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Pennsylvania ObamaCare to see premiums spike amid Trump pay cuts

The Hill: Insurance premiums for plans sold on Pennsylvania’s ObamaCare exchange will increase by an average of 30.6 percent for 2018, primarily because of President Trump’s decision to stop paying key subsidies, the state’s insurance department said.

If Trump had decided to continue making the cost-sharing reduction payments, projections showed a much more modest premium increase of 7.6 percent.

“It is with great regret that I must announce approved rates that are substantially higher than what companies initially requested,” Acting Commissioner Jessica Altman said in a statement.

Trump late last week announced the administration would no longer pay the subsidies to insurers, which help low-income people afford co-pays, deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs associated with health insurance policies.

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