Blue Shield will increase health insurance premium for all Individual and Family Plans in Santa Monica and the rest of California.
The March 2012 rate increases are due to increasing health care costs. The statewide average medical increase will be 9.7 percent for all Individual and Family plans in California.
Blue Shield will continue their “2 Percent Pledge, whereby Blue Shield commits if their net income exceeds 2 percent of revenue, they will give the difference back to their policyholders and the community as long as they are financially solvent, with sufficient funds to make the investments needed to stay competitive.”
There are no changes to annual deductibles, co-pays or coinsurance, and out-of-pocket maximums for medical plans. Specialty Benefits such as, dental insurance are not increasing.
Here are the rate increases for all Blue Shield IFP holders
Medical plans statewide: 9.7%
HMO plans in Northern California: 14.9%,
HMO plans in Southern California: 14.8%
PPO plans in Norther California: 9.7%
PPO plans in Southern California : 9.5%
Especially the premiums for young family will go up as high as 14.5% on the some of the PPO plans such as the Balance plan and Vital Shield plans, whereas the premiums on for “older policy holders still under 65′ will experience only slight increases.
Tired of the rising health insurance cost in Santa Monica? Let us give you a comparison quote to see if other carriers can offer you similar plans at a lower premium.