The 430,000 Pennsylvanians who use Pennie, the state-operated marketplace for health insurance, must make a decision by Dec. 15 which plan they want in 2025.
Pennie is an option for those meeting federal poverty income guidelines and it gives people the chance to be able to get affordable health care from the various plans being offered, Lt. Gov. Austin Davis said during an event Monday at the Adagio Health office in Hempfield, which accepts Pennie insurance.
There was a 17% increase in the number of subscribers this year compared to 2023, Davis said.
“We’re hoping to see even more Pennsylvanians get covered in 2025. But the clock is ticking and the deadline for enrollment is coming up soon,” to shop the best and most affordable plans for their needs, Davis said.
So far this year, 435,000 Pennsylvanians have registered for the coverage next year, said Devon Trolley, executive director of Pennie, which the state created in 2021.
The plans are robust enough to cover essential services such as hospital care, mental health treatment, prescription drugs and maternity care, Davis said.
“It’s the highest quality coverage at the lowest cost,” Trolley said.
Pennsylvanians should be aware that there been changes to plans and costs for subscribers in this region, Davis said. The UPMC Health Plan, Highmark and Pennsylvania Health and Wellness are among the insurers under Pennie that are offering health care coverage in Western Pennsylvania.
“Pennie coverage is affordable because the vast majority, nine out of 10 customers, qualify for financial savings to help their reduce their monthly payments as well as their out of pocket expenses,” Davis said.
Looming over the state-operated health insurance marketplace and similar government-operated marketplaces in other states, is the potential changes to the enhanced premium federal tax credits that have made coverage through private insurance plans affordable to low-income people. Those enrolling for 2025 will not be effected for next year if the premium tax credits are not extended when they expire at the end of 20025, Trolley said.
Congress must extend the tax credits by the spring for insurers and regulators to update premium rates to avoid impacting the future enrollment in the plans, according to the Center on Budget Policies and Priorities, a nonpartisan policy institute based in Washington, D.C.
President-elect Donald Trump failed in his attempts during his first term to repeal or make rule changes to the Affordable Care Act that was passed under President Obama. Trump claimed during the 2024 campaign he had the concept of a plan for his version of the health care coverage, but never revealed details. Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said during the campaign that Republicans would make massive changes to the Affordable Care Act if they control the House of Representatives, which they did through the election.
Neither Davis nor Trolley speculated on what might happen to those tax credits under a Trump administration.
