WASHINGTON, D.C. – All Americans deserve access to affordable, comprehensive, high-quality care. With discussions around premium costs in the individual market for 2021 underway, there is a growing and understandable concern about the impact of COVID-19 on the nation’s health care system, increasing costs of medical care, and other issues. To help clarify the various factors affecting 2021 premium rates in the individual market, AHIP has released a detailed infographic aimed at identifying these factors and the role they play in 2021 rates.
“COVID-19 has had a very real impact on the economic, physical, and mental health of millions of Americans,” said Jeanette Thornton, senior vice president of Product, Employer, and Commercial Policy at AHIP. “Our members are working through this uncertainty to strengthen access to affordable care as the fight against the coronavirus continues.”
From the anticipated surge in initially delayed non-urgent care to new health issues COVID-19 survivors present, health insurance providers must consider factors without knowing their exact impact. Premiums are closely regulated with federal law requiring that, at minimum, 80 cents of every individual market premium dollar be spent on medical services or care improvement.
“COVID-19 dramatically changed the health care landscape—in 2020 and for years to come,” Thornton continued. “But what hasn’t changed is our members’ commitment to improving the health of the communities they serve.”
Click here to view and download AHIP’s infographic.