Premera Blue Cross

Its affiliate, LifeWise of Oregon, already announced plans to leave the market at the end of 2016.

Our neighbor to the north doled out millions of dollars to its health insurance executives last year, with the CEOs of Community Health Plan of Washington, Group Health Cooperative, Regence BlueShield and Premera BlueCross walking away with hefty paychecks that included six-figure bonuses in filings submitted to Washington’s Insurance Commissioner.

July 3, 2012 A fight between the Washington state insurance commissioner and the state’s largest seller of individual health insurance is spotlighting problems in that increasingly troubled market. The spat arose over insurers’ efforts to curb soaring premiums by restricting or eliminating prescription drug benefits.Experts say they haven’t yet seen similar moves by insurers in other states to axe drug coverage from policies sold in the individual market. But some predict expensive drug benefits will offer an inviting target.