are available only with silver plans, which have higher premiums.
Burwell acknowledged that people have had some trouble picking the right policies, with some deciding based mainly on how expensive policies were, rather than on what’s covered.But why then did I get a voicemail on Thursday from healthcare.gov telling me that "most people" can get plans for under $75? Here's the email version of that mantra (also sent Thursday):
The message here is that monthly premium price is all that matters. Based on current enrollment, a large subset of those who can find a plan for $75 per month can find only a bronze plan below that ceiling. Most bronze plans have deductibles north of $6,000. Meanwhile, anyone who can get a bronze plan for under $75 is eligible for Cost Sharing Reduction (CSR) subsidies, which are available only with silver plans, which have higher premiums.
