October
14, 2014
Though
it’s a new feature this year, it looks like most Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act enrollees won’t be auto-enrolling
in their plans.
Two-thirds of consumers
covered through PPACA say they plan to change plans in 2015, according to a
survey by Radius Global Market Research.
That desire to change
plans comes despite most enrollees reporting satisfaction with their plans.
Just 20 percent of those with PPACA plans said they are not satisfied with
their current coverage. Still, most enrollees indicated they thought they could
still buy better coverage.
“Consumers feel that
there are opportunities to get more value from the current health insurance
market,” said Kathleen Relias, senior vice president of Radius GMR and head of
its health care practice. “Plans need to develop specific strategies to avoid
significant customer churn in the coming months.”
Top
priorities in health plans, consumers said, include improved access to
doctors and care. More than half of survey respondents expect
their health care
premiums to increase in the next six months. More than one-third
of those who switched primary doctors after joining PPACA plans did so because
their doctor was not on the new plan. And about one in four households are
visiting their doctor less frequently and/or experiencing longer office wait
times, the survey found.
Consumers
will have plenty of options to shift through this year: Federal health
officials say nearly 80 new
carriers will participate in PPACA’s marketplace this year, increasing
the number of participating carriers by 25 percent.
Open enrollment begins
Nov. 15.
In
PPACA's first enrollment, 7.3 million
consumers enrolled.
Relias said that carriers
and plans would benefit from boosting efforts to educate consumers about PPACA.
“Overall satisfaction was stronger among
those enrollees who reported receiving adequate explanation of ACA coverage.
Only 44 percent of Americans feel they are well informed.”
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