Obscuring facts on Obamacare

The New York Times reports:

With health insurance marketplaces about to open for 2015 enrollment, the Obama administration has told insurance companies that it will delay requirements for them to disclose data on the number of people enrolled, the number of claims denied and the costs to consumers for specific services.

For months, insurers have been asking the administration if they had to comply with two sections of the Affordable Care Act that require “transparency in coverage.”

In a bulletin sent to insurers last week, the administration said, “We do not intend to enforce the transparency requirements until we provide further guidance.” Administration officials said the government and insurers needed more time to collect and analyze the data.

Some are unhappy that key information isn’t readily available.

Consumer advocates said they were disappointed because the information would be helpful to millions of consumers shopping for insurance in the open enrollment period that starts on Nov. 15. The data will not be available before the enrollment period closes on Feb. 15.

So what does the law say?

Under the law, consumers in each state have access to a public marketplace, or exchange, where they can buy insurance and apply for federal subsidies to help pay premiums.

The law says each exchange shall require insurers to disclose their claims payment policies, “data on enrollment, data on disenrollment, data on the number of claims that are denied, data on rating practices” and information on the use of doctors and hospitals outside a health plan’s network.

Moreover, the law says, insurers must allow consumers to “learn the amount of cost-sharing (including deductibles, co-payments and co-insurance) under the individual’s plan or coverage that the individual would be responsible for paying with respect to the furnishing of a specific item or service.”

“At a minimum,” the law says, “such information shall be made available to such individuals through an Internet website” and by other means for people without access to the web.

So where does all this leave consumers?

Many people obtaining coverage under the Affordable Care Act have never had commercial insurance, and even experienced consumers are sometimes baffled by the intricacies of insurance policies, including provider networks and deductibles.

This isn’t a very good look for Barack Obama and his administration with not a lot of transparency going on here. It is very difficult not to reach the conclusion that this is something to do with the mid-term elections. Also there is no solid evidence either that the insurance companies are fired up about being open with customers.