More than half of state high-risk insurance pools have closed in the past few years, according to data from the National Association of State Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans (NASCHIP). In other state-run high-risk pools, new enrollment has stopped and overall participation has dropped, the data showed. Premiums ranged from 125% to 200% of the average individual market rate in a given state, according to NASCHIP. …

“High-risk pools segregate sick people into plans that are more expensive to both the government and the individual,” said Anthony Wright of Health Access, a coalition of consumer advocates.

Wright said the high-risk pools were among the “failures” in the health care system that led to Obamacare.