Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 120 Page 121 Page 122 Page 123 Page 124 BUSINESS TIP the Midwest. Most notably unless a new entrant appears Oklahoma and Kansas will have only one insurer selling plans on their exchanges. Other factors will impact pre- mium costs on the ACA exchanges in 2017. The ACA established tem- porary risk-sharing and risk cor- ridors to assist insurers offering ACA-compliant plans so the insur- ance companies could charge lower premiums and attract more enroll- ees. These subsidies to the insur- ance companies will end January 1 2017 placing even more upward pressure on premiums. All of this has some pundits warn- ing that 2017 may be the year of reck- oning for the Obamacare exchanges the year when high premiums push the healthiest participants out leav- ing insurers with the costliest enroll- ees causing still higher premiums in the following year the so-called death spiral. While that may be an overly dire prediction Larry Levitt of the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation says there will likely be a significant market correction over the next year. Fortunately employer-provided insurance markets experience much greater stability than the ACA mar- ketplace. Nevertheless upheaval in the ACA markets can spill over to the broader marketplace causing uncer- tainty and higher costs. We will know soon enough whether 2017 is indeed the cliff that sends Obamacare tumbling or just another painful step in the evolving drama of health care reform. 1 Trends in Health Insurance Enrollment 2013-2015 published in Health Affairs v. 34 no. 6 June 2015 p. 1044-1048. 2 Transamerica Center for Health Studies Survey Companies Navigate the Health Coverage Mandate December 2015 www.transamerica centerforhealthstudies.org. 3 Ibid. Pat OConnor is a principal in Kent OConnor Incorporated a Washington D.C.-based government affairs firm. A veteran of Capitol Hill with particular expertise in health transportation and the environment OConnor works with trade associa- tions and companies to find workable solutions to the most pressing regula- tory and legislative issues. For more information visit www.kentoconnor. com or call 202-223-6222. T i l e I n d u s t r y M a r k e t i n g T i p s FREE MARKETING REPORT IN UNDER 30-MINUTES TILE INDUSTRY AD AGENCY How would you like a to help with everything What areYOU DOING TO MARKET YOUR COMPANY REPUTATION MANAGEMENT WEBSITES MOBILE WEBSITES BRANDING VIDEO ON-HOLD MESSAGES 800.789.4619 www.omgnational.com IMAGE IS EVERYTHING DONT SETTLE FOR ANYTHING 101 MARKETING TILE INDUSTRY TileLetter June 2016 31