Why health insurance will likely be less affordable next year

Many Illinois families are all too familiar with the many broken promises of the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, commonly referred to as ObamaCare. The president repeatedly promised that the average American family would save $2,500 per year. Not only did the president and administration later backtrack on that promise, but many families actually also...

Many Illinois families are all too familiar with the many broken promises of the Affordable Care Act, or ACA, commonly referred to as ObamaCare.

The president repeatedly promised that the average American family would save $2,500 per year. Not only did the president and administration later backtrack on that promise, but many families actually also face increased health insurance premiums, deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses. Unfortunately, this could just be the beginning.

Health-insurance premiums for policy renewals in the individual and small group markets are accelerating at an alarming rate, according to a quarterly survey of insurance brokers published this month by Morgan Stanley. In fact, these are the most-dramatic increases since the survey began about five years ago.

Some markets across the country are now facing 50-100 percent increases in premium renewal rates. Illinois has seen 17-18 percent increases in premiums for individual and small-group market policy renewals this year. These increases are coming on the heels of 9-14 percent increases last year.

According to the Morgan Stanley report, ObamaCare requirements and not medical inflation are primarily responsible for these dramatically higher rates. Insurance companies are now setting rates for 2015, and there should be little doubt that premiums will continue to soar here in Illinois and across the nation.

ObamaCare has not only failed to address underlying health-care costs, but it also continues to drive health-insurance premiums higher for many. The Obama administration’s celebrations touting the health-care overhaul as a rousing success were premature, and there will be little to celebrate as Illinoisans face dramatically higher health-insurance premiums for 2015.