Health insurance company Humana Inc. has plans to exit the federal marketplaces of four more states, such as Wisconsin.
The insurer had sent letters to the insurance regulators of Alabama, Kansas, Virginia, and Wisconsin, saying that it would no longer offer major individual insurance products in those states.
In each letter, Humana said that its decision to exit the federal marketplace was made "only after much careful thought and analysis." The letters also stated that current plan members would be "able to explore other non-Humana policy options.”
"We do not take these changes lightly," said Humana senior vice president of corporate communications Tom Noland. "We remain focused on our members’ experience. We are striving to avoid unnecessary coverage disruption wherever possible."
The insurer’s changes involve only major individual plans, though about 26,000 enrollees across the four states will be affected as well. The company’s discontinuation of its policies is effective Dec. 31.
Humana’s letter to Wisconsin commissioner of insurance Ted Nickel detailed that the insurer’s withdrawal would affect 6,639 enrollees. Humana’s customers in the state will be given 180 days’ notice of policy termination, reported bizjournals.com.
While Humana said that it would drop its plans from Wisconsin’s exchange, it would still offer plans to the state outside of the ACA marketplace.
Many of Humana’s consumers purchased their plans through their respective state insurance marketplaces. A good number of these consumers needed more care paid for than their premiums—an oversight that has cost Humana and other insurers a lot of money.
"Generally, Humana is making course corrections to maintain commercial insurance options for individuals through the public exchanges in markets where Humana is able to offer a high quality and ultimately, stable individual insurance product," Noland remarked.
Despite its plans to drop its policies, Humana remains dedicated to helping its remaining consumers.
"We’ve learned a great deal from our three-year experience operating in the new, post-ACA individual insurance market," said Noland. "We remain committed to maintaining affordable coverage options for individuals under the Exchange wherever practical."
