If you are not yet enrolled with Kaiser Permanente, now is the time to make the move. Rates are going up after June 1^st, 2008 for new groups. I recommend applying by May 27th to make sure your group gets in before the deadline. If you apply now, you can lock in the current lower rates for one year. Groups that hesitate will face serious rate increases of 2% to 17%.  

The $0/$1500 Deductible Plan with HSA is one of the plans being hit the hardest by these rate increases. Kaiser Permanente priced this plan very aggressively in 2007, yet still they were surprised at how popular it became, and they were caught off guard by the utilization of the plan. Businesses often funded the $1500 deductible without putting money into Health Savings Accounts. In this way, many members on this plan were given 100% coverage. Thus they had no deterrent from utilizing their coverage and ended up costing the Kaiser Health Plan more than expected. A Kaiser Permanente sales representative commented, “Members don’t have enough skin in the game.” The ultimate result is higher costs on this plan in the second half of 2008.  

Despite the increased costs, the $0/$1500 Deductible Plan with HSA is expected to continue to be one of the most popular

California small business health insurance plans. A

Northern California insurance broker commented, “The 17% increase won’t slow me down a bit from selling this plan.”