Change is in the works for Humana ACA exchange participation

Humana became the latest health insurer to serve notice that it might leave some Affordable Care Act exchanges next year, creating more uncertainty for customers ahead of this fall's enrollment window and presidential campaign, during which the law is sure to remain a hot debate topic.

The insurer, which is being acquired by rival Aetna, said Wednesday that it expects to make a number of changes to its business for 2017, and that may include leaving some markets both on and off the exchanges or changing prices.

Several insurers say they have struggled with sicker-than-expected customers and had a hard time attracting younger, healthy people to the coverage they sell on the ACA's state-based public insurance exchanges, which opened for enrollment in the fall of 2013.

Two companies that report exchange success so far, Molina Healthcare Inc. and Centene Corp., say they have focused on covering low-income customers in markets where they already have an established presence in Medicaid, the state-federal program that covers the poor.