Florida finalized an average rate hike for Obamacare plans of 5.2 percent Wednesday, with insurers blaming the Trump administration as the reason for the spike.
The insurance department released the final rates on Wednesday, with some plans getting a hike of as high as nearly 10 percent, and others experiencing a decline of as much as 1.5 percent. Obamacare rates have become political fodder for Democrats, who charge that “sabotage” by the Trump administration and congressional Republicans is to blame.
Several insurers, when they proposed rates in June, cited Republicans’ repeal of the individual mandate’s financial penalty in 2019 as a contributor to proposed hikes. Insurers worry that the repeal of the mandate penalty will take away an incentive for younger and healthier people to sign up for Obamacare plans.
Florida is one of only a handful of states to finalize its rates for 2019 ahead of the open enrollment this fall.
