Kennebec Valley Organization

KVO and our allies on the Health Care forAmerica Now Coalition helped to turn out almost 200 people to threeBureau of Insurance public hearings in March to speak out againstAnthem's proposal to raise rates by an average of 18% on over 12,000individual health insurance policy holders, even as the company reapsbig profits.

In May, Commissioner of Insurance Mila Kofman rejected the full increase, calling the request "excessive and unfairly discriminatory

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In March , Bureau of Insurance Commissioner, Mila Kofman, held publichearings on Anthems proposed rate increases in Bangor, Portland andGardiner. Members of the public overwhelmingly disapproved of Anthem'sproposal--which includes a 34% increase on certain policyholders.

Over a dozen KVO members joined 40 other citizens, at the Gardinerhearing. KVO members Eunice Spooner, Jean Chaude and Kathy Lowe, alongwith scores of others, gave testimony against the proposed hikes. (Seenews coverage below). In all, KVO and our allies on the Health Care forAmerica Now and Maine Voices for Coverage coalitions helped to turn out200 people to the 3 hearings. In past years, fewer than a dozen peoplewould turn out to such hearings.

An exciting result of this round of hearings was CommissionerKofman announced she will be holding hearings statewide to disucssoverall reform of the Healthcare and Insurance system.

MAY 19, 2009 UPDATE: Inresponse to the public outcry and her bureau's own analysis,Commissioner Kofman announced that she would reject Anthem's rateincrease request unless they cut it nearly in half. This actionwill save millions of dollars for about 12,000 Maine individualpolicyholders struggling to maintain their uncertain grasp on healthcoverage!