CEO Daniel Loepp: "We are starting to give money back."
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan announced Wednesday that group plans and indiviudals will get more than $100 million in 2020 bill reductions and refunds. The company attributed the break to fewer aniticipated health care claims due to the disrupton of Covid19.
“We are living through a great disruption in health care economics, and there is still a lot of uncertainty about where health care spending will go this year,” President and CEO Daniel J. Loepp said in a statement. “But at this point in the pandemic, we’re confident in premiums exceeding claims for the year – so we are starting to give money back to our customers."
The insurer will provide this to customers and members with Blue Cross and Blue Care Network health plans, according to a press release:
► Fully insured small group customers with 50 or fewer employees will receive a 30 percent credit on their July premium invoice. All told, BCBSM is providing about $37 million back to small group customers.
► Rate adjustments for small group customers. Blue Dental and Blue Vision employer group customers will be sharing a total refund of about $10.5 million. All fully insured groups with dental and vision coverage will receive a one-month premium refund to be credited on July invoices. BCBSM also will not increase rates for fully insured customers renewing dental and vision plans for 2021.
►Individual members from 2019 will receive a rebate resulting from lower than expected health care claims. Altogether, about $45 million will be paid directly to these 2019 individual plan subscribers in September. Rebates are determined based on each subscriber’s plan and premiums paid in 2019. Rebate amounts will vary by subscriber.
► Medigap (Medicare Supplement) and individual Medicare Advantage members in a plan with a premium above $0 will receive a 15 percent premium refund for the months of March and April to be applied to their July premium bill. This refund totals about $15 million to Medigap and Individual Medicare Advantage members. For Individual Medicare Advantage members this includes their Optional Supplemental Buy-up (if applicable).
Additionally, the insurer is waiving costs for Medicare Advantage members for all in-person primary care visits, for in-person behavioral health services and for telemedicine access. It is also waiving costs through June 30 for Covid treatments.
