Health insurance companies want to raise your rates...again!
Two of these companies, Anthem and UnitedHealthcare (UHC), were among those who tanked a Public Option in Connecticut in 2021 with a threatening letter to Governor Lamont.
They’ve been doing pretty well since then. In 2024, UnitedHealthcare reported profits of $14,405,000,000, and Anthem reported profits of $5,980,000,000.
You read those right - that’s $20 billion, from two companies alone, that could have paid for health care – and instead went into the pockets of already-rich shareholders
Now, health insurers are asking the Connecticut Insurance Department (CID) for permission to raise rates for plans in the individual and small group markets, both on and off the state-sponsored exchange, Access Health CT. This year, insurers are requesting increases that range from 5.9% to 26.1%.
The CID is accepting comments on requested rate hikes through July 5. Write a letter to them expressing why these rate hikes need to be denied!
Click here to tell the Insurance Department to turn down these requested rate hikes.
Click here for all requested increases.
They’ve been doing pretty well since then. In 2024, UnitedHealthcare reported profits of $14,405,000,000, and Anthem reported profits of $5,980,000,000.
You read those right - that’s $20 billion, from two companies alone, that could have paid for health care – and instead went into the pockets of already-rich shareholders
Now, health insurers are asking the Connecticut Insurance Department (CID) for permission to raise rates for plans in the individual and small group markets, both on and off the state-sponsored exchange, Access Health CT. This year, insurers are requesting increases that range from 5.9% to 26.1%.
The CID is accepting comments on requested rate hikes through July 5. Write a letter to them expressing why these rate hikes need to be denied!
Click here to tell the Insurance Department to turn down these requested rate hikes.
Click here for all requested increases.
Speak Out Against Healthcare Greed
Recent events have shown just how many Americans have direct and painful experience with the health insurance strategy of “guarding against unnecessary care.”
This is actually how insurance companies, in pursuit of ever increasing profits, deploy claims denials and other tactics. Your health is not their concern.
Want to join the fight? Click here to share your own healthcare story with CCAG and to sign up to receive healthcare updates and take part in coming actions.
We will be offering new events that uncover healthcare greed. Visit linktr.ee/ccagfivefamilies for our prior reports on stock buybacks, profits and CEO pay.
We will also share ways you can take part in the decision making this legislative session with CCAG and allies as we work for a strong Public Option for healthcare and to address insurance company’s abuses of prior authorization.
CCAG has been fighting healthcare greed since our founding more than 50 years ago. We are not stopping now, and we will be working this legislative session for real wins for Connecticut families.
Too many of us are being denied care – by insurance companies getting between us and our doctors.
Enough is enough. Share your story and join the fight.
Are you fighting a claim denial?
You have the right to see the file on how your insurance company decided your claim, including the doctors who were consulted and what their certifications are. Check out this ProPublica guide on how to request your health insurance claim file, which can include details about what your insurer is saying about you and your case.
Connecticut's Healthcare Advocate can help have insurers pay their share of a medical bill or claim, appeal denials, understand health insurance plans and options, and resolve enrollment issues.
This is actually how insurance companies, in pursuit of ever increasing profits, deploy claims denials and other tactics. Your health is not their concern.
Want to join the fight? Click here to share your own healthcare story with CCAG and to sign up to receive healthcare updates and take part in coming actions.
We will be offering new events that uncover healthcare greed. Visit linktr.ee/ccagfivefamilies for our prior reports on stock buybacks, profits and CEO pay.
We will also share ways you can take part in the decision making this legislative session with CCAG and allies as we work for a strong Public Option for healthcare and to address insurance company’s abuses of prior authorization.
CCAG has been fighting healthcare greed since our founding more than 50 years ago. We are not stopping now, and we will be working this legislative session for real wins for Connecticut families.
Too many of us are being denied care – by insurance companies getting between us and our doctors.
Enough is enough. Share your story and join the fight.
Are you fighting a claim denial?
You have the right to see the file on how your insurance company decided your claim, including the doctors who were consulted and what their certifications are. Check out this ProPublica guide on how to request your health insurance claim file, which can include details about what your insurer is saying about you and your case.
Connecticut's Healthcare Advocate can help have insurers pay their share of a medical bill or claim, appeal denials, understand health insurance plans and options, and resolve enrollment issues.
Is Our Health Care System Making Us Sick?
Access to quality, affordable healthcare is a crisis in Connecticut. Join CCAG for an explainer series that delves in to how and why we got here - and what we can do about it.
Our first session, No Accident: How Greed Has Distorted Our Health Care Systems, explored how hospitals, insurance companies and drug manufacturers have come to focus in recent decades on ever-increasing profits.
Our next session, December 3, focused on hospital consolidation - what is happening and how it impacts our healthcare.
Our first session, No Accident: How Greed Has Distorted Our Health Care Systems, explored how hospitals, insurance companies and drug manufacturers have come to focus in recent decades on ever-increasing profits.
Our next session, December 3, focused on hospital consolidation - what is happening and how it impacts our healthcare.
Thank you to all who took action against HC Rate Hikes!
|
Health insurance companies asked the CT Insurance Department (CID) to raise your rates - again. Your voices were heard and on September 6, 2024 they issued their final rulings on 8 health insurance rate filings for the 2025 individual and small group markets. The filings were made by 7 health insurers for plans that currently cover about 200,000 people.
The average rate increase requested in the individual market was reduced by 29% from the requested 8.3%, resulting in an average increase of 5.9%. The average rate increase requested in the small group market was reduced 35% from a requested average of 11.9%, resulting in an average increase of 7.8%. We appreciate the Insurance Department rolling back the proposed health insurance rate hikes and placing a cap on profits on health insurance. However, prices are still too high. |
The review did not adequately analyze how vertical integration impacts rates and did not place limits on this. The legislature needs to give the Department the tools to do this analysis and limit insurers' schemes to profit at every level.
We are pleased that the hikes have been mitigated to a degree.
Clearly, our government needs to act in a much stronger manner to rein in these corporate profiteers. Stay tuned for next steps!
We are pleased that the hikes have been mitigated to a degree.
Clearly, our government needs to act in a much stronger manner to rein in these corporate profiteers. Stay tuned for next steps!
- Read the CID Announcement
- Read the Rate Filings Fact Sheet
- View CCAG's press release & report revealing 2023 spending by just four health insurance companies on profits, CEO pay and stock buybacks. They are making billions by rejecting your claims and raising your rates.
Take Action to Oppose Health Insurance Rate Increases
Health insurance companies have submitted their annual request to increase rates for individual plans and small businesses.
Requested increases are as high as 23% – from companies that are spending billions of your premium dollars on executive pay, stock buybacks, and profits.
We are urging everyone to write to the insurance department and tell them to take into account profits, executive pay, stock buybacks, and vertical integration and mergers and acquisitions -- and to reject these requests.
CCAG is revealing how 2022 spending by just four health insurance companies on profits, CEO pay and stock buybacks was just short of $400 billion. Visit us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the hair-raising details of how these companies are spending your ratepayer dollars.
The CID's announcement of the request is here.
Click here for more information.
Clearly, government needs to act in a much stronger manner to rein in these corporate profiteers. Stay tuned for details to continue the fight against insurance greed!
Requested increases are as high as 23% – from companies that are spending billions of your premium dollars on executive pay, stock buybacks, and profits.
We are urging everyone to write to the insurance department and tell them to take into account profits, executive pay, stock buybacks, and vertical integration and mergers and acquisitions -- and to reject these requests.
CCAG is revealing how 2022 spending by just four health insurance companies on profits, CEO pay and stock buybacks was just short of $400 billion. Visit us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the hair-raising details of how these companies are spending your ratepayer dollars.
The CID's announcement of the request is here.
Click here for more information.
Clearly, government needs to act in a much stronger manner to rein in these corporate profiteers. Stay tuned for details to continue the fight against insurance greed!
About Connecticut's Five Families
Health insurance companies are making billions by denying you care.
Five of them sent this letter to Governor Lamont in April 2021, threatening to move jobs out of Connecticut if we passed a Public Option. It worked, and the Public Option was scrapped in the final days of the 2021 legislative session.
CCAG is investigating, and bringing you information you need about the greed and profiteering of these companies.
Three initial reports exposed hundreds of millions diverted from health care to CEO pay, lobbying expenses, and profits and stock buybacks.
Our first report, on CEO compensation, showed that those five companies paid their CEOs $137.7 million in the last year. Our second, Games Insurers Play: How Low Will They Go?, explores the tactics and money spent in the 2021 legislative session. It shows that the industry, these Five Families, and dark money groups who don't disclose their donors spent at least $1.3 million lobbying in just six months. Finally, Pandemic Profiteering: Making a Killing on COVID, finds that what these companies reported in profits, and spent on stock buybacks, could have funded the entire state of Connecticut for two years.
CCAG updated these in August of 2022, showing Billions Spent on Stock Buybacks, Profits, and Executive Compensation by Health Insurance Companies Seeking Double Digit Rate Increases.
By adding thousands of small businesses and nonprofits to the state's Partnership Plan, the Public Option proposed in 2021 would have offered affordable, quality coverage to tens of thousands of people. Health insurance companies would still have had work administering the plan -- but it would have impeded the skyrocketing profits of the insurance industry.
It's time our lawmakers listened to the people of Connecticut, rather than millionaire insurance executives.
Make sure to like, follow and share our Five Families Facebook page, share your health care story, and click here to take action and sign up for updates.
Five of them sent this letter to Governor Lamont in April 2021, threatening to move jobs out of Connecticut if we passed a Public Option. It worked, and the Public Option was scrapped in the final days of the 2021 legislative session.
CCAG is investigating, and bringing you information you need about the greed and profiteering of these companies.
Three initial reports exposed hundreds of millions diverted from health care to CEO pay, lobbying expenses, and profits and stock buybacks.
Our first report, on CEO compensation, showed that those five companies paid their CEOs $137.7 million in the last year. Our second, Games Insurers Play: How Low Will They Go?, explores the tactics and money spent in the 2021 legislative session. It shows that the industry, these Five Families, and dark money groups who don't disclose their donors spent at least $1.3 million lobbying in just six months. Finally, Pandemic Profiteering: Making a Killing on COVID, finds that what these companies reported in profits, and spent on stock buybacks, could have funded the entire state of Connecticut for two years.
CCAG updated these in August of 2022, showing Billions Spent on Stock Buybacks, Profits, and Executive Compensation by Health Insurance Companies Seeking Double Digit Rate Increases.
By adding thousands of small businesses and nonprofits to the state's Partnership Plan, the Public Option proposed in 2021 would have offered affordable, quality coverage to tens of thousands of people. Health insurance companies would still have had work administering the plan -- but it would have impeded the skyrocketing profits of the insurance industry.
It's time our lawmakers listened to the people of Connecticut, rather than millionaire insurance executives.
Make sure to like, follow and share our Five Families Facebook page, share your health care story, and click here to take action and sign up for updates.
Connecticut's Five Families
Health insurance companies wanted to raise your rates.
|
|
|
Ask why CT residents should support obscene stock buybacks, profits and executive pay!
Insurance companies are seeking rate hikes averaging 20%. The CT Insurance Department is holding a hearing Monday, August 15 at 9 am for the public to submit and provide comments. You will be able to ask questions of the carriers and the Insurance Department.
CCAG wants you to have the information you need to speak out at the hearing. See updates above!
Submit testimony here or sign up here: https://bit.ly/CIDLetter
Take CCAG's survey here: https://bit.ly/ShareYourHealthCareStory
Make sure to check out, and like and share, these posts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, calling out the outrageous amount of money being spent on executive pay, profits and stock buybacks.
UPDATE: The CT Insurance Department granted rate hikes, which while lower that requested are still too much. Stay in the fight with CCAG - click here to share your health care story!
Insurance companies are seeking rate hikes averaging 20%. The CT Insurance Department is holding a hearing Monday, August 15 at 9 am for the public to submit and provide comments. You will be able to ask questions of the carriers and the Insurance Department.
CCAG wants you to have the information you need to speak out at the hearing. See updates above!
Submit testimony here or sign up here: https://bit.ly/CIDLetter
Take CCAG's survey here: https://bit.ly/ShareYourHealthCareStory
Make sure to check out, and like and share, these posts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, calling out the outrageous amount of money being spent on executive pay, profits and stock buybacks.
UPDATE: The CT Insurance Department granted rate hikes, which while lower that requested are still too much. Stay in the fight with CCAG - click here to share your health care story!
Check out CCAG's op-ed in the CT Mirror, "No Way to Run a Healthcare System."
|
...Connecticut had the chance last year to pass a public option, which would have allowed small businesses and nonprofits to join the state’s Partnership Plan. The proposal would have provided more transparency, lowered prices for all and eliminated the high-deductible plans that are crippling many businesses, nonprofits and families.
But it would have limited health insurance company profits, and five of them threatened to move jobs out of state if the Public Option passed — a threat almost certainly false, as they admit in their letter, since workers can now work from anywhere, and Connecticut’s workforce possesses the skills they need. The bill was blocked. Read more here. |
