A Kaiser Family Foundation analysis shows monthly premiums for individual insurance plans on the ACA exchanges increased the most in Charlottesville, Va., and the surrounding Albemarle County this year, according to The Washington Post.
The current open enrollment period began Nov. 1 and runs through Dec. 15. Depending on which plan they choose, residents in the aforementioned areas could end up paying three times as much for coverage as the prior year, according to the report.
The report notes nearly 80 percent of Virginians who purchase an ACA plan qualify for the health law's premium subsidies, which is less than the nationwide percentage. The remaining 20 percent who earn too much to qualify, such as entrepreneurs, may see significantly higher premiums compared to 2017.
The Kaiser analysis comes after two insurers — Anthem and Aetna — left the Albemarle County market earlier this year, the report notes. Norfolk, Va.-based Optima Health entered the counties in their wake.
In the report, Optima President Michael Dudley cited various factors driving Optima's expensive plans in the area, such as federal legislative uncertainty regarding the ACA's cost-sharing reduction payments to insurers, a small patient pool and the fact Optima is including University of Virginia Health System, an academic medical center with higher rates, in-network.
Read the full report here.