Alexander: More Than 131,000 Tennesseans Forced to “Scramble” for New Health Plans as State’s Largest Insurer Exits 3 Major Cities

MARYVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 26 – Senate health committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today made the following statement on the news that BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee – the state’s largest insurer – is pulling out of Nashville, Memphis, and Knoxville, leaving more than 131,000 Tennesseans “scrambling” to find a new health insurance plan for next year: 

“More than 131,000 Tennesseans who buy their insurance on the Obamacare exchange will lose their current insurance policy and have to scramble to find another policy. This is more evidence that Obamacare is falling apart. Short term, we need to give families the opportunity to use their Obamacare subsidies to buy a policy for 2017 outside of the exchange. Longer term, regardless of who the new president is, we need to replace Obamacare with insurance choices that allow Tennesseans to select low-cost insurance that fits their budget and their health care needs.”

Of the decision, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee told the Tennessean, “It’s not something we want to do but we believe we must look out for the health care and financial security for all the members that we serve. … The prospect of future losses has us in a place where we believe we need to reduce our risk in hopes that this marketplace will stabilize at some point.”

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