A.M. Best Affirms Ratings of The Regence Group Affiliates; Revises Outlook of Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon to Stable.OLDWICK, N.J. -- A.M. Best Co. has affirmed af·firm v. af·firmed, af·firm·ing, af·firms v.tr. 1. To declare positively or firmly; maintain to be true. 2. To support or uphold the validity of; confirm. v.intr. the financial strength ratings of A- (Excellent) of Regence BlueShield (Seattle, WA) and Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah (Salt Lake City, UT). Additionally, A.M. Best has affirmed the financial strength ratings of B++ (Very Good) of Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon and Regence Life and Health Insurance Company. All are affiliates of The Regence Group. All the above companies are located in Portland, OR, except where specified. The rating outlook remains stable, except for Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon, which is revised to stable from negative. Regence BlueShield and Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah's market-leading business profiles and favorable fa·vor·a·ble adj. 1. Advantageous; helpful: favorable winds. 2. Encouraging; propitious: a favorable diagnosis. 3. earnings continue to strengthen their risk-based capitalization capitalization n. 1) the act of counting anticipated earnings and expenses as capital assets (property, equipment, fixtures) for accounting purposes. 2) the amount of anticipated net earnings which hypothetically can be used for conversion into capital assets. . These favorable trends could continue during the medium term, aided by The Regence Group's improving administrative efficiency. Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon's rating outlook, including Regence Life and Health Insurance Company's outlook, has been revised to stable from negative. The group's financial strength could improve further during the medium term, driven by its refocused business profile, stabilized sta·bi·lize v. sta·bi·lized, sta·bi·liz·ing, sta·bi·liz·es v.tr. 1. To make stable or steadfast. 2. underwriting Underwriting 1. The process by which investment bankers raise investment capital from investors on behalf of corporations and governments that are issuing securities (both equity and debt). 2. The process of issuing insurance policies. results and the continued support of The Regence Group. However, Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon is still subject to execution risks, with competitor price pressure and statewide economic issues exacerbating ex·ac·er·bate tr.v. ex·ac·er·bat·ed, ex·ac·er·bat·ing, ex·ac·er·bates To increase the severity, violence, or bitterness of; aggravate: these risks. Execution risks relate to demonstrating an effective turnaround to the market; maintaining sales momentum and adequate account retention while re-pricing; and managing information technology cost overrun Noun 1. cost overrun - excess of cost over budget; "the cost overrun necessitated an additional allocation of funds in the budget" cost - the total spent for goods or services including money and time and labor , service and pricing issues due to use of legacy platforms and eventual conversion to the standard FACETS platform. A.M. Best believes Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon's stabilized financial strength, coupled with the operational assistance from The Regence Group, should provide sufficient support to address its execution risks. Nonetheless, A.M. Best will continue to evaluate the company's management of these risks and assess the impact on its financial strength. The financial strength ratings of A- (Excellent) have been affirmed with a stable outlook for Regence BlueShield and its following subsidiaries: --RegenceCare --Asuris Northwest Health The financial strength ratings of A- (Excellent) have been affirmed with a stable outlook for Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah and its following subsidiary: --HealthWise The financial strength ratings of B++ (Very Good) have been affirmed with a stable outlook for Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon and its following subsidiaries: --Regence Life and Health Insurance Company --Regence HMO HMO health maintenance organization. HMO n. A corporation that is financed by insurance premiums and has member physicians and professional staff who provide curative and preventive medicine within certain financial, Oregon --Regence Health Maintenance of Oregon For current Best's Ratings Best's rating A rating A.M. Best Co. assigns to insurance companies based on the company's ability to meet its obligations to its policyholders. , independent data and analysis on more than 1,050 health companies and more than 130 HMO industry composites, please visit http://www.ambest.com/health/. A.M. Best Co., established in 1899, is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit A.M. Best's Web site at www.ambest.com. |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion