The insurer announced it will officially leave the state’s exchange for the 2018 marketplace.
Anthem recently announced its intentions to step out of the Virginia health insurance marketplace for 2018. Moreover, it has also revealed that it will be reducing the number of health plans it sells in Bristol, as well as Washington and Scott counties.
The withdrawal from the insurance exchange occurred after Republicans failed to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
This news was also made on the heels of President Trump’s threat to slash healthcare subsidy payments which currently assist many Americans in affording their Virginia insurance coverage. Many insurance companies are struggling to find a sense of security in the health insurance markets. As the GOP continually work to repeal the ACA and Trump continues to try to undo what President Obama put into place during his terms, the feeling of uncertainty is palpable.
The situation with the Virginia health insurance exchange is far from unique across the country.
Many other large health insurance companies, such as Humana, Aetna and UnitedHealth Group have stepped out of the states in which they used to sell coverage. The insurers have requested a commitment from the government for 2018’s marketplaces in which they can count on the $8 billion in promised subsidy payments. They stated that without that commitment, they may either forced to raise their rates or withdraw from the individual health plan market due to the uncertainty.
Last week, Anthem also announced that it no longer intended to sell health plans in Nevada’s insurance exchange. It has also withdrawn from half the counties in Georgia in which it had previously sold plans. Two weeks ago, Molina Health Care said it wouldn’t be selling ACA health plans in Utah and Wisconsin in 2018, adding its name to the list of insurers drawing back.
The lack of certainty among insurers has caused this recent withdrawal from the Virginia health insurance exchange as well as many others over the last few months. It’s expected that hundreds of counties across the United States may have lost access to private health plans by next year.
