Shenandoah and Frederick counties and the City of Winchester are no longer slated to have any insurers in the Affordable Care Act marketplace, following a decision by Optima Health to abandon its coverage in much of the state.
Optima said in a statement Wednesday that it would only serve areas that have Sentara hospitals and physicians. (Optima is the business name of Sentara Health Plans, the insurance division of Sentara Healthcare.)
“The decisions we made were challenging ones given the recent changes and ambiguities in the marketplace,” Michael Dudley, president and CEO of Optima was quoted in the statement as saying. “Our most recent filing with the state reflects these dynamic changes, as would be expected in these circumstances.”
