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Anthem Blue Cross again seeks rate hikes for Californians
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| Parent(s) |
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| Contributor | Jason |
| Last Edited | Jason Jul 06, 2010 10:50am |
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| Category | News |
| Author | Duke Helfand |
| News Date | Thursday, July 1, 2010 04:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Embattled health insurer Anthem Blue Cross is reviving its plan to raise rates for tens of thousands of California policyholders, some of whom could see their premiums rise as much as 20%.
California's largest for-profit insurer submitted new rates Wednesday amid pressure to scale back increases of as much as 39% that had provoked fury from consumers, lawmakers and even President Obama.
That initial attempt to hike premiums in the spring turned Anthem into a national target for outrage over insurance company profits. And it reenergized the Obama administration's flagging efforts to pass landmark healthcare legislation. The Woodland Hills insurer backed down after an independent consultant for California's insurance commissioner found numerous errors in its rate plan.
Eager to avoid another public backlash, Anthem and its corporate parent, Indianapolis-based WellPoint Inc., now are seeking a maximum increase of 20%, with an average hike of 14%. The original proposal called for an average increase of 25%. The new rates would take effect Sept. 1.
WellPoint defended the rising premiums as necessary and unavoidable, saying Anthem would still lose more than $100 million this year on individual health insurance policies sold in California even though 600,000 of its customers would be paying more. |
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