Payers tell committee Vermonts regulated insurance markets have lost money; hospitals and medical prices cited as main drivers

Representatives of the states major health insurers told a legislative committee on Jan. 17 that Vermonts regulated commercial insurance markets have slipped into multi-year losses, driven chiefly by rising hospital prices and medical spending.

Sarah Teachout, director of government and media relations for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont, said the carrier has paid out more in claims than it collected in premiums in recent years. "In 2023, for every dollar in premiums collected, we paid out a dollar 11," Teachout said. She said Blue Cross has asked the Green Mountain Care Board for a larger contribution to reserves this year and that the board granted a higher reserve request to stabilize finances.

Insurers and committee members traced the shortfall to several causes. Testimony cited rapid increases in hospital charges, hospital budget overages that exceeded the Green Mountain Care Boards approved budgets, and accelerating prices for outpatient medical services and drugs billed through hospitals. Teachout said hospitals in some years have exceeded approved revenue levels; in response regulators have…