I agree with one statement from Blue Cross CEO Bob Greczyn's Sept. 23 Point of View: The status quo is not acceptable. I find it ironic, however, that his solutions to health insurance reform are more of the same.
The cost of health insurance has risen five times faster than wages in North Carolina. Greczyn claims that a public health-care option should not be part of the solution. Blue Cross holds a monopolistic 96.8 percent share of the individual market and a 72.5 percent overall market share in North Carolina. A public option would compete with its business -- one that provides $4 million in compensation to its CEO and more than $1 million to top executives.
Blue Cross also has an exclusive deal administering the N.C. State Health Plan for teachers and state employees. Greczyn talked about the pressure on insurers to keep costs down, but when it came to the State Health Plan this year, taxpayers and the state's public servants were the ones asked to sacrifice. State employees and teachers incurred $600 in additional costs, and $250 million came from the state's rainy day fund to pay the bills, but Blue Cross and Blue Shield sacrificed nothing.
