Nonprofit healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente had a 40% share of California’s $59-billion health insurance market for employers and individuals, new data show. A report issued this week by Citigroup analyst Carl McDonald compiled nationwide data on 2011 premiums and enrollment among large and small employers and individuals buying their own policies. Those insurance markets, excluding government healthcare programs and self-insured employers, totaled more than 80 million people and $317 billion in premiums. McDonald noted these figures don’t reflect companies’ full market share, but he said these businesses and individual customers account for the vast majority of revenue and profits for most insurers. In California, Kaiser led the way with $23.3 billion in premiums, or a 40% share, and 5.5 million commercial customers. Overall, the Oakland company has about 6.6 million members in the state and runs 35 hospitals here. Anthem Blue Cross, a unit of industry giant WellPoint Inc., was second in the state with a 23% commercial market share and $13.7 billion in premiums according to a report in the Los Angeles Times.
