Last night I called my mom. We were talking about politics in North Carolina (I live in Pennsyltucky, my mom lives in Virginia, but a decade ago we all lived in Raleigh), in particular the Moral Mondays and the voting restrictions Pat McCrory signed into law, when my mom said to me, "Have you talked to your sister?"
I had not talked to my sister. She still lives in Raleigh with her husband and daughter.
"You should talk to your sister. Her health insurance premiums are going up to a thousand dollars a month under ObamaCare, and she's thinking of canceling her insurance and paying the fine because she can't afford that."
My mom went on to explain. My brother-in-law's job offers a pretty generous health insurance package -- for just the employee. So my sister has carried an individual policy for herself and her daughter with a high deductible that didn't cover a lot (for instance, pregnancy) that cost about three hundred a month. But on the Insurance Exchange (federally managed, because North Carolina didn't implement one), my sister has learned that the best she can do is a plan that costs a thousand dollars a month, which she and her husband can't afford. And naturally, my brother-in-law makes too much for them to qualify for any sort of subsidies.
I told my mom I would look into this. Unfortunately, I've been unable to confirm the price spike because, right now, the price of health insurance on the exchange are considered trade secrets. Though there are three insurers on the exchange in North Carolina, it looks as though my sister can only avail herself of one. (So much for the free market.)
Here are my questions for the community -- and my sincere thanks to anyone and everyone in advance.
1) Has anyone here had a similar price-shock experience in North Carolina as regards their insurance premiums on the individual market?
2) Are there other options that she should look into?
3) Is she basically "stuck" with the situation?
4) Is there something I'm overlooking?
Thanks everyone for any help. It's my kid sister and my niece, and I don't want to see them in a bad situation (which canceling their insurance and paying the annual fine would quickly lead to).