July 27, 2010
Nonprofit Health Insurers Hoard Cash -Report
Many nonprofit Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurers have amassed billions of dollars in extra cash in the last decade even as they hit their individual customers with double-digit premium rate hikes, a new study found.
Seven out of 10 nonprofit Blues plans held at least three times the amount that regulators require them to maintain for minimal solvency, according to a report from Consumers Union.
The independent group found that 10 Blues plans collectively held $9.1 billion in surplus funds in 2009, or about $855 per member per year. That’s up from $4.6 billion in 2001, or $395 per …