Strategies to Stabilize the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces

An analysis of Medicare Advantage and Part D enrollment and implementation strategies could shed light on ways to improve the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces.

The Issue 

Lessons from the Medicare programs could offer solutions to concerns about the ACA marketplaces, like insurer exits and rising premiums.

Key Findings

Policies used by these Medicare programs could transfer to the ACA marketplaces

  • Helping private insurers compete more effectively; and

  • Providing enrollees in all regions of the country with adequate access to a more stable market with affordable plan choices.

Conclusion

The authors retraced the steps taken by policymakers and the administrators of Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D to manage and stabilize those programs. They find that policies and strategies used in these programs to encourage participation by insurers, keep premiums stable and enhance enrollment have the potential to add value to the ACA marketplaces.

About the Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms

The Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute is a nonpartisan, expert team of faculty and staff dedicated to conducting research on the complex and developing relationship between state and federal oversight of the health insurance marketplace.

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