Report: Individual Insurance Premiums Next Year 40% Lower Under Alexander-Murray, Collins-Nelson Than if Congress Doesn’t Act

Washington, March 12—Health care experts at Oliver Wyman released an analysis today showing that the passage of a proposal based on the Alexander-Murray Bipartisan Health Care Stabilization Act and the Collins-Nelson Lower Premiums Through Reinsurance Act will lower premiums, compared to what people in the individual market will pay if Congress doesn’t act, by more than 40 percent in the individual market and provide insurance coverage to an additional 3.2 million individuals.

Oliver Wyman based its analysis on a proposal that would fund CSRs—temporary payments to reduce out-of-pocket costs for low-income Americans in the individual market—and provide $10 billion annually for invisible risk pool/reinsurance funding in 2019, 2020, and 2021. It also factored in increased flexibility for states that seek to use waivers under Section 1332 of the Affordable Care Act.  The analysis applies to ACA-compliant plans in the individual market, both on and off the exchange.

“This analysis from the experts at Oliver Wyman further demonstrates that our bipartisan proposals will help drive down premiums in the individual market and make health insurance more affordable for millions of Americans,” said Senators Lamar Alexander, the Chairman of the HELP Committee, and Susan Collins.

From the experts at Oliver Wyman:

“Therefore, we estimate…that an additional 3.2 million people will be covered in the non-group market, and the proposal would result in premiums that are at least 40 percent lower than they would have been without the proposal in place...”

The analysis found that the lower rates would benefit all plan levels on the exchanges.

The analysis was performed by consulting firm Oliver Wyman. On its website, Oliver Wyman describes itself as "a global leader in management consulting. With offices in 50+ cities across nearly 30 countries, Oliver Wyman combines deep industry knowledge with specialized expertise in strategy, operations, risk management, and organization transformation. The firm has more than 4,700 professionals around the world who help clients optimize their business, improve their operations and risk profile, and accelerate their organizational performance to seize the most attractive opportunities."