Preview of 2018 ACA plans is LIVE

[jim584672]

The perils of being 60-64 years with obamacare. My new rate has jumped to 1473 a month from 1000 last year. This is the best rate I can get through the healthcare.gov site.

You need to move to NY. Unsubsidized Bronze plans in my county run from $391 to $484, no age rates allowed.

 

[GTFan]

Healthcare.gov might be providing estimated premiums and subsidies, while the agent is giving exact numbers. This could explain a perceived difference between the two.

Sure but I think he was talking about OOP expenses such as deductible, not the premiums. As you said, all of those CSR'd plans have to be on the exchange. There's nothing an agent can get that should be different, benefit-wise, because CSR plans are only available through the exchange.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

It should be noted, that contrary to all the negative speculations on premiums, my history is that OUR premiums after subsidies have been going down. It should also be noted that costs of Coinsurance and Copays have been rising within the plans. However, Max OOP has been constant over the last 3 years. Here is Our 3 Year History for 2 people DW and myself 58, 63 Resp. Today. MAGI was/is exactly the same for all 3 years. It should also be noted we have had exactly the same doctors for all 3 years. I will be eligible for Medicare in January in 2019. So thank the lucky stars I will only have to worry about DW for 2020, and she is as health as a horse. So 50% of the worrying and stress will be reduced.

2016 - $345pm Max OOP $2250 pp
2017 - $145pm MAX OOP $2450 pp
2018 - $0pm (Zero, Nada, Zilch) Max OOP $2450 PP

 

[Rianne]

It should be noted, that contrary to all the negative speculations on premiums, my history is that OUR premiums after subsidies have been going down. It should also be noted that costs of Coinsurance and Copays have been rising within the plans. However, Max OOP has been constant over the last 3 years. Here is Our 3 Year History for 2 people DW and myself 58, 63 Resp. Today. MAGI was/is exactly the same for all 3 years. It should also be noted we have had exactly the same doctors for all 3 years. I will be eligible for Medicare in January in 2019. So thank the lucky stars I will only have to worry about DW for 2020, and she is as health as a horse. So 50% of the worrying and stress will be reduced.

2016 - $345pm Max OOP $2250 pp
2017 - $145pm MAX OOP $2450 pp
2018 - $0pm (Zero, Nada, Zilch) Max OOP $2450 PP

Awesome! You are in the sweet spot. We are also wildly excited about 2018 premiums, although coverage, co-pays and co-insurance are different. We're meeting with a broker to explain all the details. Your max OOP is very low. Ours is 3 times that, but it's 3 times that with much higher premiums, so that doubles the cost! Considering for the most part, we see doctors @ 4 times/year on the norm, as long as the deductible and OOP are met, we're golden.

 

[John Galt III]

I logged onto HC.gov and my current policy premium will be going from $0 per month (with subsidy) to $45 per month. But there is another similar plan offered for $0 per month. I could not find a single difference between the 2 plans though. Same deductible, copays, coinsurance, max out of pocket. The $0 plan had the word 'select' inserted into the name. Bot are Marketplace HMO's. Then I noticed that the $0 plan had an 87% cost sharing reduction instead of the 94% CSR in the $45 plan. You really have to look around in there a lot to find that difference. I wonder if it is incorrect. I will call up the insurance co and ask, and hope they know what they are talking about. I got a letter from them and they really want you to just go the healthcare.gov and leave them alone. Well, I'm getting a great deal, so I shouldn't be this crabby.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

I logged onto HC.gov and my current policy premium will be going from $0 per month (with subsidy) to $45 per month. But there is another similar plan offered for $0 per month. I could not find a single difference between the 2 plans though. Same deductible, copays, coinsurance, max out of pocket. The $0 plan had the word 'select' inserted into the name. Bot are Marketplace HMO's. Then I noticed that the $0 plan had an 87% cost sharing reduction instead of the 94% CSR in the $45 plan. You really have to look around in there a lot to find that difference. I wonder if it is incorrect. I will call up the insurance co and ask, and hope they know what they are talking about. I got a letter from them and they really want you to just go the healthcare.gov and leave them alone. Well, I'm getting a great deal, so I shouldn't be this crabby.

That's why I still like dealing with a health insurance broker, even though I could navigate the healthcare website myself at this point. He's seen all the nuances and can offer some insight when I have questions about specific plans.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Be interesting to see how many people sign up for the ACA in 2018 considering it is supposed to be collapsing and the enrolment period is shorter this year.

 

[rodi]

I just signed up for the ACA with CoveredCA. CoveredCA has a much improved website over previous years and had an explanation about the silver plans "surcharge" and how that would be a net zero increase for those who qualify for PTCs.

One thing I really liked that I hadn't seen in previous years is it lets you select how little of the PTC you take up from... from what it calculated to zero... with the idea that you'll get it back at tax time. This is a nice feature and gives me some flexibility in case my income has the opportunity to be larger.

 

[ivinsfan]

I got enrolled on the MNSure exchange for the first time yesterday, no problem and my broker said the website was performing better then it had in previous years.

Although it tokk MNSure over 24 hours to confirm I had been on their site and done a successful enrollment .

 

[bobandsherry]

I'm comparing plans for this year and considering an Bronze plan with HSA. My tax credit is $1,390 (MAGI $30k). The Bronze plan before the tax credit is $1,234 which is lower than the credit.

When it comes time to file taxes will I be able to claim a credit of $16,680 ($1,390 x 12)? Or will the credit be limited to $14,808 (1,234 x 12)?

 

[ShokWaveRider]

I'm comparing plans for this year and considering an Bronze plan with HSA. My tax credit is $1,390 (MAGI $30k). The Bronze plan before the tax credit is $1,234 which is lower than the credit.

When it comes time to file taxes will I be able to claim a credit of $16,680 ($1,390 x 12)? Or will the credit be limited to $14,808 (1,234 x 12)?

It is only up to the cost of the plan. That happened to us this year. We were entitled to $1977pm the plan was $1966, we get $1966.

I hope that helps.

 

[pb4uski]

You need to move to NY. Unsubsidized Bronze plans in my county run from $391 to $484, no age rates allowed.

I was going to post... "yes, but his state income tax and property taxes will be higher as will his cost of living".... but then I see he is from Illinois.... so fuggetabout that idea.

 

[GTFan]

I logged onto HC.gov and my current policy premium will be going from $0 per month (with subsidy) to $45 per month. But there is another similar plan offered for $0 per month. I could not find a single difference between the 2 plans though. Same deductible, copays, coinsurance, max out of pocket. The $0 plan had the word 'select' inserted into the name. Bot are Marketplace HMO's. Then I noticed that the $0 plan had an 87% cost sharing reduction instead of the 94% CSR in the $45 plan. You really have to look around in there a lot to find that difference. I wonder if it is incorrect.

Sounds like an HC.gov error to me, you should only see 94% CSR'd plans if your income is below 150% FPL. Those are all I got, both this year and next.

Generally speaking the lowest-cost Silver plan for a given carrier is the best option for CSR'd plans like these because the max OOP is capped. For regular Silvers this varies a lot so premium vs. OOP is something to look at, but for CSR'd plans the premium is the only thing that matters from what I've seen.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

I was going to post... "yes, but his state income tax and property taxes will be higher as will his cost of living".... but then I see he is from Illinois.... so fuggetabout that idea.

That and the weather is not ideal. (Being Polite).

 

[John Galt III]

That's why I still like dealing with a health insurance broker, even though I could navigate the healthcare website myself at this point. He's seen all the nuances and can offer some insight when I have questions about specific plans.

I called the insurance co and asked why the better plan was cheaper than the less good plan, when I previewed the plans at healthcare.gov. They said they didn't know why and that I should actually log into healthcare.gov, fill out an application, and then see if the prices were still the same. I did log in, enter my info, and voila, the premium prices were still backwards. The good plan cost less than the bad plan. Good meaning more providers in network and larger geographical network area. copays, coinsurance, max out of pocket same for both plans. All I can come up with is that the more expensive plan has been assigned to cover medicaid patients that have recently flooded into the market due to Pa (my state) recently making it available to more low income folks The letter from my ins co actually made reference to medicaid expansion, in a vague way. I figure the newly added medicaid folks are using a boatload of medical services and driving up the premium price for that plan. Probably totally wrong, of course, but the insurance company rep has no clue, either. Oh well, I guess I'll just go with the cheaper, better plan and be happy.

 

[ivinsfan]

We have a state exchange and some numbers are just wacky.If a couple makes under 32K they can go on MNCare the state run low income program. My SisIL and I were at the broker together since we were switching from our small business group plan and needed the same income info, basically working together like we always did when we picked our yearly group.

As a couple S and BIL came in at
35K and could get a wide network Sliver PPO with lower deduct and cost sharing for about 140 a month total. BIL has a hip replacement be neither have major health issues.

the broker wanted them to drop their estimate to around 32 and go on MNCare...you apply through the state for that. He said at 32K your total premium would be around 300 a month, you have to use the HMO narrow network and roll the dice if you need a referral ..but if you go to the doctor your copay is only 5 bucks, ER visit 500 bucks such and such...

My SIL and looked at each and just shook our heads, thinking WTH...he then started saying if your MAGI goes under the level for MNcare ie the 32 instead of 35K your entire tax credit can be revoked since you were supposed to apply for the MNCare program. MY SIL says I'm not going to pay more then double, get less income and not be able to use my DH ortho,why would I do that? After she declined to go on MNCare he said well that law about revoked tax credits is on the books, but I've never heard of it happening. At this point since he is a MNSure approved broker, I'm wondering if he makes a bigger commission by getting us on the state run MNCare..

Sometimes you just have to shake your head at the complications that crop up,....

 

[shotgunner]

Just to clear up what "refundable" means ...

If you pay more taxes than you owe, via withholding or estimates payments, you get a refund of your overpayment.

Some tax credits are called "refundable" because you can get back money that you did not pay in. For example, the Child Tax Credit or the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Other credits are not refundable. You cannot get back more than you put in.

The ACA subsidy in non-refundable. If your premium subsidy was too small all year and then you reconcile at tax time, you can be reimbursed for your insurance premium that you overpaid. But you will not have that reduced to less than zero and get back more than what you paid in premiums.

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8962.pdf
Column A (Annual Enrollment Premiums) is compared with Column D (Annual Maximum Premium Assistance) to come up with Column E (Annual Premium Tax Credit Allowed - smaller of Column A or D). So your Annual Premium Tax Credit is limited to the Annual Premium Amount.

I hope I've explained that well enough, if not chime in and clear it up.



Nice to see this thread is back. It was missing late yesterday.

This is not correct, not according to the IRS and my personal experience in the last few years. As a result of the ACA tax credit I have received tax refunds greater than the amount I have paid in. From the IRS:

"The credit is “refundable” because, if the amount of the credit is more than the amount of your tax liability, you will receive the difference as a refund."

https://www.irs.gov/affordable-care...estions-and-answers-on-the-premium-tax-credit

 

[MichaelB]

This is not correct, not according to the IRS and my personal experience in the last few years. As a result of the ACA tax credit I have received tax refunds greater than the amount I have paid in. From the IRS:

"The credit is “refundable” because, if the amount of the credit is more than the amount of your tax liability, you will receive the difference as a refund."

https://www.irs.gov/affordable-care...estions-and-answers-on-the-premium-tax-credit

I believe Sue J acknowledged that here http://www.early-retirement.org/for...18-aca-plans-is-live-88971-4.html#post1957310

 

[ripper1]

You need to move to NY. Unsubsidized Bronze plans in my county run from $391 to $484, no age rates allowed.

484 a month....REALLY. These rates are for 60-64 year olds?

 

[pb4uski]

Yes, while I have not verified the rates that jim584672 posted it is very believable because they are in range with similar plans in neighboring Vermont, which also prohibits age rating.

 

[Fermion]

Did the law change in Washington state where you now have to give access to your previous year's tax return to get a subsidy?

We just got notification that we are not eligible for a subsidy in 2018 for one of the following reasons: Did not give access to tax returns, did not file form 86xx)

In the past two years I had unchecked the box that let them get our tax return mostly because the previous years would have shown a MAGI of $270,000. Our 2016 MAGI was however $23,049.

I guess I could either start letting them get access to our returns or we could forget about the cost sharing silver plan and just get a bronze plan, recovering our subsidy at tax time. It boils down to how much money is being left on the table by giving up the CSR silver plan with low MAGI.

This year we had zero costs because we did not go to the doctor except for the annual checkup. We really did not utilize the CSR feature but it could be worth up to $9,000 or so in a bad year.

 

[MBSC]

Did the law change in Washington state where you now have to give access to your previous year's tax return to get a subsidy?

We just got notification that we are not eligible for a subsidy in 2018 for one of the following reasons: Did not give access to tax returns, did not file form 86xx)

In the past two years I had unchecked the box that let them get our tax return mostly because the previous years would have shown a MAGI of $270,000. Our 2016 MAGI was however $23,049.

You should be able to log in to your account and manually provide your 2018 income estimate to have APTC (and CSR if eligible) applied. Double-check that you are updating the 2018 income estimate and not the December 2017 info. Or, you may want to wait until late November when December can no longer be updated.

To report a change, sign in to your account and click the quick link “Report a Change in Income or Household.” Answer the questions that apply to you and follow the pages to update your information.

After you make your updates and submit your application, you’ll get a new eligibility result that will explain any new amount of financial help, such as tax credits or cost-sharing reductions.

If your tax credit amount changes, you can adjust how much you want to use to lower the cost of your monthly premium.

Reference: https://www.wahbexchange.org/current-customers/manage-coverage/report-changes/

 

[spncity]

Just in case this might affect you... only one example from one state:

The no subsidy cost of Carefirst PPO Silver is "more" through the our state exchange than it is when purchasing directly from Carefirst.

So, if you purchase through the exchange hoping to hit a certain % of FPL to get a subsidy, but then "miss" and go over the maximum % of FPL and end up paying "full" price, the state exchange price is more than if you had gone to Carefirst directly. Bronze and Gold don't seem to be different.

 

[duckcalldan]

It is. I reported the 44% increase wrong in my post. It went with the $977/mth price...not the $923/mth price. Either way, its still a huge increase.



On my call, Anthem said they originally were pulling out of some areas of Virginia if not all. Mine was one of them. I seem to recall news reports to that affect. They then decided to go back in albeit with larger price tags. I expect a lot of noise here in Virginia over this.

We are Anthem customers and live in a VA county they’re pulling out of. Will switch to our only carrier for 2018, Optima. Subsidies are huge so rates will actually be going down. I will be on a Silver plan due to my health usage, my wife and younger daughter on a HSA Bronze plan for the full family plan deduction, and my oldest daughter (a VCU student) will be on a silver plan with Cigna due to her Richmond address. Total premium for the 4 of us will be less than $150. I will manage our family MAGI to stay under 250% FPL to receive CSRs on the silver plan.

 

[John Galt III]

Sounds like an HC.gov error to me, you should only see 94% CSR'd plans if your income is below 150% FPL. Those are all I got, both this year and next.

Generally speaking the lowest-cost Silver plan for a given carrier is the best option for CSR'd plans like these because the max OOP is capped. For regular Silvers this varies a lot so premium vs. OOP is something to look at, but for CSR'd plans the premium is the only thing that matters from what I've seen.

Thanks for the reply. I called the ins co and they said both plans were 94% cost sharing (they pay 94 % of the cost, I pay 06 %). The online document they use has a grayed out border where the 87% number appears. I guess they aren't aware the 87% is there, or don't care, and probably use the same document no matter what your actual CSR number is. I have given up trying to figure out why one plan has a lower premium than the other. I might call the ins co again just to get a different agent, who might know. Guess I'll just sign up for the less expensive one.