Tornado Alley (PROG)

[arizona1]

Ka-Boom! HHS Releases 2014 ACA Rates - 16% Below Estimates

From the HHS (Health & Human Services) Issue Brief released today:

Premiums before tax credits will be more than 16 percent lower than projected:

The weighted average second lowest cost silver plan for 48 states (including DC) is 16 percent below projections based on the ASPE-derived Congressional Budget Office.
...
Tax credits will make premiums even more affordable for individuals and families. For example, in Texas, an average 27-year-old with income of $25,000 could pay $145 per month for the second lowest cost silver plan, $133 for the lowest cost silver plan, and $83 for the lowest cost bronze plan after tax credits. 16 For a family of four in Texas with income of $50,000, they could pay $282 per month for the second lowest cost silver plan, $239 for the lowest silver plan, and $57 per month for the lowest bronze plan after tax credits

**********
After taking tax credits into account, fifty-six percent of uninsured Americans (nearly 6 in 10) may qualify for health coverage in the Marketplace for less than $100 per person per month, including Medicaid and CHIP in states expanding Medicaid.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/...
You were saying, Mr. Cruz?

From The People's View:

Today, the HHS released data on health insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act that shows premiums coming in well below previous estimates. 16% below estimates, on average. And that's before subsidies kick in for the vast majority of those who will use the marketplaces to buy insurance. The average cost of the mid-tier plans on which subsidies are based will be $328 before the subsidies, and it drops to $249 before the subsidies for the cheapest "Bronze" plans.
Today's release also included pricing in large metropolitan markets as well as pricing after the subsidies, and the lowered rates are almost shocking: In the 36 states where the federal government is either setting up the exchanges or helping them being set up, the average after-subsidy price for a bronze plan for a family of 4 making $50,000 a year is $95. That's a family plan for under $100 for quality coverage. All of these plans provide quality coverage including no-copay preventive care and annual checkups. In some cities families in the same situation may pay nothing after their subsidies are factored in. Another set of data released by the HHS just months ago found that the premiums are a fifth lower than what comparable small group plans would cost absent the ACA.

http://www.thepeoplesview.net/...
Update 1:

Bonus David Plouffe video:

Update 2:

Excellent news - The New York Times now has a story up about this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/25/us/politics/officials-detail-premium-costs-of-health-plan.html?gwh=F24FAE16B766EF2A5E046D6AC73F273A

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/09/25/1241318/-Ka-Boom-HHS-Releases-2014-ACA-Rates-16-Below-Estimates