Blues opposing insurance overhaul

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan said Wednesday it is strongly opposed to alternatives being proposed by the chairman of the state's Senate Health Policy Committee to overhaul individual health insurance affecting 322,000 people.

he issue is shaping up as one of the top state legislative battles of the year while the number of consumers shopping for health insurance grows as employers drop health benefits.

The bills as written "will benefit consumers struggling today" to pay for insurance and provide a "long-term way of sustaining health insurance coverage for individuals," said Andrew Hetzel, vice president of corporate communications for Blue Cross.

The nonprofit insurer is supporting legislation to let it price and structure its money-losing individual policies more like commercial insurers. It wants to be able to immediately raise rates, subject to subsequent review by Michigan's Office of Financial and Insurance Services, with no challenges by consumers and Michigan's attorney general.
Growing trend

The legislation affects people under age 64. In 2006, the latest year for which figures are available, 256,000 people purchased their own health insurance in Michigan and another 66,000 had so-called group conversion policies that extend workplace coverage they once had, according to the insurance bureau.

The individual market, now 6 percent of all insurance sold in the state, will grow to 25 percent of all insurance policies in the next five to seven years, according to Blue Cross estimates. Using those projections, the individual market could affect as many as 2.5 million Michigan residents, said Sen. Tom George, R-Portage, chairman of the Senate committee.

The bills quickly passed the House in October by overwhelming margins.