A new study by The Commonwealth Fund finds that insurers attribute increases in health plan premiums mostly to routine factors, such as general increases the cost of medical care, rather than costs associated with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Opponents of the law have been quick to attribute fees on health insurers, and other provisions of the PPACA, as leading to higher health insurance costs.
Yet, the study found very few insurers listed PPACA-related factors as major drivers of increasing costs of coverage. Instead, increases in medical utilization and per-unit costs were the most commonly cited reasons for increases.
The study examined data on insurers who filed requests for rate increases of 10 percent or more in 2012 and 2013. The PPACA required insurers to justify these requests, and list specific reasons for the planned increases.
Among the insurers that listed a PPACA-related factor as contributing to cost increases, the most frequently cited provision was the requirement to cover women’s preventive and contraceptive services without patient cost-sharing. One-third of insurers requesting premium increases cited this provision as a factor in premium increases. And, just under one-third of insurers (29 percent) mentioned the insurance premium tax or the reinsurance assessment fee as contributing to increased costs.
Interestingly, the insurers did not indicate guaranteed issue provisions, which require insurers issue a policy to any applicant, even those with preexisting conditions, and prohibits premiums from being based on health status or other characteristics, as a contributing factor of rising premiums.
Among the insurers who listed a PPACA-related cost as contributing to increased costs, they attributed just 1 percentage point of their rate increases to the health reform law.
That’s good news for supporters of the PPACA, and perhaps is one of the bright spots in the law’s implementation over the last few months.
