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Fewer insurers offering exchange plans in Kitsap

clinic2_26273003_ver1-0_640_480Kitsap residents shopping for 2017 coverage through Healthplanfinder will have four insurers to choose from.

BridgeSpan Health Company, Group Health Cooperative, LifeWise Health Plan of Washington and Premera Blue Cross were approved to offer plans in Kitsap through the state exchange, according to the Office of the Insurance Commissioner.

Regence Blue Shield and United HealthCare, which offered exchange plans in Kitsap in 2016, aren’t selling exchange plans in the county for 2017. United HealthCare dropped out of the state exchange entirely.

Three carriers — Group Health Cooperative, Group Health Options and Regence Blue Shield — are offering individual health plans in Kitsap outside of the exchange.

Here’s a breakdown:

Statewide, rates for plans sold in the individual market will increase by an average of 13.6 percent for 2017.

Insurers selling in Kitsap will raise rates by an average of 15.13 percent:

Open enrollment for the individual health insurance market starts Nov. 1, 2016 and runs through January 2017.

Enrollment in Apple Health (Medicaid) is open all year.

Click here for enrollment info.

Millions of Premera customers affected by cyber attack

Hackers broke into Premera Blue Cross computer systems, potentially accessing personal information for 11 million customers, including 6 million in Washington State.

According to Premera, the initial cyber attack occurred nearly a year ago, in May of 2014. Premera discovered the attack on Jan. 29. The company informed the FBI and is coordinating its investigation with the bureau.

Premera announced the security breach to the public Tuesday and created a website with information for customers.

The carrier has begun mailing out letters to affected customers and is offering them two free years of credit monitoring and identity protection services.

State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler posted a response to the announcement Tuesday, saying he was concerned about the amount of time it took Premera to report the breach to his office.

Security breaches like these have put an increasing pressure on cybersecurity. The large scale demand for cyber security folk has meant there is now a huge selection of cyber security courses to choose from. Many course provides like this one here offer thousands of courses from penetration testing to cyber security degrees.

The full announcement from Premera is posted below:  Continue reading →