The New York State Department of Financial Services announced the2022 health insurance premium rates, which includes a cut in rates that were requested by many insurers, which cut the rates in the small group market by nearly half. The small group market covers employers with up to 100 employees.
Insurance companies had requested rate hikes averaging 14%, and the state cut that to 7.6%, saving small businesses more than $468 million.
In the individual market, health insurance rates will increase by 3.7%. The state says insurance companies had requested an average increase of 11.2%, so the cap on the increase will save consumers more than $138 million.
For Rochester-area insurance companies, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield had requested a 9.7% rate hike for 2022 in the small group market, but the state approved an 8.7% increase. For the individual market rates, Excellus requested a 6.2% increase, but the state approved a 4.5% increase.
For MVP Health Plan, in the small group market, the insurer requested a 7.9% increase but the state approved a 5.7% rate hike. In the individual market, MVP requested a 16.9% increase for next year but the state only approved half of that, an 8.5% increase.
The Deptartment of Financial Services said, as in prior years, the continued increase in health care costs is the main driver of premium rates. DFS says that medical claims decreased significantly in 2020 due to the postponement of elective and non-emergency services, but those claims increased significantly in 2021 as New Yorkers were catching up on medical appointments and postponed services.
Drug costs account for the largest share of medical expenses (38.7%) followed by inpatient hospital costs (17.3%), primary care (8.1%), outpatient hospital costs (7.9%), and radiology (5.7%).
