Two rate increases, one decrease proposed for exchange plans

HARTFORD, Conn. – Two of the three health insurance companies participating in the exchange submitted proposals to increase rates next year by more than 11 percent, while the third proposed decreasing rates 8.9 percent.

A fourth company, UnitedHealthcare, submitted a proposal to participate in the marketplace for the first time next year.

Anthem Health Plans proposed an average 12.5 percent increase that could impact more than 66,000 policies. But that increase won’t apply to every policyholder. Those under the age of 30 on a catastrophic plan will see a decrease and others could see an increase of as much as 17.38 percent.

The company, according to its filing with the Insurance Department, “anticipates a ‘pent-up’ demand for health services in 2015, the second full year of the Affordable Care Act, and higher morbidity — the influx of previously uninsured into insured risk pools.” The company cited a Centers for Disease Control study on the health status of insurance and uninsured populations as the basis for its conclusion.

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