22 percent rate increase by Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon brings out strong protest

Oregonian:

Regence is part of a not-for-profit company with health plans covering 2.5 million people in Idaho, Washington, Idaho and Oregon, with more individual insurance customers in Oregon than any other carrier.

Sen. Chip Shields, D-Portland, pushed several bills this session to bring more scrutiny to insurance companies, all vigorously opposed by insurers. A bill that would require insurers to notify customers of rate requests and another that would end insurers' exemption from sanctions of an unlawful trade practices act both died in committees.

Senate Bill 717, which requires public hearings on insurer requests for rate increases exceeding 7 percent, remains alive in a subcommittee of the Joint Ways and Means Committee and has support from consumer and small business groups, including the Reasonable Insurance Premium Coalition.

Rising health insurance costs are affecting the "very framework of the economic viability of the state," said Ann Fisher, an attorney and founder of the coalition. "To fully protect consumers and small businesses, the (Insurance Division) needs to do more, and the first place to start is to make the reviews more transparent."

Read the full article here. Discuss below.

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    What did people think? Was this substantive, kabuki, or something else?

    To me it was better than expected. Both sides had ample time to present their issues and they did so in a clear and understandable manner. I thought the audience was receptive, listening to the arguments of the speakers rather than grinding axes. As a trial balloon for what could be done with rate review this holds up well.

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