Obamacare in Action: 74% Say Insurance Costs Went Up, Record 36% Say "By a Lot"; Plan for Still More Hikes

Obamacare was supposed to lower costs by pooling everyone together, by creating other efficiencies, and by admittedly overcharging millennials for healthcare.

Actual results continue to pour in, nearly all of them negative. Today Gallup reports More Americans Say Health Premiums Went Up Over Past Year.

Nearly three in four American adults (74%) who pay all or some of their health insurance premiums say the amount they pay has gone up over the past year. This percentage is up marginally from the 67% who last year said their costs increased, but it is generally in line with what Gallup has found in yearly updates since 2003.

These latest data, from Gallup's annual Health and Healthcare poll, come as many insurers have raised premiums -- as well as deductibles, copays and coinsurance -- for plans under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Meanwhile, growth in national spending on healthcare has accelerated, increasing 5.3% in 2014, according to a report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. According to the American Academy of Actuaries, premium costs, in general, will increase for the next several years because of various market factors, and Americans should plan for such increases.



Since 2003, the large majority of adults who pay all or some of their premiums have consistently reported that their costs have gone up. However, until now, many more said the costs went up "a little" than "a lot." In the latest poll, the two figures are nearly tied, with 38% saying costs went up a little and 36% saying a lot. The shift comes from an eight-percentage-point increase this year in those saying their costs rose a lot, bringing it to the highest Gallup has measured since first asking the question in 2003.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock