The federal government is finally doing something about the lagging enrollment in the country’s new Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plans (PCIPs). Acknowledging the reality that even the restricted health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs allowed under the PCIPs are still unaffordable for most Americans, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced that health insurance premiums for those PCIPs run by the federal government will be slashed by 20% in 2011. The HHS is also urging the states to cut the health insurance premiums for the PCIPs that they run themselves.
Well, based on PCIP enrollment so far, it may not be an issue. California may have a budget to provide health insurance coverage for 20,000 in its PCIP, but so far only 513 Californians have enrolled in its PCIP. That is still more than the paltry 101 residents of Missouri who have enrolled for health insurance coverage in that state’s PCIP. In contrast, Pennsylvania, which is running its own PCIP and is limiting health insurance premiums to a comparably affordable $283 a month, has enrolled 1,657 in its PCIP, one thousand more than any other PCIP in the nation. Overall, only 8,000 Americans have enrolled in a PCIP so far.
Although Americans with pre-existing conditions were expected to stampede into the newly-formed PCIPs, applications for most of the PCIPs have only trickled in so far. It is astonishing to many who predicted that the PCIPs would be flooded with applications from Americans with pre-existing conditions who have been long-denied health insurance. Experts questioned whether the $5 billion dollars would be enough to cover the 375,000 expected to enroll until 2014, when all health insurers will be required to offer insurance regardless of pre-existing conditions.
The new interim high-risk health insurance pools which are being set up under healthcare reform to help Americans with pre-existing conditions who can’t get health insurance sound like they would be a godsend to many Americans, but unfortunately, the reality is much more complicated.
The PCIPs were designed to provide affordable health insurance benefits to Americans with pre-existing conditions and will continue until 2014, when health insurance must be offered to all Americans regardless of pre-existing conditions. The PCIPs are an attractive health insurance option because they are limited to charging standard individual health insurance rates in the region, cap out-of-pocket expenses for members, and will provide immediate coverage for members’ pre-existing conditions instead of requiring a waiting period.
Unfortunately, that does not mean that the PCIPs are affordable as health insurance to most Americans with pre-existing conditions. With PCIP health insurance premiums often running between $400 and $600 dollars a month, the plans are simply out of reach for many Americans. In addition, the deductible for prescription drug coverage in states where the PCIP is run by the federal government is a steep $2,500.
The HHS’s decision will result in lower health insurance premiums for PCIPs in 23 states and the District of Columbia. The HHS said Friday that it would lower premiums by about 20 percent in 2011 and offer different cost/benefit options in those plans and asked the states running their own programs to consider lowering their rates as well.
If you are interested in joining a PCIP, more information is available at the government website HealthCare.gov.
Would you apply for a PCIP if health insurance premiums were lower? Tell us about it!
Related posts:
- Enrollment Trickles Into the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plans (PCIPs), Are the Health Insurance Premiums Too High?
- Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plans (PCIPs): Is There An Easier Way to Qualify?
- Healthcare Reform: Just 1,200 Accepted For Interim High-Risk Health Insurance Pools (Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plans) So Far
- California’s Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP) Finally Opens!
- 1 in 7 Denied Health Insurance based on Pre-Existing Conditions
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I was denied health insurance last year and waited my six months without health insurance before I could apply to PCIP. Before I could get on it, I had an unexpected emergency surgery that cost me $25,000. I have no way to pay the bills. What in the world is the purpose of the six month waiting requirement?
Now I am on California’s PCIP. My premium is under $300 a month. However, I want to move to Washington state. If I move, will I be required to go six more months without health insurance before I could be on their PCIP? That seems ridiculous!
Thanks for your story. Nina. Unfortunately, since the PCIPs are run state by state, it sounds like you would have to go another six months before you qualify for health insurance which we agree is totally ridiculous. Have you tried calling their PCIP office to see if they can do it any other way?