Dive Brief:
- While most insurers in Oregon are looking to raise rates for individuals next year, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of the Northwest is asking the Oregon Insurance Division for approval to make a 2% reduction.
- If the cut is approved, there will still be one plan less expensive for individuals—newcomer Zoom Health Plan's $233 for a standard silver plan is $12 cheaper than Kaiser’s requested rate. On the other end, Moda Health is asking to raise rates an average of 25.6%.
- In addition, Kaiser is asking to make a major reduction of 10.6% to its small group rates—the largest reduction of all the insurers.
Dive Insight:
Kaiser explains that it differs from the other plans because its care delivery and insurance components comprise a closed system.
"The comparison may not be completely fair because we're a care delivery system with an insurance company," Andy McCulloch, president of Kaiser Permanente Northwest Region, told the Portland Business Journal. "We base our rating on our models of preventive care."
McCulloch said the reductions aren't specifically aiming to attract new members or to offer the lowest rates. "First and foremost, our strategy is not to grab market share, but to make sure when you join Kaiser Permanente, you have a promise for better health and stable financing arrangements," McCulloch said. "We're not going to be real aggressive going to the bottom of the pricing."
He added that Kaiser's rates are not being significantly influenced by questions around the federal risk corridor program, or its 2014 loss of nearly $16 million.