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- 2024 Medigap Market Updates 👨💻
2024 Medigap Market Updates 👨💻
Your source for the latest Medigap Data and Information
Jared Strock & Andrew Ryba
October 03, 2024
Here is what you’ll find in this week’s newsletter!
Important links 🔗 - the best articles we found this week about the Medicare Market along with links to Jared’s recent LinkedIn posts.
Deep Dive 📚 - 2024 Medigap Market Updates 👨💻
Compliance Chatter 📢 - CO & VA, Med Advantage/Part D, TN & FL - disaster exceptions.
Sponsor Snapshot 🚀 - brought to you by PX
DATA VISUAL of the Week 📊 - Health Systems controlling Metropolitan markets in the US in 2022.
It’s only a 5 minute read, but it will make you 10x smarter.
Here are IMPORTANT LINKS 🔗 for the week:
OIG calls for Humana, Aetna subsidiary to repay millions in MA overpayments - (link)
UVM Health Advantage Plan being dropped in Vermont in 2025 - (link)
CMS holds accountable care organizations hearmless for ‘highly suspect’ Medicare billing - (link)
New Bill Increases Social Security Death Benefit - (link)
CVS explores options including potential break-up, sources say- (link)
Medicaid overtakes Medicare Advantage as health insurers’ bogeyman in Q2 - (link)
Jared’s recent LinkedIn posts:
DEEP DIVE 📚
Medicare Supplement Market Updates 👨💻
This week’s deep dive is an update to our quarterly Medigap Market Update and will cover recent happenings in the Medicare Supplement Insurance market.
1. New Products
a. Bankers Fidelity, Heartland National, Med Mutual, Physicians Mutual, and Wellabe all began introducing new products earlier this year and have continued to file their products in additional states.
b. No new multi-state product filings were submitted during Q3. This is typical as carriers want to have their products ready and available for distributors in advance of AEP.
2. Rate Increases
a. 2024 rate increases continue to trend higher than previous years. Approved rate actions are 2.5% - 3.5% higher than in 2023. Early results for 2025 rate actions are coming in another 1% higher.
b. The following chart shows the average rate increases on open Med Supp blocks for Plans F, G, and N over the past four years.
c. Double digit increases are going to be more common in 2024 than in previous years. This table shows the frequency of Plan G rate increases by different levels of increase.
Increase Amount | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
10%+ | 19% | 17% | 34% |
5 - 9.9% | 45% | 48% | 55% |
<5% | 36% | 35% | 11% |
d. Rate increases in the new Birthday Rule states (i.e., KY, LA, and MD) continue to run about 1% higher than in states with normal underwriting rules. These higher rate increases are expected as companies continue to adjust their premiums to a level that is appropriate for the expected mix of business.
3. Claim Trends
a. A sample of market experience through Q2 is showing similar claim trends to 2023.
i. 2024 experience in Q1 was better than 2023 but elevated claims in Q2 are offsetting so that the year-to-date experience is consistent with 2023 claims experience.
ii. This chart shows Plan G claim costs PMPM when aggregated by calendar quarter. Results show claim cost growth has been fairly steady within each quarter.
a. Increases in the average cost of chemotherapy and immunotherapy cancer treatments continues to be a major contributor in claim trends. Other large cost contributors are treatments for knee osteoarthritis.
b. A recent article by Telos Actuarial provides additional details on Medigap claims.
4. Regulatory Updates
a. Nebraska and Indiana have finalized their rules for under age 65 coverage. Both states are requiring compliance with the rules by 1/1/2025.
b. We are also watching progress on proposed regulations in the following states:
a. Under 65/Disability/ESRD
i. California
ii. Georgia
iii. Michigan
iv. Ohio
v. Rhode Island
vi. South Carolina
b. Open Enrollment Periods
i. California
ii. Minnesota
iii. New Jersey
iv. South Carolina
v. Virginia
c. Birthday Rule Guaranteed Issue
i. Iowa
ii. Illinois
For more detailed information on Regulatory changes, you can check out our Insurance Regulatory Insights newsletter.
That’s it for this quarter’s deep dive into the Medicare Supplement market.
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Sponsor Snapshot 🚀: PX
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COMPLIANCE CHATTER 📢
Check out this week’s Insurance Regulatory Insights newsletter, which looks at guidance from Colorado and Virginia for hospital or other fixed indemnity, a final rule correction for Med Advantage/Part D, and bulletins from Tennessee and Florida regarding disaster exceptions.
DATA VISUAL of the Week 📊
This week’s visual comes from KFF.org and looks at Health Systems controlling Metropolitan markets in the US in 2022.
If you’re ready, here are some ways we can help you:
Newsletter Sponsorship opportunities: Promote your product or services to leaders in the Medicare space. Let’s discuss. (link)
Market Research: Reports that help you wrap your arms around the Senior focused insurance markets. (link)
Consulting: We can help you develop new insurance products for the Medicare market, appraise your books of business, and keep you compliant. Let’s discuss. (link)