Can someone tell me the names of 2 of the biggest medical insurance companies in this country?

[liberaldemocrat7]

Thank you.

[Neurotica]

1. United Healthcare told me they're #1

Whether or not that's true, I'm not sure...

[Ian David]

2. BlueCross/BlueShield. HarvardPilgrim. Aetna. Liberty Mutual. Just off the top of my head. n/t

[liberaldemocrat7]

3. Ok, I plan to place 2 insurance company names on my boycott list to repeal / replace Medicare Part D

and also enact HR 676.

[whistle]

4. United, Aetna, Humana not sure of the order

[liberaldemocrat7]

5. I have chosen Blue Cross Blue Shield, and Aetna to boycott

in order to pressure them to repeal/replace Medicare Part D and enact HR 676 the single payer universal health care.

Do you want to help enact single payer government universal health care?

Can you write a one line letter? Sure you can.

Send a one line letter to Representative John Boehner and Senator Mitch McConnell.

Get your Republican party to enact HR 676 into law by Dec. 2007 and repeal Medicare Part D and place the prescription drug benefit in Medicare Part B covering 80 percent of medication with no extra premiums, deductibles no means tests, no coverage gaps, and until you do, we will not buy consumer products and prescription drugs from the biggest 3 pharmacy chains and GOP contributors in the country Eckerd, CVS, and Walgreens and we will not buy health insurance from Blue Cross Blue Shield and Aetna, the 2 biggest health insurance companies that give money to the GOP as well, who cannot afford to lose a large sector of the publics business and money .

.

[cassiepriam]

6. ?? The blues, aetna, anthem, UHC

[ikojo]

14. Anthem Wellpoint owns most of the Blue Cross

plans in the United States.

[cassiepriam]

16. Yes, should have lumped them together. Thanks.

[Stinky The Clown]

19. Side story about Anthem Wellpoint .......

My mother (RIP, MOM) had Blue Cross in Connecticut. They got bought by Anthem and, as a member, she was offered either a buyout for some set sum or Anthem stock. Mom and Dad never in their lives owned stock. Not one share, ever, and didn't even really understand the market. Dad was already gone when Mom got this offer. She called my brother and me and asked what we thought she should do. She giggled and said she'd like to take a chance and own some stock.

Sure, Mom, go ahead, said my brother and me.

A few years (5? 10? I dunno) later, when I'm executing her estate, I find the paper trail of her adventures on Wall Street.

The initial stock was worth just under $10K.

After splits and dividends and just plain growth, my brother and I split a bit over $54,000.

Not bad for beginner's luck.

[Rosemary2205]

7. It's actually Medicare and the VA.

Of the corporate insurance companies it's Blue Cross (Anthem/Wellpoint) and United Healthcare (United Heathcare actually sells policies under several brand names)

Depending on who you read, Cigna, Aetna and Humana are battling for 3rd place - but when you consider how many people are insured, rather than total dollars AARP is right up there because of their popular Medicare supplementals and Part D prescription plans.

Sorry, just got reminded AARP is actually United Healthcare now. Oops.

[whistle]

8. United handles AARP's medicare links

[Rosemary2205]

10. Stupid me, sorry.

I forgot AARP switched to United. Our office doesn't handle supplementals for our retirees anymore and through lack of doing that work it just went right out of my head. Thanks for the reminder and I'll edit my post.

Thanks again.

[ikojo]

13. Medicare and Champus (Veterans Insurance) is

contracted out by the government to private carriers. Many Medicare members are now in privately run Medicare HMOs..the government pays the private carriers to administer the program. Trust me these companies make bank on Medicare. This is not a Republican development either, it has been going on since the 1990s. Many Medicaid systems are also contracted out by the government.

[Solo_in_MD]

21. Ding ding ding we have a winner

Also BC/BS is actually many different companies, one per state I think

[NewJeffCT]

9. In terms of Fortune 500 rank

It is United Health is #1 and Wellpoint (Blue Cross) is #2.

They are way above #3 Aetna

[NewJeffCT]

12. Some rankings here

1) United Health is #21 overall (Wal-Mart is #1) with $71.5 billion of revenues

2) Wellpoint (Blue Cross) is #35 overall, with $57 billion in revenues

3) Aetna is #85 overall, with $25.6 billion in revenues

4) Humana is #110 overall, with $21.4 billion

5) CIGNA is #139 overall, with $16.5 billion

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2007/industries/Health_Care_Insurance_Managed_Care/1.html

[Zodiak]

11. Blue Cross and Blue Shield is a good choice to boycott

I worked for them for a while....sat on their medical review board. They are bloodsucking assholes who purposefully make patients lives hell just because they generated a big bill.

And the doctor they rely on to legitimize these decisions is not even in practice.

Blue Cross, Blue Shield of Kansas, if anyone wants to know specifically.

I was so disgusted with the evil of their business that I quit without notice. They didn't pay their people enough for the volume of work, anyways.

[ikojo]

15. MOST insurance companies pay their administrative

staff very little. What money that is made is definitely filtered to the top of that pyramid. My "increase" last year was a paltry 2%.

[murloc]

18. How DO you boycott a health insurer?

for most the folks the problem is that they CAN'T get insurance.

That is, most insurers already boycott the sick.

And if you are sick and need claims paid, wouldnt boycotting them just help them?

[Zodiak]

20. Well, if one has a choice

go with another company. Blue Cross used to be a good company, but under managed care, they became a monstrosity of epic proportions, chewing up patients, doctors, businesses, and the people who work for them all at the same time.

But yes I understand that our health care choices are very limited. Someone upthread was proposing a boycott of a nasty health insurance company and looking for names, and I badmouth my former company every chance I get. Just giving them a name.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield (of Kansas).....buyer beware.

[cassiepriam]

17. Damn Insurance companies.

Sorry, couldn't help myself.