Individuals enrolled in health plans offered in the federal health insurance exchange who switched plans during the 2016 open season saved, on average, more than $500 in premiums than if they had stayed in their current plan, the Department of Health & Human Services reported Tuesday.
During the 2016 open season, 43% of enrollees changed plans, saving, on average, $502 in premiums compared to what they would have paid had they remained in the same plan, HHS said.
The average premium savings, though, varied considerably by state. For example, at the high end, individuals changing plans in Alaska saved an average of $852 in premiums, while those in Indiana and New Jersey saved an average of $768.
On the other hand, individuals choosing coverage in plans in South Dakota saved an average of just $144, followed by $180 in Maine and $240 in Arkansas and Nevada.
Shopping for plans is important, HHS noted in the report, “because the marketplace is dynamic, which means that the issuer that offers a market’s lowest price product one year is not the necessarily the price leader in the next year,” HHS said.
The study is based is based on the 37 states in which the federal exchange offered coverage in both 2015 and 2016.