Weiss Ratings Guide to Health Insurers 2012 Editions

• Publication date: March 2012

Weiss Ratings Guide to Health Insurers is the first and only source to cover the financial stability of the nation’s health care system, rating the financial safety of more than 6,000 health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and all of the Blue Cross Blue Shield plans – updated quarterly to ensure the most accurate, up-to-date information. The Guide also provides a complete listing of all the major health insurers, including all Long-Te...

Weiss Ratings Guide to Health Insurers is the first and only source to cover the financial stability of the nation’s health care system, rating the financial safety of more than 6,000 health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and all of the Blue Cross Blue Shield plans – updated quarterly to ensure the most accurate, up-to-date information.

The Guide also provides a complete listing of all the major health insurers, including all Long-Term Care and Medigap insurers, as well as comprehensive, quarterly coverage on the financial stability of more than 1,500 HMOs and health insurers; the number of serious consumer complains filed against most Medicare HMOs so your patrons can see who’s actually providing the best (or worst) services.

The consequences of dealing with a financially strapped HMO or health insurance company often go far beyond the potential loss of premium dollars. Consumers depending on a weak healthcare company can suddenly find themselves with reduced coverage, less access to specialists, and poor customer service as the company cuts costs in an attempt to regain its financial footing. Your patrons will benefit from having easy access to the important, easy-to-access information in this handbook.

Weiss Ratings is the only place you can get this critical information.

Our Guide to Health Insurers includes:

Comprehensive, timely coverage on the financial stability of over 700 HMOs and 1,700 health insurers
The most accurate insurance company ratings available -- the same quality ratings heralded by the U.S. General Accounting Office
Separate listings for those companies offering Medigap and long-term care policies
The number of serious consumer complaints filed against most HMOs so you can see who is actually providing the best (or worst) service

The easy-to-use layout gives you a one-line summary analysis for each company that we track, followed by an in-depth, detailed analysis of all HMOs and the largest health insurers. The guide also includes a list of Weiss Ratings Recommended Companies with information on how to contact them, and the reasoning behind any rating upgrades or downgrades.

Weiss Ratings Guides

Weiss’s rating scale is extremely straightforward and easy to understand. There are no complicated number grades to interpret, no colored paper to decode, and no stars to count. Instead, each entry gets a simple, intuitive letter grade that immediately identifies the wheat from the chaff. This is one more reason why Weiss Ratings is widely recognized as "America's Consumer Advocate for Financial Safety." The Weiss Safety Ratings have been proven to be the most accurate available from any of the major rating agencies. Plus, unlike the other major rating agencies, Weiss does not accept compensation from the companies it rates, and thus does not allow companies to influence the ratings they receive or to suppress the release of their ratings. In fact, the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) validated Weiss’ accuracy in its Insurance Ratings study, and that same superior rating methodology is used when deriving all other ratings as well.

Managed Care Industry in the United States

Contents

Introduction
Welcome . 3
How to Use This Guide 5
About Weiss Financial Strength Ratings . 9
Important Warnings and Cautions 17
Section I. Index of Companies . 19
Section II. Analysis of Largest Companies 69
Section III. Weiss Recommended Companies 273
Section IV. Weiss Recommended Companies by State. 283
Section V. Long-Term Care Insurers . 339
Section VI. Medicare Supplement Insurance 345
Section VII. Analysis of Medicare Managed Care Complaints . 411
Section VIII. Rating Upgrades and Downgrades 425
Appendix
Risk-Adjusted Capital. 445
Long-Term Care Insurance Planner . 455
Medicare Prescription Drug Planner 461
Recent Industry Failures . 468
State Insurance Commissioners 474
Glossary 475

Health Insurance in United States

United States Government Health Expenditure Through Social Security Funds, Us$bn

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1996 To 2010
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

United States Government Health Expenditure Through Social Security Funds, Usdbn

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1996 To 2010
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

United States Private Health Insurance Expenditure, Us$bn

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1996 To 2010
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

United States Private Health Insurance Expenditure, Usdbn

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1996 To 2010
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

Managed Care in United States

United States Pharmaceutical Sales, % Of Health Expenditure

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 2002 To 2021
By Business Monitor International
Source: IMS Health, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), Food and Drug Administrati

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

United States Health Expenditure Per Capita, Purchasing Power Parity (ppp), Us$

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1996 To 2009
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

United States Health Expenditure, Us$bn

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1996 To 2021
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

United States Health Expenditure, Us$bn, % Chg Y-o-y

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1997 To 2021
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States

United States Health Expenditure, Usdbn

• $ 250
• Industry data
• January 2013

Yearly, From 1996 To 2021
By Business Monitor International
Source: World Health Organization (WHO), BMI

• Industries : Managed Care
• Countries : United States