Health Plan Weekly

Elevance Health, Inc.’s planned acquisition of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana (BCBSLA) has been put on hold as political opposition to the deal intensifies. The deal, which was announced in January, was already troubled due to investigations by state regulators and a bipartisan uproar from state elected officials. One managed care insider says macroeconomic conditions likely have redoubled considerable opposition to the deal from providers and other stakeholders. 

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported that BCBSLA leaders met with Republican Attorney General Jeff Landry, a frontrunner in the ongoing gubernatorial race in Louisiana, on Sept. 18. The attorney general hopes that the deal will be delayed until the new governor and insurance commissioner take office, according to the newspaper. (Jim Donelon, the incumbent Republican commissioner, plans to retire.) 

Prominent insurance brokers are expecting large percentage increases in employer-plan costs next year, brought on by factors like rising labor costs and higher health care utilization. But there isn’t likely to be any relief in coming years, and experts say plan sponsors will have to be creative and disruptive if they hope to cushion the blow of increasing expenses. 

Brokers Mercer Inc., Aon PLC and WTW PLC project that average employer plan costs will increase between 5.4% and 8.5% in plan year 2024.  

And while employers don’t have to pass that onto employees in the form of higher monthly plan rates, some industry experts expect rising premiums are on the horizon, too. 

Health insurer trade groups agree that it’s a good idea to reinstate strict limits on short-term, limited-duration insurance (STLDI) plans, according to their official comments on a proposed rule from the Biden administration. But their views diverge on the proposed regulation’s treatment of fixed indemnity insurance and other supplemental coverage. 

The proposed rule in question — issued on July 7 by HHS and the Labor and Treasury departments — answered a growing chorus of calls to crack down on STLDI amid concerns that many consumers mistake them for comprehensive coverage. Meant to bridge a gap in insurance coverage, STLDI plans are exempt from the Affordable Care Act’s consumer protections, such as the ban on charging higher rates for sicker people and the requirement that plans must cover a prescribed set of “essential benefits.” 

House Reps. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) and Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) have re-introduced legislation that would increase the number of people who are eligible to receive supplemental benefits as part of their Medicare Advantage plans. Jeannie Fuglesten Biniek, Ph.D., associate director of KFF’s Program on Medicare Policy, explains that the bill is “trying to expand the definition of who can qualify for extra benefits that are not primarily health related.” 

The bill comes as the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission is considering standardizing a limited number of common supplemental benefits in MA — such as dental, vision and hearing benefits — with the goal of helping seniors better navigate a dizzying array of plan options. 

Here’s how major U.S. health insurers performed financially in the second quarter of 2023. Health Plan Weekly subscribers can access more health plan financial data — including year-over-year comparisons of leading health plans’ net income, premium revenue, medical loss ratios and net margins. Just email support@aishealth.com to request spreadsheets for current and past quarters.