Most consumers surveyed say they can only afford "$100 or less" for the highest monthly premium in 2016, according to a study released by healthpocket.com, an online company that compares and ranks available health plans.
When digging deeper, however, the study revealed much more than the fact that most people feel as though they cannot afford high premiums; it showed that those who receive subsidized healthcare plans have much easier access to insurance than those who don't.
For those who receive subsidies, premiums match up with expectations of what they should cost, and are therefore affordable. But those consumers who don't receive subsidies pay more than 2.5 times what most people claim as the maximum they can afford. The average subsidized premium, according to the study, was $101, while the average non-subsidized premium was $364. This means that the subsidized population has a highly affordable healthcare plan, while the unsubsidized population now pays more than it did before the Affordable Care Act was put in place, according to the study.
Much of the struggle with health reform stresses the importance of maintaining transparency and ensuring that customers are well-educated about their healthcare funding options. Indeed, a report from August shows that 2.2 million Americans aren't accessing the cost-sharing reductions for which they qualify.
To learn more:
- read the report
- check out the CNBC article