Where we stand today
We continue to hold tightly to those core values which have played such an important role in our history. We remain committed to being good stewards of our policyholders’ monies and providing superior service to all our customers, while offering affordable benefit plans and programs to help our members achieve and maintain good health.
We remained a financially stable company in 2009 as policyholders’ reserves increased in value due to improvement in investment markets as well as a contribution realized from our net income for the year.
Blue Cross also continues to have a financial impact on Kansas. In 2009, we paid out nearly $2 billion through 16.6 million claims from medical doctors, hospitals, dentists and pharmacies while saving our members more than $1.7 billion through discounts. We contributed to our communities by paying $88 million in payroll and more than $41 million in taxes.
As some were pointing fingers at health insurers for excessive administrative costs, we continued to efficiently operate our business. For just under 9 cents of a premium dollar, we provided our members award-winning customer service, prompt claims processing, health and wellness programs, and much more. Our demonstrated ability over time to keep administrative costs low makes us comfortable that we will be able to operate effectively within the minimum loss ratios defined by the new laws.