In a recent report, Pennsylvania Insurance Department announced that the premiums for people on the waiting list to purchase the adultBasic state health insurance will double soon. The agency said that this need to increase the rates is based on the higher medical service use, escalating health care costs, and limited state funding.

“If we didn’t adjust the adultBasic premium and benefit package, a portion of individuals enrolled in the program would have lost coverage,” Insurance Commissioner Joel Ario said. “People who come to adultBasic have been without coverage and so are generally in need of costly care.”

Currently, there are 369,112 Pennsylvanians on the waiting list for adultBasic coverage. That’s more than triple the number who were on the list in January 2008.

This unfortunate event will mostly affect those who buy the state coverage which costs an average of $330 a month. Starting March 1, this plan will cost $600, the largest increase in program history. That just means that people already in the program will see their monthly premiums increase by $1, to $36.