eAlert Wed, 08/15/2018 - 12:00

“With the states’ individual markets remaining upright despite repeated pounding, it has become clear that the Affordable Care Act’s premium tax credits have acted as a central stabilizing force,” write the Commonwealth Fund’s Sara Collins and Munira Gunja in a new post on To the Point.

Despite attempts by the Trump administration and Congress over the last year to weaken the health care law, data show not only that enrollment in the health insurance marketplaces is higher in 2018 than last year, but that this year is shaping up to be the most profitable one ever for insurers selling plans in the individual market. Moreover, premiums for 2019 are projected to rise only about 5 percent, on average.

Collins and Gunja argue that it’s the law’s tax credits, which make it possible for many low- or moderate-income Americans to purchase a health plan, that are helping keep the individual market afloat. And the subsidies, they say, can be increased, and made available to more people, to build on the coverage gains of recent years and ensure the market’s continued health.

Couple goes over finances involving the premium tax credits_1x1 Read the post Premium Tax Credits: A Stabilizing Force for the Individual Market