(Bloomberg) — Oscar Insurance Corp., the startup backed by Silicon Valley investors, posted losses in New York, Texas and California in the first half of the year, the latest example of insurers both large and small losing money in new markets created by President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.
In New York, Oscar's biggest market, the loss widened to $52.2 million from $15.5 million in the first half of 2015. The insurer also lost $12.9 million in California and $17.9 million in Texas, according to state filings, after starting to sell plans in Dallas, San Antonio and the Los Angeles area this year.
Oscar's not alone in recording large losses from sales of Obamacare plans to individuals. The biggest U.S. health insurers are all losing money on them, with UnitedHealth Group, Humana and Aetna retreating from the market. While those insurers are posting profits from other business lines, New York-based Oscar doesn't have other markets to fall back on.
Here's a look at Oscar's financial results and membership by state:
State | Enrollment | First-half loss | Loss perenrollee |
| New York | 61,811 | $52.2 million | $845 |
| Texas | 34,699 | $17.9 million | $516 |
| California | 4,408 | $12.9 million | $2,926 |
In all three markets, Oscar spent more on medical costs alone than it received in premiums from members. Insurers typically try to spend about 85 percent of their premiums on costs like doctors, prescription drugs, and hospitals. That leaves some funds to cover administrative expenses and for profits.
Oscar lost $105.2 million in its New York and New Jersey businesses for all of last year. At the time, the company said some of the losses were from startup costs. The New Jersey filing for the first six months of this year wasn't available. A spokeswoman for Oscar at Derris & Co. didn't respond to requests for comment.
