Re-read my comment. It answers all of your questions.
> So, why are my rates still over $250 a month?
> don't consume alcohol, exercise religiously, eat cleanly, don't have a family history of any major diseases or illnesses, don't have preexisting conditions, am under 35, don't take any medication, and most importantly, haven't made a claim against my insurance in over a decade
The Affordable Care Act requires insurance companies to ignore all of that, and underwrite only based on tobacco use status and age. Even the age is not fully underwritten as the max premium has to be only 3x the least premium (see age rating factor). This explicitly makes insurance premiums a tax.
> They have plenty of room to reduce profits
No, they don’t. UNH has 6% profit margins because they have a huge healthcare provider component, and healthcare itself is high margin. The insurance business is 2% profit margin. See Elevance, CVS, Cigna, Humana, Molina, and Centene profit margins. All at 2%.
> It's both.
Sorry, but that makes no sense.
By the way, government leaders and asset rich wealthy people love the fact that you blame insurance companies. They got way with implementing a huge tax on the young and working people, and evade blame. That’s not even the only one, see lack Medicare tax on capital gains, and the egregious Additional Medicare Tax.
The productivity of today’s working youth is being transferred to old and sick people in greater and greater amounts, dictated by legislators in Congress, elected by active old voters, not the bosses at insurance companies.
> So, why are my rates still over $250 a month?
> don't consume alcohol, exercise religiously, eat cleanly, don't have a family history of any major diseases or illnesses, don't have preexisting conditions, am under 35, don't take any medication, and most importantly, haven't made a claim against my insurance in over a decade
The Affordable Care Act requires insurance companies to ignore all of that, and underwrite only based on tobacco use status and age. Even the age is not fully underwritten as the max premium has to be only 3x the least premium (see age rating factor). This explicitly makes insurance premiums a tax.
> They have plenty of room to reduce profits
No, they don’t. UNH has 6% profit margins because they have a huge healthcare provider component, and healthcare itself is high margin. The insurance business is 2% profit margin. See Elevance, CVS, Cigna, Humana, Molina, and Centene profit margins. All at 2%.
> It's both.
Sorry, but that makes no sense.
By the way, government leaders and asset rich wealthy people love the fact that you blame insurance companies. They got way with implementing a huge tax on the young and working people, and evade blame. That’s not even the only one, see lack Medicare tax on capital gains, and the egregious Additional Medicare Tax.
The productivity of today’s working youth is being transferred to old and sick people in greater and greater amounts, dictated by legislators in Congress, elected by active old voters, not the bosses at insurance companies.