WASHINGTON (AP) — Obama administration officials are acknowledging that HealthCare.gov premiums, on average, will go up next year.
But the same officials say most current customers can still save money if they are willing to shop around a competitive marketplace.
In a report released Thursday, the Health and Human Services Department says premiums for the most popular type of plan will go up an average of 5 percent in 35 states where the federal government is running the health insurance exchanges.
However, the administration says more insurers are participating in the marketplace this year.
About two-thirds of current customers can still find coverage comparable to what they have now for $100 a month or less if they shop around. That’s taking into account the tax credits that most consumers are eligible for.
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I imagine the GOP will demagogue the hell out of this, but the question really isn’t whether the premiums are going up (we know that is all but inevitable), but whether or not they are lower than was projected under the old system. And I would be willing to bet that the answer is that yes, they are still much lower than what was forecast for premium rates without the ACA, when premiums were going up by double-digit percentages (and sometimes rather high double digits) every year.
Context only matters when a Republican official posts racist trash on Facebook.