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More than half of individual insurance plans fall short of health reform standard
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted June 11, 2012
Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, more than half of people who would buy their health insurance through state-based exchanges would find better plans than the current set of individual insurance buyers, according to research published online May 23 in Health Affairs.
The study examined the actuarial value of plans in which individuals were enrolled in 2010. Of those, 51% fell below standards that would be required for the plans to be sold in exchanges under the health reform law, meaning the plans offered benefits below what the law defines as “bronze-level.” By contrast, researchers found that 80% to 90% of employer-sponsored group plan benefits qualified as “gold-level” (link).
The health reform law also would bar companies from denying coverage due to an applicant’s health status.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/06/11/bibf0611.htm.
