Insurance behemoth Aetna announced late Monday that it is pulling out of Obamacare public exchanges in 11 states, citing projected financial losses because of the high number of people who—it turns out—need expensive medical care.
Following a string of similar announcements, advocates of single-payer healthcare say that these departures only underscore the fact that “big commercial insurance corporations” will always “put profits before patients’ health.”
In a statement, Aetna chairman and CEO Mark Bertolini said that the company is withdrawing from 70 percent of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchanges and will only remain in markets in Delaware, Iowa, Nebraska, and Virginia.
“Fifty-five percent of our individual on-exchange membership is new in 2016, and in the second quarter we saw individuals in need of high-cost care represent an even larger share of our on-exchange population,” Bertolini stated. “This population dynamic, coupled with the current inadequate risk adjustment mechanism, results in substantial upward pressure on premiums and creates significant sustainability concerns.”