Introduced
by
To require that health insurance companies writing policies for small companies and groups (less than 100 persons) use a “rate band” pricing method, which prohibits policy prices from being based on criteria other than age, family composition, and geographic area. Prices variations based on these factors are limited, so that the highest cost group cannot be more than 200 percent to 400 percent greater than the lowest cost group, depending on the criteria. “Cherry picking,” by insurers, or only insuring the healthier members of a group, would be restricted by allowing an insurer to require that at least 75 percent of a group’s members be included under a policy. The bill also revises the structure of Blue Cross Blue Shield, placing its regulation under the same insurance code and state insurance commissioner as other health insurance companies, and reducing the size of its board of directors from 35 to 13. Blue Cross Blue Shield would be subject to the same “rate band” pricing method described above, allowing it to consider age when pricing health insurance policies.
Referred to the Committee on Health Insurance
