Will Anthem & ConnectiCare Premium Hikes Affect You? Tell Us Your Story.

Anthem and ConnectiCare have proposed their 2020 health insurance plan premiums. If you are an individual who buys your own insurance, this affects you.

For some people, this may mean that the care they need will become even more out of reach. In fact, 82% of Connecticut residents who buy health insurance on their own are worried about affording it in the future.

The rates filed on July 8, 2019 are for individual and small group health insurance plans to be sold in 2020.

You can check out the proposed rates here on the Connecticut Insurance Department website.

Individual health insurance plans (for people not covered by an employer and not eligible for Medicare or Medicaid) are sold both on and off Access Health CT, the state’s health insurance exchange. The same is for small group plans, which cover businesses with 50 or fewer employees.

Only two insurers – Anthem and ConnectiCare Benefits Inc. (CBI) – offer plans on the exchange, covering most lives in the individual market. The exchange covers nearly 103,000 individuals, compared to less than 10,000 buying off-exchange plans.

If a rate increase is approved by the state insurance department, then you and your family will be impacted with higher costs via premiums and other out-of-pocket expenses. This is especially hard if you don’t qualify for subsidies through the exchange. (Subsidies on Access Health CT will usually help cover the increase in premiums.)

If you work at or own a small business (with less than 50 employees) and get your health insurance through the business, then rate increases will affect you, too.

If you will be impacted by these rate increases, we want to hear your story.

Rising health insurance rates impact people’s health and tightens their budgets even more. Even people with insurance delay or skip recommended care due to cost. Too often families and individuals drain their savings and rack up large amounts of debt to pay for needed treatment.

One thing is clear: people are worried about the cost of health insurance.

Are you affected by the proposed rate increases? Your story is important.

Real people and real stories are powerful, as they put a face on the health care struggles of families and individuals. Stories illuminate the impact of public policy on our everyday lives.

We are collecting stories to make the case that people need quality health care that they can afford.

Please share your story with us by emailing: info@universalhealthct.org.