A Colorado consumer advocacy group says insurance companies proposing 20 percent to 30 percent price hikes on 2016 health benefit plans can’t justify them.
The pent-up demand for care unleashed in 2014 is lessening, the group said Tuesday.
“We’re asking the state to scrutinize the fact that they could have a healthier pool in 2015,” said Colorado Consumer Health Initiative director Adela Flores-Brennan.
Officials and analysts say that while it’s evident Coloradans will pay more on average for premiums next year, it’s too early to say what the statewide overall increase will be in Colorado.
Insurance carriers’ rate filings submitted May 29 are under review by the Division of Insurance, which aims to approve final plans in September.
State data show that insurers submitted average premium changes ranging from a decrease of 5.1 percent to increases of as much as 34 percent.
Consumer Health Initiative, an advocate for the health care reforms found in the Affordable Care Act, submitted comments to the insurance division late Monday saying its main concern is that carriers are ignoring the downward pressures on rates and overpricing plans.
“The carriers now have a full year’s worth of claims experience (2014) that likely reflects a lot of pent-up demand,” said Flores-Brennan, who is also on the board of the state health insurance exchange, Connect for Health Colorado.
The consumer group argues that new enrollees will be healthier after having had access to care.
Colorado carriers’ assumptions about medical inflation are higher than the recent national average, the group said.
Rocky Mountain Health Plans, a Grand Junction-based HMO system for the Western Slope, is requesting a 34.4 percent increase in the individual market.
“We urge the division to consider stepping in to protect consumers in this region,” CCHI said.
The consumer group criticized Humana’s request for a 20.9 percent rate increase. CCHI said the increase is not justified because new enrollees generally will be healthier than the earliest enrollees.
Colorado HealthOP is requesting an average increase of 21.6 percent, and CCHI said it is concerned about its “dramatic rating swings.”
Electa Draper: 303-954-1276, edraper@denverpost.com or twitter.com/electadraper
