Blue Cross seeks 23% hike for North Carolinans covered under Obamacare

People shopping for insurance through the Affordable Care Act in yet more regions will be facing higher prices and fewer choices next year as insurance companies lay out their early plans for 2018.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is asking regulators for a 23 percent price hike next year because it doesn't expect crucial payments from the federal government to continue. That announcement comes a day after Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City said it will leave the individual market next year, a decision that affects about 67,000 people in a 32-county area in Kansas and Missouri.

Other insurers, such as Aetna and Humana, have also said they will abandon this kind of coverage, though some, including Centene say they will stick around.

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