KFF expects premiums to increase 10%

Following last week's post about Geisinger Health requesting a 40% increase in premiums, the Kaiser Family Foundation released a preliminary analysis of fourteen major cities, reporting that on average, premiums for benchmark silver ACA plans are expected to rise by 10% for 2017. Only two of the fourteen cities analyzed expect a decrease in the benchmark premium.

The New York Times published interesting commentary on this study, with the reporters questioning whether the increases this year are one-time adjustments or part of a longer trend. It still seems early to make a call on that question. While people are enjoying better coverage, it's unclear whether there is anything in the pipeline that effectively addresses the underlying pricing concerns.