Cigna Exits ACA Exchanges for 369,000 Americans as It Refocuses on Employer and Pharmacy Businesses
Updated
Updated · MedCity News · May 17
Cigna Exits ACA Exchanges for 369,000 Americans as It Refocuses on Employer and Pharmacy Businesses
2 articles · Updated · MedCity News · May 17
369,000 people in 11 states will lose Cigna individual exchange coverage at year-end after the insurer said it will leave the Obamacare marketplace.
Cigna told investors the business was too small and shrinking, with no clear path to scale, and said the exit will free management to focus on employer insurance, pharmacy benefits and care services.
The company also confirmed it is leaving the individual market both on- and off-exchange, undercutting any near-term role for Individual Coverage HRAs, which cover only about 400,000 to 800,000 Americans.
The move follows Cigna’s 2025 Medicare Advantage sale and fits a broader ACA pullback after enhanced subsidies expired, premiums jumped and rivals including Aetna and some regional plans also exited or scaled back.
While rivals embrace them, why is Cigna abandoning ICHRAs, the supposed future of employee health benefits?
As insurance giants flee the ACA exchanges, is the individual health insurance market facing an inevitable collapse?
Cigna is betting its future on pharmacy services. Can this high-stakes pivot survive growing regulatory scrutiny on drug prices?