At least 1.4 million people will lose health care plans

As insurers flee, costs rise and options shrink

NEW YORK — A growing number of people who have health insurance under the Affordable Care Act are finding out their plans will disappear from the program next year, forcing them to find new coverage even as options shrink and prices rise.

At least 1.4 million people in 32 states will lose the plans they have now, according to state officials. That’s largely caused by Aetna, UnitedHealth Group and some state or regional insurers quitting the law’s markets for individual coverage.

Sign-upsforcoverageun- der the federal health plan begin next month. Fallout from the quitting insurers has emerged as the latest threat to the law, which also is an issue in the U.S. presidential election.

While it is not clear what all the consequences of the departing insurers will be, interviews with regulators and insurance customers suggest that plans will be fewer and more expensive, and may not include the same doctors and hospitals.

It also may mean that instead of growing in 2017, the program could shrink.

As of March 31, the law covered 11.1 million people; an Oct. 13 S&P Global Ratings report predicted that enrollment next year will range from an 8 percent decline to a 4 percent gain.

Bloomberg contacted officials in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and the 1.4 million-person estimate includes 32 states and only plans sold on the individual “exchange” markets. In Texas, Arizona, Georgia and Missouri, insurers have pulled out, but regulators couldn’t or wouldn’t say how many people are affected. Three states didn’t provide sufficient data.

Eleven states, plus D.C., said they weren’t affected.

Nationwide estimates of the number of people losing their current plans are higher. For example, Charles Gaba, who tracks the law at ACASignups.net, estimates that 2 million to 2.5 million people in the U.S. will lose their current plans, compared with 2 million a year ago.

Gaba’s estimate is based on insurance company membership data.

Associated Press file In 2016, the Affordable Care Act covered 11.1 million Americans. A recent report predicted that next year’s enrollment could drop by as much as 8 percent.