S.F. Chronicle, 2-11-2009:
Anthem Blue Cross, which plans to raise premiums for about four-fifths of the health insurer's individual policyholders effective March 1, has outraged members, many of whom have been hit with price increases of more than 30 percent.
San Francisco resident and cafe owner Jesse Fink, who has had Blue Cross coverage for at least 30 years, has gotten used to regular premium increases. But he wasn't prepared for a letter telling him the cost to cover himself and his family would jump by 31 percent on March 1.
"How could they just charge a 31 percent increase?" said Fink, 55, who already has raised his annual deductibles from $2,500 to $5,000 per family member. He said his 23-year-old son, who is on a separate policy, got a 40 percent increase."This is pushing the need for health care reform," he said. "When someone gets, God forbid, cancer or something, are we supposed to go broke?"
Anthem Blue Cross, formerly Blue Cross of California, covers about 800,000 individual policyholders in California, more individual members than any other insurer in the state. Individual policies are typically purchased by people who do not have access to a group policy through an employer. Anthem officials confirmed the company will raise rates March 1 for about 80 percent of its individual members.
LINK:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/11/BU2F15I06K.DTL&tsp=1
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