This Summer, many people will be receiving a health insurance rebate. In Illinois, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois will not be issuing rebates to its customers. This is because it met the medical loss ratio requirement. Other insurers in Illinois could, potentially, be giving out rebates to their customers.
The insurance rebates that many Americans will be receiving this Summer are a benefit of the Affordable Care Act. Part of it includes something called the medical loss ratio. This went into affect in 2011. It requires all health insurance companies to spend at least 80% of the money that they got from their customer’s premium payments on things that actually can improve the customer’s health.
The insurers who failed to meet the requirements of the medical loss ratio have to issue rebates to their customers. This is the first year that this consequence has gone into affect. So far, I am certain that residents of Tennessee and Massachusetts, who have health insurance, will be receiving a rebate.
Recently, the Obama administration announced that around 163,000 families who live in Illinois, and who have health insurance, will receive health insurance rebates. It has been said that the rebates will be for an average of $380 per family. Again, this is directly because of the medical loss ratio, (which is part of the Affordable Care Act).
One insurer, however, is not going to be issuing rebates to its customers. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois won’t be giving out rebates. If this is your insurance company, then you shouldn’t expect to receive a rebate at all. This might sound confusing, considering that, earlier this year, the insurer sent notices to thousands of individual customers that their policy terms had changed specifically to allow for refunds.
A spokesman from Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois explains why it won’t be giving rebates to its customers.
“I can’t speak for the competition, but final results for 2011 indicated (Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois) exceeded the new federal requirements as a result of careful expense management, collaboration with providers and other health care professionals, and business innovations”.
This seems to be a fancy way of saying that Blue Cross & Blue Shield actually met the medical loss ratio. It indicates that the insurer spent at least 80% of the money it took in from customer’s premiums on things that can improve the health of the customers. Keep in mind, though, that if your health insurance company is not Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois, you could, potentially, receive a rebate.
Image by BrianSwan on Flickr