Uncertainty about what the Trump administration is doing with health care has already led insurers to increase costs


Health insurance companies are saying that no matter what happens with the Republican health-care bill in the coming months, premiums will go up in 2018 just from the uncertainty of the situation. "The health plans I work with want to stay in, but the Trump administration is not making that easy," insurance industry consultant Robert Laszewski explained to Vox.
In one example, CareFirst, a BlueCross BlueShield plan in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., submitted 2018 premiums last week that reflect hikes averaging between 39 and 52 percent depending on the state. While chief executive Chet Burrell said the prices would have risen no matter what due to a loss of money while on the ObamaCare marketplace, an extra 15 percent was added on top of that specifically over doubts about the Trump administration enforcing the individual mandate.
"Uncertainty breeds higher costs," New Mexico Health Connections chief executive Martin Hickey told Vox. "We have to plan for the worst case scenario until it finally gets decided."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
The Assassin: action-packed caper is 'terrific fun'
The Week Recommends Keeley Hawes stars as a former hitwoman drawn out of retirement for 'one last job'
-
The EPA wants to green-light approval for a twice-banned herbicide
Under the radar Dicamba has been found to harm ecosystems
-
Sudoku medium: July 30, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliable
speed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement