DURHAM, N.C. -- North Carolina's largest health insurer says it's cutting some individual premiums for the first time in over a quarter century, but the savings on subsidized "Obamacare'' coverage would have been much larger if Washington had left the law alone.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina said Tuesday it proposed prices to state insurance regulators that could lower rates for next year's Affordable Care Act policies by 4.1 percent on average, which is the first rate decrease in more than 25 years.

The NC Justice Center says this could have a major impact on people and lawmakers need to take notice.

“If lawmakers were working together across the aisle, in order to try to improve the small things that maybe could use improvement in the Affordable Care Act, we could see lower premiums, more competition, more choices. Things could be a lot more stable for North Carolinians who need the Affordable Care Act and Health insurance generally,” said Brendan Riley of the Justice Center.

About 85 percent of the savings comes from last year's federal income tax cut and Congress suspending a tax on insurers for 2019. 

Blue Cross says it could have lowered average rates by another 18 percent if Congress and the Trump Administration hadn't eliminated the penalty for people who don't buy health.

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