Chicago-based Health Care Service Corp., the umbrella organization of Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies in five states, reported a $1.3 billion year-over-year increase in profit in the first quarter of 2017, Axios reports.
HCSC saw profit of $869 million in the first quarter of this year compared to a $442 million deficit in the same period the year prior.
The increase partially reflected Congress' decision to suspend an insurance tax under the ACA for 2017, as well as improvement in the payer's individual health plan business, Axios reports.
HCSC's Blue Cross and Blue Shield subsidiaries in Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas insure about 1.1 million individuals through health plans sold on the ACA exchange.