ObamaCare took another step toward implosion Tuesday, as Humana announced it's fully taking out from the exchanges come the coming year. It's the largest provider yet to leave, on the heels of big names like Cigna and UnitedHealth Group.
And while Aetna hasn't yet quit, CEO Mark Bertolini told Politico that the much-feared “death spiral” is fully arrived: High prices are driving young, healthy people to spread buying insurance – which leaves insurers forced to raise premiums even more to interrupt even (when they never give up the marketplace altogether), which in turn drives much more kids to go without coverage.
The latest enrollment period was the first one to see fewer new signups compared to year before. It will not be the final.
Humana had already cut its participation within the exchanges to 11 states from 15; it quit altogether since it is “seeing further indications of an unbalanced risk pool” – meaning, again, that not enough young people are paying in.
Yes, Blue Cross/Blue Shield continues to be in the game – but ObamaCare's authors trusted competition between private insurers to help make the system work. Now, increasingly more states might find just one company offering exchange plans – and some, warns Bertolini, may see no insurers willing to play as soon as the coming year.
“It's not getting any better; it's getting worse,” says the Aetna CEO.
Democrats continue to be busy warning from the horrors to come if ObamaCare's replaced. Funny: If Republicans truly were heartless, they'd give those town-meeting protesters what they're demanding, and leave the one thing in position 'til it dies of its own weight.
Except that isn't what they've promised to complete, nor why the voters sent them to Congress. There is a duty to the American people to stay on the rational ObamaCare replacement – and fast.
