BATON ROUGE, La. — Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana has shelved for a second time its controversial plan to sell the non-profit insurance provider to the Indiana-based for-profit Elevance Health.
In a statement, BCBSLA said in part, “We know that change is hard, even when change is made for the right reasons. We continue to believe we need a strong partner to help position us for a vibrant future, and to help us make healthcare more affordable and to help us do more to improve the health of members and policyholders. However, now is not the right time to make this bold step.”
The proposed $2.5-billion sale drew fire from Governor Jeff Landry, Attorney General Liz Murrill and a growing number of state lawmakers.
“I’m glad it was shelved,” Senate Insurance Committee Chairman Kirk Talbot, R-River Ridge said. “That process had a lot of problems.”
Talbot says two legislative hearings on the Blue Cross acquisition raised a long list of questions.
Among the findings, Elevance reportedly has a high rate of claims denials, there is uncertainty over whether the company would retain the 2500 Baton Rouge based employees and confusion over which policy holders were allowed to vote on the sale.
But Talbot agrees with Blue Cross that given the changing landscape in healthcare, it may not survive long-term as a stand-alone insurance provider.
“What we have now with Blue Cross is not sustainable,” Talbot said. “If you look at their rising costs versus the premium dollars that they’re taking in, it’s just not a sustainable model.”
The proposed acquisition was hugely unpopular with healthcare and doctor groups. The state medical society sent an open letter to policyholders urging them to vote “no” on the deal.
“I don’t know a single physician in this state that was in support of Blue Cross selling to this company,” New Orleans physician Dr. Brobson Lutz said.
The proposed sale would have a devastating effect on health insurance rates, Lutz added.
“I think it’s very likely that a for-profit is going to make it much harder for patients and physicians to get things done.”
Sen. Talbot is encouraging Blue Cross to come back with a better plan.
“I just hope that they keep looking at ways to pivot and adjust to this changing healthcare environment,” Talbot said.
Blue Cross has 1.9 million policyholders in Louisiana.
Elevance released its own statement in part saying, “We are supportive of BCBSLA’s decision to withdraw their plan of reorganization. We will continue to meaningfully engage community members who are truly interested in better health outcomes and more affordable healthcare.”
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