The Hill    (12/22, Viebeck) reports that insurance premiums for ACA exchange plans “did not rise on the whole for 2015, though 10 states saw double-digit increases, according to a new analysis.” Researchers at the University of Chicago found that the average monthly premium for benchmark exchange plans went unchanged from 2014 to 2015, while the average deductible rose by 1 percent. The study, “released by the Commonwealth Fund, called the trend ‘unprecedented’ in the individual health insurance market, where premiums rose an average of 10 percent or more per year prior to the passage of the healthcare reform law.” The analysis stated that the three most important contributors to the stability of marketplace premiums were “an increase in the number of participating insurance carriers; the design of the marketplaces; and the risk stabilization programs for participating insurers.”

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Jeffrey R. Ungvary President