Oscar Health has filed to sell Obamacare plans in six more markets to cover customers in 2019, the health insurer announced Thursday.
Mario Schlosser, the company’s co-founder and CEO, said in a blog post that the move positioned Oscar to be one of the “fastest-growing insurers in the country.” He announced that the company would sell plans across Arizona, Florida, and Michigan, and would expand into more large metro areas in Ohio, Tennessee, and Texas. In all, the company will be selling plans in 14 markets across nine states.
“In each new city, Oscar will attract and engage significant membership, guide members to the right care with the best consumer product in the industry, and work in close alignment with the highest value hospitals and doctors to deliver efficient, quality care,” Schlosser wrote.
He credited the company’s technology-focused approach for part of its success, saying that its apps had helped connect customers to doctors and improved the way that healthcare providers could care for patients. He acknowledged that the healthcare industry faced changes with actions in Congress and the Trump administration, but stated the company was able to focus on how to change its business so it would be attractive to consumers.
“Oscar has remained focused on our long-term vision for a simpler, easier, and more affordable system,” Schlosser wrote.
The company was co-founded by Josh Kushner, brother to President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, though he has no operational role in the company.
It wasn’t immediately announced how much the plans would cost. State insurance regulators are expected to negotiate with insurers over final prices, which will be announced before Obamacare’s open enrollment begins Nov. 1. The Obamacare exchanges are used by a minority of the population, and tend to include people who are self-employed or work for a small business that doesn’t provide coverage.
How much customers pay for Obamacare coverage will vary based on whether or not they smoke, how old they are, where they live, and whether their income is low enough to qualify for subsidies, an amount that is less than roughly $48,000 a year for an individual.
