On their own: a profile of the individually insured

More than 13.6 million Americans under the age of 65 own a health insurance policy that they purchased directly from an insurance company or agent. Buyers tend to come from a "Golden Girls" cohort-- white, widowed or divorced, age 55-64, and working for a small company. High premiums have helped to reduce the number of individual policyholders. Insurers incur high administrative costs, have low loss ratios, and have suffered financial losses. As a result, the market is serving neither buyer nor seller well. One solution would establish competitive bidding at the state level limiting the franchise to sell individual insurance to three-to-five carriers; require bidders to include cost controls; and reduce agent commissions and other marketing costs by having states take an active role in informing the public.