Conn. and Calif. lower premiums in high-risk pools

The sharp price reductions are for plans that serve residents who have medical conditions and have trouble qualifying for traditional insurance.

The Connecticut Mirror: Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan Premiums Being Lowered For Most Members
The state has received federal approval to set a flat premium for its Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan, allowing anyone who qualifies to get coverage for $381 a month, the governor's office announced Tuesday. The new rate will take effect Sept. 1. Currently, the premiums vary by age, with rates as high as $893 a month. The new rate is lower than the rates paid by people 45 and older, who account for about two-thirds of the 75 people in the program now. For younger adults, the new premium will represent an increase of between $23 and $96 (Levin Becker, 8/2).

Related, earlier story from KHN: Feds Cutting Fees, Requirements For High-Risk Health Insurance Pools (Galewitz, 5/31).

San Francisco Chronicle: High-Risk Patients Get Health Insurance Rate Break
More than 3,500 Californians are about to receive a rare benefit: reduced health insurance rates. The state announced Tuesday that it will lower premiums by as much as 24 percent for new and existing subscribers of its health program for the medically uninsurable. Monthly premiums for people in the federally funded high-risk pool, known as the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan, will drop an average of 17.9 percent, or between 8.2 percent and 24.3 percent, according to the state's Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board, which manages the program (Colliver, 8/3).

HealthyCal: Rates Drop For High Risk Insurance Plan
Uninsured California residents who can't get private coverage because of pre-existing health conditions are about to get a break: premiums for state-sponsored coverage financed by the federal government will be coming down by about 18 percent. State officials said Tuesday they hope the lower rates will make the program more accessible to the people who need it, especially since so far only about 3,500 Californians have enrolled for coverage and the state has the ability to provide it to about 24,000 people (van Diepen, 8/2).