By Illinois Radio Network
SPRINGFIELD – One of the problems with the Affordable Care Act’s premium hikes is that young people are not paying into the system, and the Goldwater Institute said there’s a reason for that.
With double-digit health insurance premium increases year after year, Goldwater Institute Director of Healthcare Policy Naomi Lopez Bauman said young people are making the choice to forgo insurance coverage and pay the penalty of 2.5 percent of household income. She said it’s not just the premiums that are costly, but also high deductibles that stretch into the thousands.
“So an individual not only has to pay their monthly premiums, they also have to spend up to the deductible level before they get a dime in benefit,” Bauman said. “So if you’re looking for a car payment, paying your rent or other financial priorities, you are very likely going to forgo that.”
While there are plenty of stories about insurers leaving the Affordable Care Act state exchanges, resulting in fewer choices, Bauman said what’s more alarming are the choices that are left behind.
Bauman said rural citizens are not only finding fewer insurers to choose from, but they’re also finding fewer options.
“One of the ways the insurers are trying to hold down costs is to only allow a very small number of providers,” Bauman said. “What that means is that individuals in rural areas not only pay more, not only have more limited choice, but they actually have to travel farther just to see a doctor, just to go to the hospital.”
Bauman said policymakers will have to go back to the drawing board next year with the realization that more government intervention and Washington dictates on how health insurance should be offered are not viable solutions.
