Open enrollment for healthcare plans on the ACA Marketplace has begun, and many Wyomingites who don’t get insurance through work are starting to see their premiums for next year skyrocket.
Jason Mincer of Cheyenne knew that his monthly payment might go up this year.
“ Even with the stories that we saw in the press, [I] was surprised,” he said. Mercer works for Enroll Wyoming, a nonprofit that helps people find healthcare insurance. “For the exact same plan that I have now, and without a change in my income, [my monthly premium] had gone from about $500 a month to over $1,300 a month,” he said.
That’s because Congress didn’t renew enhanced premium tax credits, which have been central to the government shutdown. The credits increased financial assistance specifically to people earning above 400% of federal poverty guidelines.
Mincer is in that category. He said he can’t not have insurance.
“I'm diabetic and need the medication that comes with that diagnosis,” he said.
Wyomingites like Mincer, who previously received these credits, will see some of the highest premium increases in the country.
According to a Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analysis, a 45-year-old making $64,000, which is 408% of the federal poverty level, could see their premiums increase by $9,339 annually. That’s the second highest increase in the nation.
A 60-year-old couple with an annual household income of $85,000, 401% of the federal poverty level, could see their premiums increase by $48,329 – the highest in the nation.
And finally, a family of four with an annual household income of $130,000, 404% of the federal poverty level, could see their premiums increase by $30,769, the second highest in the nation.
The Wyoming Department of Health has estimated up to 20,000 Wyoming residents could choose not to have insurance as a result of these increases. Open enrollment ends January 15.
Enhanced premium tax credits are the top issue Republicans and Democrats are battling over to reopen the government, which this week became the longest shutdown in U.S. history.
Democrats have withheld votes 14 times for a Republican-backed short-term spending measure. Some Republicans have insisted they won’t negotiate the tax credits until the government reopens.
