KID

TOPEKA —Kansas Insurance Department officials said Tuesday that initial rate revision information for the 2018 federal individual health insurance marketplace will be published on Sept. 1 following an announced delay on rate filings last week from the federal government.

The United States Department of Health and Human Services released guidance on Aug. 10 saying that the final rate submission date for all states has been pushed back to Sept. 6. Because of the current uncertainty of the federal guidelines for the marketplace, Ken Selzer, CPA, Kansas Commissioner of Insurance, said he requested the new Kansas publication date to keep the public from being confused.

“With all the uncertainty in Washington, D.C., regarding the cost share reduction reimbursement for insurance companies, we think it is best for the rates not to be published prematurely,” Commissioner Selzer said.

Commissioner Selzer did say that he expected the three companies that indicated their 2018 participation on the Kansas marketplace — Medica, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, and Sunflower State Health Plan (a subsidiary of Centene Corp.) — will continue to offer plans for 2018.

Approximately five percent of Kansans purchase individual health insurance plans. In 2017, there were 98,780 Kansans who purchased plans on the federal exchange.