Senate Health and Welfare Chairman Patrick McMath says a daylong meeting with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana officials about its proposed sale to Indiana-based Elevance Health produced a ton of unanswered questions. McMath says the sale will create a foundation that will address poverty and health inequities, but there are a lot of unknowns.
“Three billion dollar foundation, the language that both sets it up and determines its scope and practice is incredibly vague,” said McMath.
McMath says they are also concerned the proposed sale to Elevance will lead to higher costs for policyholders despite the president and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana telling legislators in his opening statement that premiums will not rise.
“And then when pressed by himself and other members of the committee he admitted that premiums will inevitably increase,” said McMath.
McMath says Blue Cross is a local nonprofit while Elevance is a for-profit company that has to answer to stockholders. He says in states that Elevance has acquired a Blue Cross Blue Shield, premiums have gone up.
“I would much rather have an in-state non-profit over an out of state for profit company determining whether myself, my family, my friends, and my constituents can receive the care they desperately need,” said McMath.
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