With the Obamacare exchanges opening in just over a month for customers seeking health care plans in 2015, there are confirmed reports that people in some states will pay more for the same coverage.
Three health care providers in Louisiana, for example, will hike rates by double digits, reports the
Times-Picayune. One of them, Blue Cross Blue Shield, will increase premiums by 19.7 percent for some of its plans.
"Right now, at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, we are seeing that more people are accessing more health care services than we expected and our claims are higher than they have been in previous years. We expect this trend will continue," the insurance giant said in the Times-Picayune report.
In Iowa, meanwhile, the state's insurance commissioner approved premium hikes for three insurance providers starting next year.
The Des Moines Register reports that Wellmark, the most widely used provider in the state, will increase premiums for 250,000 policies.
CoOportunity, which also provides health plans to Iowans, requested a rate hike that averages 19 percent.
Americans can begin shopping for 2015 health plans on Nov. 15 at HealthCare.gov. The latest version of the
website was unveiled this week, but it will not display premiums before open enrollment begins.
The enrollment season ends Feb. 15, and coverage can begin Jan. 1.
The Obama administration said last month it expects to have
25 percent more insurers available through the Obamacare federal and state marketplaces, which it claimed would keep the costs of premiums down.
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