Open Enrollment Periods and Plan Choices

Francesco Decarolis, Andrea Guglielmo and Calvin Luscombe

No 24156, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Open enrollment periods are pervasively used in insurance markets to limit adverse selection risks resulting when enrollees can switch plans at will. We exploit a change in the open enrollment rules of Medicare Advatage to analyze how beneficiaries responded to the option of switching to a 5-star rated plan at anytime, in a setting where insurers adjusted premiums and benefit design to counterbalance the increased selection risk. We present three findings: within-year switches to 5-star plans increase by 7-16%; demand for 5-star plans across the years does not change; the enrollees who switch to a 5-star plan during the year are in better health status than those who do not switch.

JEL-codes: I11 I18 L22 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-ias
Note: EH PE
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Published as Francesco Decarolis & Andrea Guglielmo & Clavin Luscombe, 2020. "Open enrollment periods and plan choices," Health Economics, vol 29(7), pages 733-747.

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