LINCOLN, Neb. — Premiums for Obamacare health insurance plans sold in Nebraska will go up nearly 11 percent next year — one of the biggest hikes in the nation — according to preliminary rates released by the state’s insurance department.
Nebraska experienced some of the biggest premium hikes in the nation for people buying their own health insurance after the launch of the Affordable Care Act, most likely because insurance was cheaper here than in states that already enacted Obamacare-like laws. Nebraska’s rates went up 74 percent, according to a Forbes study.
Now they’re going up again.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska’s rates will go up 19.5 percent on average, according to a rate sheet compiled by the insurance department.
The company blamed Obamacare-mandated benefits, higher use of medical services, guaranteed issue requirements and Obamacare-related taxes and fees for the hefty hike.
“We realize that the premium increase on the individual side of our business is substantial, and we don’t want to create undue hardship on our customers,” Blue Cross vice president Dan Alm said in a press release. “However, the medical losses we are seeing on individual plans, which are driven by usage of medical services and costs of those services, are some of the highest we have seen in years.”
Last fall, Blue Cross allowed policyholders whose individual health insurance plans were canceled to keep their noncompliant plans for one more year. Alm said that was good for members, “but it turned out to have a higher impact on premiums than we anticipated due to much higher claims than expected.”
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