Via NY Post: About 350,000 New Yorkers who have individual policies under ObamaCare are going to get whacked with an average 16.6 percent premium increase next year, the state Department of Financial Services announced Friday.
That’s more than double the7 percent hike allowed by state regulators last year. Insurers had sought a 19.3 percent boost.
Some policies will skyrocket even higher. An astonishing 80 percent increase was granted to the Crystal Run Healthcare based in upstate Middletown. Metro Plus, run by the city’s municipal-hospital system, won a 29 percent hike.
About 1 million New Yorkers in small group plans through ObamaCare were spared a double-digit increase, with an average 8.3 percent jump in their premiums. These insurers had requested a 12.3 percent rise.
Financial Services chief Maria Vullo defended the hikes as comparable to those approved in other states to cover “rising health-care and pharmaceutical costs.” She said more than half of those buying coverage will get a tax credit to offset the increases.
Rates for individuals are still 55 percent lower than before the establishment of ObamaCare, according to state officials.
The changes won’t affect more than 600,000 lower-income New Yorkers projected to enroll in the exchange’s “essential plan,” with monthly premiums of $20 or less, according to the agency.
DCG
