Ohio Blues case puts discounts in spotlight again.(Ohio Blue Cross and Blue Shield)

National Underwriter Life & Health-Financial Services Edition, September, 1995 by Schwartz, Matthew P.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Ohio was found guilty in federal court of illegally obtaining discounts from hospitals and not passing along the savings accruing from the discounts to its policyholders. The ruling will have an effect on the insurance industry as other health insurers, including Trigon Blue Cross Blue Shield of Virginia, face similar suits. Medical economists believe that mandating that discount savings be shared with policyholders may lead to the end of discounts and higher health care prices. The health insurance industry already claims that discounts are shared with policyholders.

The recent ruling by a federal judge that Ohio Blue Cross and Blue Shield improperly kept secret the discounts it obtained from hospitals and failed to pass along the savings to...

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