Aetna is trying to make sure its customers are aware of the changes coming in 2014 under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Matthew Wiggin, a spokesman for the insurer, told USA TODAY. Insurers will be required to cover more of the cost of care under the reform law next year, and the increase in benefits will result in higher premiums, meaning people could save money by signing up before the PPACA provisions kick in, Mr. Wiggin said.
James Repp, AvMed’s senior vice president for marketing, said his company is offering early renewal in response to competition from others pushing for early renewal in Florida and to consumers who want to delay the healthcare reform law’s impact on them.
However, others like industry critic and former Cigna spokesman Wendell Potter have called the early renewal offerings “scare tactics” to get people to enroll in health plans that will be more profitable for the insurers than the plans they will have to offer next year, which will incorporate PPACA requirements, according to the report.
Additionally, states including New York, Illinois and Washington have prohibited health insurers from engaging in early renewal efforts for the sole purpose of evading the healthcare reform law’s requirements, according to the report. Oregon has limited the practice of early renewal.
Under the PPACA, insurers cannot deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. Additionally, the law places limits on insurers’ ability to charge older customers higher premiums than younger, healthier people and requires that plans include essential health benefits such as maternity care.
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