Oregon & Montana: Another one bites the dust: PacificSource pulling out, another ~32,000 enrollees to lose coverage

Just five days ago, Providence Health Plan of Oregon announced that they're shutting down pretty much their entire health insurance provider division next year:

...Providence will stop offering most plans through Providence Health Plan, including individual, family and employer coverage, as it seeks to strengthen its financial footing and refocus on delivering care rather than operating an insurance arm.

...Providence Health Plan, based in Portland, is Oregon’s third-largest health insurer, covering more than 421,000 Oregonians. It also covers over 13,000 members in Washington and 4,800 in California. 

Today, this was followed by another blow to the Beaver State's health insurance market. Via Nick Budnick of The Lund Report:

PacificSource, the Oregon-based health insurer, is pulling out of Montana and leaving the individual market while cutting staff.

The number of people who could be affected in this new round of layoffs is unclear, but this week the not-for-profit slashed four high-level executives. Based on the types of plans affected by the insurer's latest restructuring some dozens more pink slips are expected to go out starting next week.

Headquartered in Springfield and founded in 1933, PacificSource was once a favored health plan relied upon by state and local governments for coverage. But it has suffered major losses, including in the Medicaid-funded Oregon Health Plan, causing it to reluctantly pull out of Lane County early this year, lay off hundreds and slash provider reimbursements while complaining that the state was not paying adequately to provide care for lower-income Oregonians.

I don't know exactly how many Oregonians or Montanans will be impacted by PacificSource pulling up stakes, but as of spring 2025 they had around 21,000 effectuated ACA exchange enrollees in Oregon and around 11,500 in Montana. All current enrollees in both states will have to shop around this November for coverage from a different insurance carrier starting January 1st, 2027.

As of this writing, their options in Oregon have dropped from 6 to 4 (BridgeSpan, Kaiser Foundation, Moda Health Plan and Regence BlueCross BlueShield). In Montana there are only two other carriers offering ACA plans: HCSC (Blue Cross Blue Shield of Montana) and the Mountain Health Co-Op (which itself pulled out of Wyoming this year).

Between Providence and PacificSource, based on 2025 enrollment, over 60,000 Oregonians, or 38% of the state's total individual market, will have to shop around.