Trending News Today: More Insurers Proposing ACA Premium Hikes

Many large health insurers are proposing increasingly large premium hikes in the Affordable Care Act’s health exchanges. According to The New York Times, the largest insurer in Texas is proposing an increase of 60%, while North Carolina’s largest insurer is proposing an increase of 18.8%. Most insurers seeking such high premiums is due to financial losses from low enrollment rates, sicker beneficiaries, and problems with the government’s financial support, according to the report.

The use of osteoporosis medications dropped 50% from 2008 and 2012 and The New York Times reports that this decrease in use is continuing due to the chance of rare side effects from the drugs. The risk of a broken thighbone from the medication is approximately 10 to 40 in 100,000 patients and the risk of a rotting jawbone is less than 1 in 100,000. However, patients are hesitant to start the medication and if they have, a vast majority of them wish to come off of it.

A new bill that would require drugmakers to provide 60-days notice if they are going to increase the cost of a drug over 10% was approved in California. The bill would also require the companies to provide additional notice if the cost of a new drug will cost $10,000 or more annually or over the course of treatment, according to the Los Angeles Times. The hope is that this bill will provide further transparency in healthcare costs.