The government does not, so far as I am aware, set the prices of the plans. Therefore it is nonsensical to claim that "the government itself doubled the price".

The government does not, so far as I am aware, set the prices of the plans. Therefore it is nonsensical to claim that "the government itself doubled the price". Now, if one were to claim that the government failed to do anything that had the effect of reducing the cost of health care or health insurance, then I would completely agree. For example, there is nothing to prevent someone from signing up for insurance, having some expensive medical procedures performed, and subsequently dropping the insurance. I have personally heard reports from insurance agencies that some people do in fact do this. And I can't say I'm surprised, either; even after factoring in the tax penalties, it's probably a completely economically rational thing to do in a lot of cases.