Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield says it will no longer sell health insurance plans statewide.
In Kentucky, Anthem will reduce its 2018 individual exchange plan offerings by half, from selling plans in 120 counties to 59 counties in 2018.
This is the sixth state the health insurer has announced it will be either exiting or scaling back coverage in.
Insurers such as UnitedHealth Group Inc, Aetna Inc and Humana Inc have exited most of the states where they sold Obamacare plans, leaving hundreds of USA counties at risk of losing access to private health coverage in 2018.
But other insurers, including Centene Corp, have filled those gaps, expanding into counties that had lost their coverage options. Anthem has already made these announcements in regards to Indiana, Wisconsin, Missouri, Nevada, and Ohio.
Kentucky is the ninth state in which Anthem will cut individual marketplace participation next year.
In a statement to CNBC, Anthem said, “Today, planning and pricing for ACA-compliant health plans has become increasingly hard due to a shrinking and deteriorating individual market”.
Individuals who have employer-based insurance, Medicaid, Medicare Supplement and Advantage health plans, or individuals enrolled in “grandfathered” plans purchased before March 2010, or transitional plans, are not affected by the decision.
Date: Sep 10, 2017