Obamacare Is 'Very Near Collapse' In Tennessee; How About Elsewhere?

Published August 25, 2016 at 12:06 PM EDT

President Barack Obama speaks about the Affordable Care Act in Nashville in July 2015. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)

Health insurers in Tennessee say they’re losing money, and many have begun to pull their plans from health care exchanges there.

The state’s insurance commissioner, Julie Mix McPeak, signed off on severe rate hikes intended to stabilize the system, but now Tennesseans buying insurance on the exchange could see their premiums soar by as much as 62 percent next year.

Tax credits may soften the blow for many consumers, but the situation raises questions about the sustainability of health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson gets the local view from Emily Siner of Nashville Public Radio, and then asks Vox.com’s Sarah Kliff what Tennessee’s experience with Obamacare so far might say about the integrity of the system across the country.

Guests

Emily Siner, assistant news director at WPLN and host of the Movers & Thinkers podcast. She tweets @SinerSays.

Sarah Kliff, senior editor at Vox.com, overseeing health, medicine and education coverage. She tweets @sarahkliff.