Key Point: “Idaho’s health insurance exchange ended open enrollment Monday night, with thousands of Idahoans canceling plans ahead of the expiration of deep federal government subsidies… ‘Idaho is about to be ground zero for a national health care affordability crisis — not because Idahoans did anything wrong, but because Republicans in Congress refuse to act.’”

Idaho Capital Sun: Thousands of Idahoans cancel health insurance plans on exchange ahead of subsidies ending

By Kyle Pfannenstiel

• Idaho’s health insurance exchange ended open enrollment Monday night, with thousands of Idahoans canceling plans ahead of the expiration of deep federal government subsidies. 

• The exchange also saw twice as many people — nearly 8,850 — disenroll in health insurance plans, 24% less new enrollments, and more people shifting to cheaper insurance plans, where health care costs are higher. 

• Your Health Idaho Executive Director Pat Kelly said affordability was a key concern for Idahoans. In the coming months, Kelly said he expects another 20,000 Idahoans will cancel coverage due to affordability concerns. 

• “Idaho is about to be ground zero for a national health care affordability crisis — not because Idahoans did anything wrong, but because Republicans in Congress refuse to act,” Ada County Democratic Party Chair Jared Deloof told reporters at a news conference near U.S. Sen. Jim Risch’s office in downtown Boise.

• In Idaho, the credits reduced premiums by an average of $407 each month, according to the nonpartisan health policy group KFF. 

• About 87% of Idahoans who have insurance through the state exchange received the credits, according to a report by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.