{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpoliticos-pulse-check.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2Fobamacares-ceo-on-whats-next-after-9aa9e6ce","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":"Obamacare’s CEO on what’s next after Aetna’s exits","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/57e73d/57e73d0a-dce0-413c-a342-50aa222ebb97/8124fece-fd8a-4bc3-8404-bda2a34ef4c6/1510085879artwork.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"","height":200,"description":"Insurers like Aetna are dropping out. Rate requests are on the rise. It’s been a messy few weeks for Obamacare — and it’s Kevin Counihan’s job to clean it up. After Obamacare's exchanges sputtered to launch in 2013, Counihan was hired as marketplace CEO to make sure that a management mistake like that never happened again. But with major players like Aetna and UnitedHealth mostly walking away, and the remaining insurers asking for 24% rate hikes on average, Counihan's facing the biggest challenges of his tenure. Counihan sketches out his job as Obamacare’s marketplace CEO (starts at the 3:00 mark), explains how he’s thinking about the turnover in the market and why Aetna’s exit from 11 states is business as usual (4:30), who’s poised to win on the exchanges (9:45), how HHS is working to plug gaps as Aetna and other insurers walk away from markets (12:45), whether it matters if large insurers participate at all (19:00), how he’s approaching customers who are loath to purchase coverage (25:00), and why he’s not sweating Donald Trump getting rid of Obamacare (29:30). We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email ddiamond@politico.com.\n\n"}