President Obama announced Thursday an administrative change in one of the bedrock ideas of the new health-care law, allowing insurers to continue offering individual insurance plans for another year even if they do not comply with the law’s rules for minimum benefits.
“This fix won’t solve every problem for every person, but it’s going to help a lot of people,” Obama said in making the announcement. He said that “doing more” would require congressional action.
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The White House, responding to intensifying pressure from disgruntled consumers and Congress, decided to make the fix as a part of a strategy to try to ward off more far-reaching changes that are being advocated on Capitol Hill. Under the White House’s approach, the Department of Health and Human Services will notify the nation’s state insurance commissioners that they have federal permission to allow consumers who already have such insurance policies to keep them through 2014. It will be up to each state whether to go along.
The decision runs counter to a central aim of the law, which was to ensure that all people in the United States with private health plans are guaranteed at least certain benefits.
Obama said the administration will insist that insurance companies continuing to sell individual insurance policies that do not comply with those standards alert consumers to potentially better and more affordable insurance available through the new federal and state insurance marketplaces.
The White House’s strategy differs from a bill on which the House is to vote on Friday, sponsored by Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), which would let new customers buy such minimal policies, rather than allowing only existing policy-holders to keep them for an additional year.
Insurers said Thursday that while they appreciated Obama’s effort to address consumers’ concerns, they remained concerned that the move could distort the risk pool in the new state and federal health-insurance marketplaces.
“Changing the rules after health plans have already met the requirements of the law could destabilize the market and result in higher premiums for consumers,” said Karen Ignani, president and chief executive of America’s Health Insurance Plans. “Premiums have already been set for next year based on an assumption of when consumers will be transitioning to the new marketplace. If now fewer younger and healthier people choose to purchase coverage in the exchange, premiums will increase and there will be fewer choices for consumers.”
While Obama defended his administration’s efforts to fix the problems that have plagued the health-care law’s implementation, he acknowledged that the last few weeks have been rocky.
“I think it’s fair to say that the rollout has been rough so far,” Obama said, referring to the troubled debut of HealthCare.gov, the Web site for the new federal health-insurance exchange. He added that the Web site “has gotten a lot better” but work remains to be done.
“We fumbled the rollout of this health-care law,” Obama said. Regarding the policy cancellation issue, which contradicted his repeated promises that people would be able to keep insurance plans they liked, Obama said, “That’s on me. .
“This fix won’t solve every problem for every person, but it’s going to help a lot of people,” Obama said in making the announcement. He said that “doing more” would require congressional action.
Graphic
Breaking down the Obamacare enrollment numbers
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Chris Cillizza Sometimes saying sorry just isn’t enough.
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Aaron Blake A Gallup poll shows disapproval rising from 47 percent a couple weeks ago to 55 percent today -- a new high.
The president addressed the cancellation of health-care policies Thursday at the White House.Read more
The White House, responding to intensifying pressure from disgruntled consumers and Congress, decided to make the fix as a part of a strategy to try to ward off more far-reaching changes that are being advocated on Capitol Hill. Under the White House’s approach, the Department of Health and Human Services will notify the nation’s state insurance commissioners that they have federal permission to allow consumers who already have such insurance policies to keep them through 2014. It will be up to each state whether to go along.
The decision runs counter to a central aim of the law, which was to ensure that all people in the United States with private health plans are guaranteed at least certain benefits.
Obama said the administration will insist that insurance companies continuing to sell individual insurance policies that do not comply with those standards alert consumers to potentially better and more affordable insurance available through the new federal and state insurance marketplaces.
The White House’s strategy differs from a bill on which the House is to vote on Friday, sponsored by Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), which would let new customers buy such minimal policies, rather than allowing only existing policy-holders to keep them for an additional year.
Insurers said Thursday that while they appreciated Obama’s effort to address consumers’ concerns, they remained concerned that the move could distort the risk pool in the new state and federal health-insurance marketplaces.
“Changing the rules after health plans have already met the requirements of the law could destabilize the market and result in higher premiums for consumers,” said Karen Ignani, president and chief executive of America’s Health Insurance Plans. “Premiums have already been set for next year based on an assumption of when consumers will be transitioning to the new marketplace. If now fewer younger and healthier people choose to purchase coverage in the exchange, premiums will increase and there will be fewer choices for consumers.”
While Obama defended his administration’s efforts to fix the problems that have plagued the health-care law’s implementation, he acknowledged that the last few weeks have been rocky.
“I think it’s fair to say that the rollout has been rough so far,” Obama said, referring to the troubled debut of HealthCare.gov, the Web site for the new federal health-insurance exchange. He added that the Web site “has gotten a lot better” but work remains to be done.
“We fumbled the rollout of this health-care law,” Obama said. Regarding the policy cancellation issue, which contradicted his repeated promises that people would be able to keep insurance plans they liked, Obama said, “That’s on me. .