WellPoint's Anthem Blue Cross spurns Calif. small-business exchange

L A Times ^ | 7/19/13 | Chad Terhune

[Nachum]

Health insurance giant Anthem Blue Cross said it won't participate in California's new insurance market for small businesses.

Anthem, a unit of WellPoint Inc., is California's largest insurer for small employers. This surprising move could hamper the state's ability to enroll businesses in its new exchange called Covered California that opens Jan. 1 as part of the federal healthcare law.

Instead, Anthem said it will keep selling coverage to small firms outside the exchange in direct competition with the state-run market. Anthem also remains one of 13 health insurers that will offer policies to individuals in Covered California.

Nonetheless, Anthem's decision stunned many observers.

"That's really surprising and not a good thing for the exchange," said Micah Weinberg, a senior policy advisor at the Bay Area Council, an employer-backed San Francisco group.

[Nachum]

The list, Ping

Let me know if you would like to be on or off the ping list

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[lowbridge]

Bump

[Regulator]

Part of the plan.

Most sensible companies will walk or shut down, leading to the “necessity” of government run medical insurance.

The Communists are patient. But they know they’re gonna get there.

[upchuck]

Bump.

[Mike Darancette]

"Because Anthem is no longer required to participate in SHOP as a condition of being on the individual exchange," Ng said, "Anthem has withdrawn its SHOP application. Anthem will continue to participate in the individual exchange.”

Anthem said. 'We want out of SHOP, change the requirement or we will quit the individual exchange too'.