Pay for your own health insurance? Expect the average Sacramento rate to rise 2.3% in 2021
Residents of El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo counties who buy their health insurance through Covered California or on the individual market will see their premiums increase an average of 2.3% in 2021, according to state data released Tuesday.
If those consumers shop around and compare plans, they should be able to save an average of 2.4%, according to Covered California officials.
On a statewide level, Californians will enjoy a record-low rate increase of 0.6% in 2021, on average, said Peter V. Lee, the executive director of Covered California, and this follows what now becomes the second-lowest premium increase, an average of 0.8%, this year.
“California continues to show the nation what can be done when you build on and strengthen the Affordable Care Act,” Lee said. “California’s bold policies to provide additional state financial help, to reinstate the penalty to encourage consumers to enroll in health care, and to make significant marketing investments in Covered California are providing stability and lower costs in the face of national uncertainty.”
Passed in 2010, the Affordable Care Act — known as Obamacare or the ACA — created a federal health care insurance marketplace and allowed states to create their own. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger laid the groundwork for the creation of Covered California. The state exchange negotiates for health insurance plans that now cover about 2.3 million state residents, roughly 87,000 of them in the four-county Sacramento region.
California leaders introduced new state subsidies this year and passed an individual mandate that requires Californians to have health insurance or face a tax penalty, Lee said. Those measures, along with Covered California’s annual multimillion-dollar awareness campaign, have led to increased enrollment and one of the healthiest consumer pools in the nation.
For the sixth year in a row, he noted, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reported that California is among the top five healthiest states in the nation.
“Access to affordable health care coverage is more critical than ever as our nation and state navigate the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “Covered California is leading the nation by eliminating barriers to access and providing Californians real opportunities to get the care and coverage they need.”
Health plan costs have been lower than expected for 2020 because, out of fear of a potential COVID-19 infection, many people have deferred care and avoided health care services, Lee said. Although that trend now appears to be reversing, he added, it looks as though the pandemic won’t have much of an impact on the total cost of care in California’s individual market.
Covered California officials said that, absent the impact of the new coronavirus, actuaries had predicted that health care costs would rise 4 to 8% statewide for its 11 contracted health insurers.
Rates will increase an average of 2.6% for the 56,000-plus residents of Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne and Yuba counties who buy their own health coverage. They will be able to save 0.4%, on average, if they are willing to change plans or benefits.
In San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Mariposa and Tulare counties, rates will increase an average of 4.2%, but shopping around could generate average savings of 1.4%.
Many of the 36,200 residents of Fresno, Kings and Madera counties who buy their own insurance will see an average decline in their premiums of 0.1%, even if they don’t shop around. If they do, they could get savings that average 3%.
Lee also noted that all 11 insurance carriers will continue offering plans in the state, and two carriers — Anthem Blue Cross and Oscar Health Insurance — will expand their coverage areas. Consequently, in the coming year, 99.8% of Californians will have two or more choices, 88% will have three or more, and 77% will have four or more choices.
“A competitive market means virtually everyone across California will have a choice in coverage and is further proof that the Affordable Care Act is working in California for both consumers and health plans.”
Since Covered California began signing up state residents for health insurance, the percentage of uninsured Californians has dropped to 7.2 percent from 17.2 percent.
This story was originally published August 4, 2020 at 12:37 PM.
