Private Health Insurance Exchanges––Will They Save Money? Will the Idea Grow?

Private health insurance exchanges will save employers money but not make health insurance cheaper.

Because private health insurance will save employers money, they will grow.

Will Private Insurance Exchanges Reduce Health Insurance Costs?

There's lots of buzz these days about private insurance exchanges. The idea is to give employees more choice in purchasing their own individual coverage

I Hope Trustmark Tells HHS to Go Pound Sand

Today, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that, "Trustmark Life Insurance Company has proposed unreasonable health insurance premium increases in five states—Alabama, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Wyoming. The excessive rate hikes would affect nearly 10,000 residents across these five states."The HHS statement continued, "In these five states, Trustmark has raised

Inconvenient Facts for Both Republicans and Democrats—Neither Side’s Health Care Proposals Are Supported By Past Performance

I call your attention to Ezra Klein’s column in the Washington Post this morning.In it he cites data that has been out there for a long time but Ezra puts some perspective on it that never occurred to me before.Examining the Kaiser Family Foundation brief, “Health Care Spending in the United States and Selected OECD Countries” he points out, “Our government spends more [as a percentage of GDP] on

Small Business Health Insurance Coverage: A Sobering Report From the Trenches

One of the things I enjoy the most about my travels across the country is meeting benefits brokers and health plan sales reps--they have the best feel for the real market and what their customers and their employees are up against.This very sobering and, from what I independently hear, accurate report about the small group health insurance market comes courtesy of Brian Klepper. Please note the

Underwriting Cycle or Medical Trend Rate Cycle?

Analysts trying to predict the future of the health plan business who are looking for an underwriting cycle will miss the real turns in the market.Recent health plan earnings issues have once again raised the question, do we still have an underwriting cycle, and are we entering one?In my mind, anyone trying to understand the profitability of the health plan business who concentrates on whether or

"Wall Street Comes to Washington"

The event I look forward to every year is "Wall Street Comes to Washington," Paul Ginsburg's (Center for Studying Health System Change) annual merging of Wall Street and policymakers in a lively discussion of health care from both perspectives.The last few years I have gotten to participate on the health insurance market panel. The session also had a panel concentrating on hospital, physician,

What Do We Need to Do to Fix the Medicare Physician Payment Problem?

Whenever the subject of Medicare physician fee payments comes up on this blog, the reaction from physicians, particularly primary care docs, is predictable: "You can't cut us, we haven't had a Medicare raise in years, we are already dramatically underpaid, and if Medicare cuts our payments we are going to stop taking Medicare patients."There is no doubt that doctors have a point--particularly the

Coventry Health--Another Reminder That This Isn't an Easy Business

Here are some comments from a first quarter earnings call Coventry management would sure like to take back.Yesterday, Coventry reported that its Medicare private fee-for-service business will miss its second quarter medical cost ratio projections by more than 300 basis points and that it will miss its prior second quarter estimates for its commercial medial cost ratio by a whopping 200 basis

Wall Street Continues to Be Disappointed in Managed Care--Just Where Did They Think It Was Headed in the First Place?

United Health's earnings and revenue grew by 7% this quarter year over year and the stock fell by almost 10% yesterday.I'd hate to see them really screw up.United is the first to admit that they have some service and persistency issues but the fundamentals of their business continue on track.Wellpoint followed with another disappointing report today.Wall Street finally seems to be figuring out

Health Plan Stock Prices Hard Hit Recently--Then There is John McCain

The recent hit HMO stocks have taken in the market has come because Wall Street has the jitters over revised earnings outlooks. Many health plan stocks have fallen by 50% in recent weeks.The Street is right to worry that the health plans are going to have difficulty pumping out more of the great and predictable earnings we've seen from them in recent years. But they also continue to miss a very

Today's HMO Carnage on Wall Street

Maybe times have been just too good for so long that people have forgotten just what a challenging business this can be.After easy profits for the industry during a multi-year period when trend rates fell, today Wellpoint let us know nothing can be taken for granted.When the trend rate is steadily falling a monkey can make money. If an employer sees their claims go up by 9% the year before, it's

A Slowing Economy--What Impact Will It Have On The Health Care Sector?

Health care is considered a business that tends to be resistant to economic downturns. Brian Klepper returns with a post asking just what the impact of a slowing economy will have on the health care sector. He specifically points to changes in real wages and home prices.Health Care and The Gathering Stormby Brian KlepperHere are two very interesting and frightening charts that my good friend