NBGH CEO Helen Darling discusses findings of the study during the press event Tuesday.
WASHINGTON – A study released Tuesday reveals that employees believe the Affordable Care Act will cause their insurance premiums to rise and, according to a leading health care actuary, they are right – at least initially.
The National Business Group on Health, whose members are Fortune 500 companies and represents big business’ position on health care, said 54 percent of employees of large companies believe their health insurance premiums will rise over the next 12 months because of the health care reform law. Furthermore, 56 percent of those workers expect costs to continue to rise over the next three to five years.
Rogert Burton, president of Healthcare Actuaries, said the law will, in fact, cause an increase in premiums in 2014.
“We’re seeing an increase of zero to 3 percent in the coming year… but after that we don’t expect to see an increase in premiums due directly to the Affordable Care Act,” Burton said.
He attributed the increases to requirements that already implemented such has dental and vision care for children without limits and providing care to children under 26.
“But you will see an increase in premiums of 6 to 7 percent due to health care costs,” Burton said. “The cost of equipment and supplies, technology, the number claims and the cost of drugs will go up.”
Karen O. Marlo, vice president of the National Business Group on Health, said that employees’ perception of an exclusive relationship between the law and rising premiums is because “there is a history of premiums of going up and there are costs associated with the Affordable Care Act.”
Proponents of the Affordable Care Act maintain that the legislation will ultimately reduce health care costs.
“Before the Affordable Care Act health care premiums had been increasing at double-digit rates,” said Harvard Professor of the Practice of Public Health John McDonough, a former congressman.
National Business Group on Health CEO Helen Darling said premiums will stabilize because “the healthy can’t opt out… you don’t have a problem as long as people have continuous coverage. I mean you catch people when they’re sick and you catch em when they’re healthy, but you don’t only get em when they are sick.”“So premiums could even go down pretty dramatically because now they assume that everybody’s going to be in the pool.”