BEER IS CERTAINLY THE BETTER VALUE: Aetna CEO says young people pick beer over Obamacare.

Bertolini’s comments, made at Bloomberg’s The Year Ahead Summit in New York City, came a day after the Obama administration announced that Obamacare premiums will spike and plan offerings will be significantly down for 2017.

He brought up a problem that has plagued the Obama administration — convincing enough young, healthy people to enroll so that insurers are bringing in enough revenue to cover sicker patients while keeping premiums lower. With rates jumping next year, it could be a challenge for advocates for the Affordable Care Act to increase the share of healthy enrollees.

“As the rates rise, the healthier people pull out because the out-of-pocket costs aren’t worth it,” Bertolini said. “Young people can do the math. Gas for the car, beer on Fridays and Saturdays, health insurance.”

Just don’t call it a death spiral!