Anthem declines appeal
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield is not appealing the Connecticut Insurance Department”™s rejection of Anthem”™s request for a 20 percent average rate increase on individual policies it sells in the state, instead planning to file a new rate application at its next opportunity in April.
The increase would have applied to several Anthem plans, including BlueCare HMO, Century Preferred, Lumenos, and Tonik. The company testified in November that the rate increases were needed to cover higher health care costs and utilization rates, as well as the loss of younger, healthier customers who dropped their coverage. The Connecticut Insurance Department stated that the current rates charged by the company are actuarially sound.
Wellness spending rises
U.S. businesses spent $220 per worker on average last year to cover participating employees”™ wellness programs, up 35 percent from a year earlier according to a survey by the Buck Consultants subsidiary of Norwalk-based Xerox Corp.
While three of four U.S. employers surveyed use wellness programs, just 40 percent have attempted to measure how wellness programs affect the cost of providing health care benefits to their employees. Of those, 45 percent reported success in slowing health care cost increases, with a typical reduction of two to five percent annually.
The fastest-growing components of wellness programs are technology-driven tools. In three years, employers around the world expect a six-fold increase in their use of mobile technology ”“ such as smartphones ”“ to support employee wellness initiatives.
Goldman Sachs settles
Goldman Sachs & Co. is paying $1 million to Connecticut as part of a multistate settlement over its marketing of auction-rate securities, or ARS.
As the case with several other banks, regulators said that Goldman Sachs improperly marketed the securities as liquid investments that could be easily divested at the bidding of investors. After the auction process for ARS broke down in 2008 on the eve of the recession, customers were stuck holding ARS that had lost much of their value.
NU merger under fire
The New England Power Generators Association Inc. have petitioned Massachusetts regulators considering whether to approve Northeast Utilities”™ merger with Boston-based NStar, arguing the companies should not be allowed to invest in new generation assets.
NEPGA members provide 85 percent of the region”™s electricity, and include Dominion and NRG Energy. The group said it would file a similar petition with the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control.
Both NU and NStar officials have, on record, stated their intention to pursue rate-base investments in generation, according to Angela O”™Connor, president of NEPGA.
“Such intentions run contrary to the principle of competitive procurement and, if carried out, would create significant impediments to innovation and private investment in both traditional and renewable energy in New England,” O”™Connor said in a statement. “Continuing an environment that encourages the lowest cost competitive procurement of power requires assurance that state and federal regulators will stand firm in support of competition. Reversing direction, even partially, through monopoly development of generation would hurt competition and increase prices to consumers.”
ER visits up again
Connecticut”™s acute-care hospitals handled more than 1.6 million emergency room visits in 2009, with at least 80 percent of those covering non-urgent ailments or injuries, according to a report by the Connecticut Office of Health Care Access.
Under federal tax law, nonprofit hospitals are required to treat emergency room patients regardless of their ability to pay. Since 2006, the overall number of emergency visits in the state has increased by almost 10 percent, according to OHCA, with hospital emergency departments acting as a safety net for people lacking insurance who have no other access to care.
M Cubed gets contract
M Cubed Technologies Inc. won a $750,000 contract to develop advanced armor to protect U.S. Army vehicles and personnel.
M Cubed maintains a small headquarters office in Monroe, with its main production plant located in Newark, Del.
Under its Small Business Innovation Research program, the Army is requesting a ceramic and metal composite armor that can withstand both direct hits and other forms of stress, such as thermal shock or chemical attacks.
Last year, M Cubed received one of the U.S. Army”™s first two SBIR commercialization awards, recognizing its development of armored inserts that have resulted in more than 250,000 tiles produced to date, totaling $55 million in sales.
UBS loses arbitration
The founder of Old Greenwich Consultants won a $2.8 million arbitration decision against UBS Financial Services Inc., after serving as chief recruiter of the company”™s wealth management unit.
UBS is among the largest employers in Fairfield County with more than 4,000 workers. Jeff Bischoff left the company in July 2009 to launch Old Greenwich Consultants.
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority cited UBS for breach of contract and “unjust receipt and retention of the value” of Bischoff”™s services, without providing further detail.
Five Mile in Houston deal
With Crocker Partners, Stamford-based Five Mile Capital Partners acquired a 1.2 million-square-foot office complex near Houston”™s Galleria shopping district.
The Lakes on Post Oak complex is 89 percent leased.
Last year, Five Mile Capital sold Boston”™s John Hancock Tower to Normandy Partners for $930 million, less than two years after acquiring the building.
