Insurers May Not Participate in Health Exchanges

Strict rules make them likely money-losers

Last month, the CEO of the nation's largest health insurance company warned that he and his peers may balk at participating in Obamacare's insurance exchanges — online, government-run portals where consumers and small businesses without conventional employer-sponsored coverage may shop for policies starting next year.

"We will only participate in exchanges that we assess to be fair, commercially sustainable and provide a reasonable return on the capital they will require," UnitedHealth Group Inc. CEO Stephen Hemsley said.

That's ominous news for Obamacare. If insurers don't participate in the law's exchanges, then consumers who had hoped to secure affordable coverage through the new marketplaces will instead find few choices and high prices. Taxpayers could be hit hard, too, as higher premiums in the exchanges will require more public spending on subsidies.