Aetna Not Withdrawing From Any Health-Law Insurance-Exchange States
May 11 2016 - 4:00PM
Dow Jones News
Aetna Inc. doesn't plan to pull out of any of the 15 states
where it is participating in the Affordable Care Act exchanges, and
the insurer said it may expand into new areas.
Aetna spokesman T.J. Crawford said the company has submitted
proposed rates to regulators in all of its existing exchange states
for plans to be offered next year. The insurer has "no plans at
this point to withdraw from any of those states," he said.
In making its regulatory filings, he said, the insurer has also
"preserved our options to enter certain new geographies pending
careful evaluation of marketplace conditions."
At least one state regulator, in Oklahoma, said it already had
been informed that Aetna planned to begin selling exchange plans
there in 2017.
However, Aetna emphasized that its exchange footprint wouldn't
be finalized until September, when insurers sign binding agreements
to offer plans. Mr. Crawford said the company has "not made any
final decisions on where we might enter new Affordable Care Act
states."
Insurers' moves on the health-law exchanges are being closely
watched in the wake of UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s announcement last
month that it will pull out of all but a handful of the 34 states
where it is offering the marketplace plans, amid continued losses.
Humana Inc., which is also expecting losses this year on its
exchange business, has said it will likely withdraw from some
exchanges.
Aetna is currently offering plans on the health-law marketplaces
in 15 states: Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa,
Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania,
South Carolina, Texas and Virginia.
Aetna said on its first-quarter earnings call that enrollment in
its individual plans grew more than it expected, to about 1.2
million, an increase of about 200,000 from the end of last year.
The company said 911,000 of those people signed up through the ACA
marketplaces.
Aetna had previously said it aimed to break even on ACA plans
this year, while targeting profits in future years. The company
said during the first-quarter call that it thought it was on a path
to achieve its 2016 goal, but warned that it had "low visibility"
at this point in the year.
Aetna Chief Executive Mark T. Bertolini told analysts during the
earnings call that Aetna still saw its position in the ACA
marketplaces as a "good investment." But he also made pointed
comments about the need for changes to the law to ensure a
sustainable business.
Aetna is currently seeking to consummate its acquisition of
Humana, which is under review by the Justice Department's antitrust
regulators.
Write to Anna Wilde Mathews at anna.mathews@wsj.com and
Stephanie Armour at stephanie.armour@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 11, 2016 15:45 ET (19:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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