Quantcast
StarBulletin.com
Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Search

HiLife Online

Give us YOUR Weekly Opinion

Reader Poll

How much will you spend on Christmas presents this year?

Sell your stuff in Hawaii classifieds
Subscribe to the Honolulu Star-Bulletin

HMSA, Kaiser seek rate increases for 2010

By Dave Segal

POSTED: 11:36 a.m. HST, Nov 05, 2009

(Single Page View) | Return to Paginated View

Hawaii consumers, already struggling in an economic recession that has brought soaring foreclosures and job layoffs, now will have to deal with rising health-care costs beginning in January.

The state's two largest health insurers are seeking rate increases for next year as rising medical costs continue to outpace their revenue.

Hawaii Medical Service Association, the state's largest insurer with just under 700,000 members, has filed a request with the state Insurance Division to raise premiums an average of 9.9 percent for its large businesses that consist of more than 200 employees. This year, HMSA's average rate increase for its large businesses was 11.4 percent while, in July of this year, HMSA raised rates an average of 12.1 percent for small businesses on its most-popular preferred provider plan.

Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, which lost $1.9 million through the first six months of this year,  is seeking a 10.7 percent rate increase that would be the largest by the health maintenance organization since 2005. Kaiser, which overall has 224,000 members, also is requesting a rate increase of 12.8 percent for 14,000 members who seek individual coverage. The proposed increases do not apply to Kaiser's Medicare and QUEST (Medicaid) members.

HMSA, which lost $30.7 million through the first six months of this year, declined yesterday to disclose the average amount of its request, but the number was confirmed by state Insurance Commissioner J.P. Schmidt, whose agency regulates rates for Hawaii's insurance industry.

"The reasons for the increase is health-care costs and increased utilization," HMSA spokesperson Laura Lott said.

Kaiser said its new rate request would affect 150,000 business and government employees and begin to take effect Jan. 1.

Hawaii consumers, already struggling in an economic recession that has brought soaring foreclosures and job layoffs, now will have to deal with rising health-care costs beginning in January.


The state's two largest health insurers are seeking rate increases for next year as rising medical costs continue to outpace their revenue.

Hawaii Medical Service Association, the state's largest insurer with just under 700,000 members, has filed a request with the state Insurance Division to raise premiums an average of 9.9 percent for its large businesses that consist of more than 200 employees. This year, HMSA's average rate increase for its large businesses was 11.4 percent while, in July of this year, HMSA raised rates an average of 12.1 percent for small businesses on its most-popular preferred provider plan.

Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, which lost $1.9 million through the first six months of this year,  is seeking a 10.7 percent rate increase that would be the largest by the health maintenance organization since 2005. Kaiser, which overall has 224,000 members, also is requesting a rate increase of 12.8 percent for 14,000 members who seek individual coverage. The proposed increases do not apply to Kaiser's Medicare and QUEST (Medicaid) members.

HMSA, which lost $30.7 million through the first six months of this year, declined yesterday to disclose the average amount of its request, but the number was confirmed by state Insurance Commissioner J.P. Schmidt, whose agency regulates rates for Hawaii's insurance industry.

"The reasons for the increase is health-care costs and increased utilization," HMSA spokesperson Laura Lott said.

Kaiser said its new rate request would affect 150,000 business and government employees and begin to take effect Jan. 1.

(Single Page View) | Return to Paginated View



Story tools

Email  Email   Print  Print   Save  Save   Popular  Most Popular   Reprint  Subscribe

Share this story