Minnesota health insurers are seeking big premium increases next year for people who buy coverage on their own, with proposed jumps for thousands of people averaging anywhere from 36 percent to 67 percent.
About 270,000 people buy coverage through Minnesota's individual market, where shoppers buy through insurers, brokers or the state's MNsure health insurance exchange.
Insurers defend the proposed spikes as necessary given escalating medical costs among enrollees. One health plan, in fact, said the only alternative would be to drop out of the market entirely.
Politicians pounced on the numbers, with Republicans and Democrats pointing to the need for different reforms. The rates are still subject to regulatory review, with final numbers expected Sept. 30.
"These are big increases," said Cynthia Cox, a researcher at the Kaiser Family Foundation who tracks rates nationally. "There are other states where we're seeing similarly large increases, but this is on the high end."
The individual market serves about 5 percent of Minnesotans, including self-employed people and those who don't get coverage through their employer. It does not include people in the Medicare, Medicaid and MinnesotaCare health insurance programs.
Average premiums in the Twin Cities individual market remain among the lowest in the nation despite hefty rate hikes in recent years. And while the market is once again facing steep increases, employer plans and government programs in recent years have seen much more moderate rate increases on health insurance.
The individual market has been the focus of reforms under the federal health law, which prevents insurers from denying coverage to people with preexisting health problems. The change kicked in during 2014, along with the launch of government-run exchange websites where consumers at certain income levels can tap federal subsidies.
