COLUMBUS – The blame game was being played at full-tilt in Washington and Columbus Tuesday as one of the nation’s biggest health insurers said it won’t return to Ohio’s public insurance exchanges next year, a decision that could open more holes in the Affordable Care Act’s increasingly thin system for helping people buy coverage.
Anthem’s decision to leave the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance exchange in Ohio next year would leave more than 10,000 people in 18 counties without a plan.
In the rest of the state, 56,000 people already signed up with Anthem would have to find another plan.
READ MORE: In The Columbus Dispatch
Republicans blamed former President Barack Obama, who shepherded the package known as “Obamacare” though Congress, and Democrats pointed the finger at his successor, President Donald Trump who has vowed to repeal it.
“The dangerous game President Trump and Washington politicians are playing just caused 70,000 paying customers in Ohio to lose their insurance and it will continue raising prices for everyone else. It’s got to stop. We are talking about people’s lives – their ability to get cancer treatment, afford life-saving medicines and take their kids to the doctor. Instead of using working families as bargaining chips and driving up prices across the market, we need to work together to lower costs and make healthcare work better for everyone.” –U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
“It’s clear that Obamacare has failed, but Democrats like Sherrod Brown continue to deny reality. How many Ohioans must lose their coverage options before Democrats realize that repealing and replacing Obamacare is the only way to ensure affordable health care for all?” -Ohio Republican Party Chairman Jane Timken
“Without true competition and choice in the market, we will never be able to lower health care costs for families and small businesses. This is one more reason why the status quo on health care is unsustainable. The Affordable Care Act has failed to meet the promises that were made to Ohio families. We can and must do better than ObamaCare, but we should do it in a way that protects the most vulnerable in our society.” -U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH)
“I think this will lead to increased uncompensated care,” said Steve Wagner, executive director of the Universal Health Care Action Network of Ohio, a nonprofit that promotes accessible and affordable health care. “Certainly people will go without care, or defer it until it’s so critical they end up in the emergency department.”
Anthem operates Blue Cross in Ohio. In a statement, Anthem spokesman Jeff Blunt said, “This was a difficult decision that was only made after thoughtful consideration and ongoing discussions with Ohio’s state and regulatory leaders.
“As the marketplace continues to evolve and adjust to changing regulatory requirements and marketplace conditions, we will re-evaluate whether a more robust presence in the exchange is appropriate in the future.”
Monday was the deadline for insurance companies in Ohio to propose their 2018 rates under the Affordable Care Act.