South Carolina Insurance News and Information March 5th, 2010

Following the meeting that took place at the White House on March 4th, Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius stated that she aims to push top health insurance executives to publicize information regarding rate increases on the web, with financial figures for support. Her goal is to shine a “bright light” on insurers and show how the current market is failing in South Carolina and across the country.  None of the meeting’s attendees have agreed to post more information online as of this point, but Ms. Sebelius stated that she would be sending letters to the executives at a later date urging them to commit.

Though there are steep rate hikes for those who obtain health care via their employer or government programs like Medicare, the most extreme increases affect those customers who buy their own policies on the individual South Carolina health insurance market.

Health insurers dealt with dropping shares on Thursday. Many shares fell as much as 3.7 percent after the meeting had concluded. President Barack Obama, who is determined to move forward with major modifications to the health care system, calls for federal supervision of South Carolina and all states’ rates. The bills would end current practices in South Carolina such as coverage denial for pre-existing conditions. The CEO of Aetna, Ronald Williams, rejected the President’s reform plans in an interview with CNBC after the conclusion of the meeting yesterday.

While some insurers stated that rates must increase to cover rapidly rising healthcare costs when a large number of people are canceling coverage due to the poor economy, other executives such as David Cordani of Cigna explained that the spike in cost directly reflects increased hospital costs and the higher cost of medications in South Carolina.

The CEOs of Aetna, Humana, UnitedHealth and WellPoint have been asked to testify at a house panel on March 23rd. Pressure on the health care industry will not likely be alleviated even as legislators pushed for a final vote.