2 weeks Ago
Oscar Health Thursday reported a $54 million third quarter loss despite continued growth, heading into what could be an uncertain political period under Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress. But those running the provider of individual coverage under the Affordable Care Act ssay they believe such health insurance, also known as Obamacare, is “positioned for long-term growth – appealing to GOP desires for consumer choice and a free market approach,” Oscar said in a statement accompanying its third quarter earnings report. To be sure, Obamacare has come a long way with millions of Americans – Republicans, Democrats, and independents - gaining such coverage in part due to expanding subsidies that allow more people to afford health insurance.
That has also helped an array of health insurers including Oscar to grow their individual coverage portfolios. When Trump — who was narrowly elected this week in the presidential race against Vice President Kamala Harris —was in office from 2017 to 2021, he and Republicans in Congress tried and failed several times to repeal the ACA, the signature legislative achieve of former President Barack Obama. It remains unclear what Trump’s healthcare agenda will be in his second term that begins in January because he has yet to reveal a healthcare plan.
In the third quarter, Oscar’s total company revenue jumped 68% to $2.4 billion compared to the year-ago period. Oscar, which shook up its management ranks and hired the former Aetna chief executive Mark Bertolini last year, has reported its first profits this year.
Though there was a loss in the third quarter, Oscar reported $178.9 million in net income for the first nine months of the year compared to a loss of more than $120 million for the first nine months of last year as enrollment has grown. As of September 30 of this year, Oscar had more than 1.
6 million individual and small group health plan members compared to 912,761 in the year-ago period. Given its growth, Oscar updated its full year 2024 outlook “to reflect year-to-date performance” projecting revenue for this year to be in the $9.2 billion to $9.
3 billion range, which is $200 million above an earlier projection. The company is also projecting net profitability for the entire year. “Oscar reported positive third quarter results with strong revenue growth and improved financial performance," Bertolini said in a statement accompanying earnings.
“Our technology continues to enhance our growth and positions us to efficiently scale the business. We expect to deliver positive Adjusted EBITDA and net income profitability this year, setting a solid foundation to achieve our long-term targets.”.
