Ohioans Should Brace for Obamacare Sticker Shock

Obamacare will dramatically increase health insurance premiums throughout Ohio for young and middle-aged men and women alike, based on the most accurate policy data available from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Obamacare premium estimates are not readily available for all ages, but figures HHS has released indicate that Ohioans in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s in every county should expect to pay steep costs for President Obama’s signature legislative achievement.

A Media Trackers comparison of Obamacare “Gold” plans from HHS and existing policies with similar deductibles listed at eHealth found that:

  • Obamacare plans for 27-year-old female nonsmokers will cost at least $100 per month — or $1,200 per year — more than pre-Obamacare health insurance policies in 72 of Ohio’s 88 counties.
  • Obamacare premiums for 27-year-old male nonsmokers will be at least $100 per month more expensive than pre-Obamacare premiums in 85 of 88 counties — and at least $200 more per month in 15 counties.
  • Compared to pre-Obamacare policies for 50-year-old female nonsmokers, Obamacare plans will cost at least $1,000 more per year in all 88 counties, at least $2,000 more per year in 54 counties, and at least $3,000 more per year in 16 counties.
  • Obamacare premiums for 50-year-old male nonsmokers will cost at least $100 more per month than current policies in all 88 counties, at least $200 more per month in 61 counties, and at least $300 more per month in 14 counties.

Statewide annual estimates weighted using county populations from the 2010 Census are shown in the following table.

Obamacare Bronze plans are the cheapest policies for individuals over the age of 30, except in cases of financial hardship; Catastrophic plans are available to those 30 and under. Most Bronze and Catastrophic plans have annual deductibles at least three times greater than the policies quoted from eHealth for this analysis.

Demographic Ohio % Change, Obamacare Catastrophic/Bronze Plan Ohio $ Change, Obamacare Catastrophic/Bronze Plan Ohio % Change, Obamacare Gold Plan Ohio $ Change, Obamacare Gold Plan
Women, Age 27 -2% -$49 84% $1,364
Men, Age 27 37% $421 160% $1,834
Women, Age 50 19% $553 66% $2,017
Men, Age 50 39% $1,001 94% $2,466

Because Obamacare is a redistributive system by design, proponents counter concerns about premiums by pointing to the federal subsidies some Ohioans will receive. A Kaiser Family Foundation study released November 5 estimated that 554,000 Ohioans will qualify for Obamacare subsidies.

For those eligible for the law’s entitlement benefits, a portion of Obamacare’s astronomical premiums will be borne by taxpayers — many of whom will also be paying higher costs for their own insurance as a result of the Democrats’ latest socialized medicine program.

While Kaiser estimates 812,000 Ohioans will purchase insurance through the Obamacare exchange, dozens of employers across the state have already announced layoffs or cuts from full- to part-time status in order to avoid Obamacare’s employer mandate.

Combined with the implosion of President Obama’s vow that “if you like your plan, you can keep it,” this means more Ohioans than expected may be pushed into Ohio’s federally-run Obamacare “marketplace.”

The following maps demonstrate exactly how severe and far-reaching Obamacare’s premium increases will be for Ohioans in a range of demographic groups. Click each map for further Media Trackers analysis.

As more facts become available to taxpayers, it may turn out that the technological disaster of the Obamacare exchanges at HealthCare.gov is one of the more successful aspects of the 2010 health law.

This story was originally published at Media Trackers.

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