Insurance Premiums Sticker Shock: Up 25%

Well, it’s official. Life just got at least 25% more interesting if you’re on an Obamacare health insurance plan in 2017.

The Associated Press reports that “before taxpayer-provided subsidies, premiums for a midlevel benchmark plan will increase an average of 25 percent across the 39 states served by the federally run online market.” Some states more, some less, but basically...rates are up across the board. Many people will also be left with only one possible insurer, because major insurers across the country have scaled back their involvement. This news has been swirling around out there for months, of course — it’s just that now the government has confirmed it, because the rate increases were approved by states.

However, on the flip side, the Obama administration is also stressing a less headline-grabbing but equally important point: most families in the Exchange are subsidized. Sticker shock, they say, won’t be nearly as high as it may seem, and it’s not a good idea to panic yet.

You can read more about the announcement here. It may be a good idea, especially if you’re one of the 95% of North Carolinians down to one possible Obamacare insurer for 2017.

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