HJNO Jan/Feb 2024

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS I  JAN / FEB 2024 17 Louisiana Department of Insurance has announced the BCBSLA takeover public hearing date Feb. 14-15 at 10:00 a.m. in the Poydras Hearing Room, Poydras Building, 1702 North Third Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. If you are interested in participating in the public hearing, you have the option to make comments or provide evidence. You can do this by submitting your comments or evidence in writing to David Caldwell, Louisiana Department of Insurance, P.O. Box 94214, Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9214, by close of business at 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 5, 2024. Comments or evidence received by Feb. 5, 2024, will be posted on the Louisiana Department of Insurance website at https://www.ldi.la.gov/public-hearing-and-rulemaking-notices. Howmuch money does BCBSLA have in reserves? Kinney I believe it is over $1.2 billion. Is that high or low compared to BCBS in other states? Kinney At least twice what is required by the Louisiana Department of Insurance. Why does BCBSLA want to be bought out? Kinney That is the big question. As of now, the only gain that we can identify is to the board. Is it only money for board members, as you imply, or does Elevance actually have redeeming qualities the board thinks will better serve citizens because of its size? Kinney Please see the listed benefits by BCB- SLA, and in the plan or proxy they list the benefits — 7 or 8 items. However, there is no obligation in the plan or in the sale that these benefits will be made available to the membership. The obligations of Elevance stop at the policy holders anniversary date. There is no continued obligation for any benefits to be paid by Elevance to the membership. Howmuch are current BCBSLA board members paid? Kinney If youmean howmuch will the mem- bers receive in payment for their member- ship benefits, it is slightly less than $3,100. The foundation will receive more than nine times as much money. Are they doing a good job serving mem- bers and providers? Kinney It is generally my opinion, in meet- ing with several of both categories, that the answer is “yes.”The providers could be hap- pier, but I think that comes with the territory. The providers are not in favor of this plan. Are BCBSLA employees told they will lose their jobs? Kinney Not directly. However, there is wide- spread fear amongst the employees for future employment. Elevance has recently had substantial corporate layoffs. It is sur- mised that Elevance will close all of the cur- rent BCBS offices except local sales. And if they are, wouldn’t it make sense that eliminating duplicate jobs would be a cost savings? It is a cost savings to Elevance, but there is no guarantee or obligation that this cost savings will be passed on to the members. How do Elevance premiums and ben- efits compare to BCBSLA? Kinney Unknown. However, there is nomen- tion nor promise of reduced premiums or increased service, which should be required pursuant to Louisiana demutualization law. According to my math, if the $2.5 bil- lion went into the pockets of each member, it would be around $1,300 — $2.5 billion divided by $93,000 and add excess surplus. See Hause report. Couldn’t it be argued that much more could be done through a now $3 billion foundation focused on health of Louisi- ana citizens? Kinney The problem with that is that there is only one group that has the right to the benefits of this money, which are the current members and policyholders. Taking their money and giving it away to needy, at the whim of the board, has nothing to do with the health insurance of members. The board members have no substantive restrictions on spending the proceeds. BCBSLA declined to respond to these questions due to the pending litigation on this matter. FEB. 14-15 FOLLOW-UPQUESTIONS