Health Team

During pandemic, Blue Cross NC saw highest health care costs in history

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina saw the highest health care costs in its history, officials said Tuesday.

Posted Updated
Blue Cross Blue Shield
By
Jessica Patrick
, WRAL multiplatform producer
DURHAM, N.C. — During the COVID-19 pandemic, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina saw the highest health care costs in its history, officials said Tuesday.

According to Blue Cross, medical claims and expenses rose by $200 million in 2020, and the insurance provider's membership increased by 1.3 percent for an additional $3.86 million in premiums. Despite that increase, moves made by Blue Cross to help its subscribers deal with the pandemic led to a $234 million decrease in net income.

Medical claims in 2020 rose to $7.5 billion, which equates to $5,800 in yearly costs for a fully-insured Blue Cross member -- a 4 percent increase from 2019 and a 23 percent increase from five years ago.

Around 100,000 members filed COVID-19 related claims through Blue Cross in 2020, mostly in the summer and fall after a dip in claims at the beginning of the pandemic, when everyone was staying home and some skipped medical appointments.

Among several changes made to help members, Blue Cross lowered premiums for its Affordable Care Act plans, which it has done for the past several years. The move has led to nearly $1 billion in cumulative savings for members in a three-year period.

As a not-for-profit without shareholders, Blue Cross is able to invest earnings directly toward lowering customers’ out-of-pocket costs and improving services overall, explained Mitch Perry, chief financial officer.

“Sharing savings with our customers is always important, especially when so many North Carolinians are experiencing health concerns, job loss and uncertainty from the economic slowdown,” said Perry. "Health care still costs too much, and we’re committed to making it more affordable.”

At the start of the pandemic, Blue Cross said it was one of the fist insurers in the country to eliminate member cost-sharing for COVID-19 screening, testing and treatment. It also provided $800 million of direct and indirect financial support to North Carolinians during the pandemic by helping patients gain access to care and improving food security in communities.

Blue Cross also saw a more than 7,500 percent increase in telehealth usage during the pandemic as more patients avoided in-person office visits.

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