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5/19/2008
Health plans say they'll risk losing members to protect profit margins

American Medical News, May 19, 2008
Even as the number of uninsured Americans increases, the nations largest health insurers say they will sacrifice members for profits. Under pressure from Wall Street to continue to show improvement in their profits, insurers say they won’t lower premiums to keep customers. WellPoint President and CEO Angela Braly emphasized the insurer’s market power, which gives them the ability to lean hard on its network of physicians to accept lower reimbursement. Even though insurers’ profits are increasing, their membership from employer groups are either declining or not increasing as fast planned. But insurers argue that they must raise premiums to keep up with the sharp rise in medical costs. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which sponsored the recent Cover the Uninsured Week, reported that increased premiums have been a huge reason for the ever increasing number of uninsured. Insurers say that they are not trying to price people out of the market, that they have affordable plans to cover everyone’s needs.