Group Health Bond Ratings Raised By Standard & Poors, Initiated By Fitch
Posted on: Friday, 6 October 2006, 18:00 CDT
SEATTLE, Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poors has raised Group Health Cooperative's bond and financial strength rating for the second time this year, to "A-" (A Minus) from "BBB+" (Triple B Plus). Another major bond rating company, Fitch, has initiated coverage of Group Health with an "A-" bond rating and an "A" financial strength rating.
Bond and financial strength ratings by major, independent firms are analogous to individuals' credit scores. They play a key role in determining the interest rates Group Health pays when issuing bonds to finance major capital projects, such as new construction or technology. They're also an important indicator of the overall financial strength of the organization.
"We're pleased that our sound financial strategy and fiscal discipline are paying off for our members," said Carrie Jennison, Group Health's interim chief financial officer. "While there's still room for improvement, we've made excellent progress in returning to the overall credit and financial strength we enjoyed before market pressures and significant negative margins left us financially weaker in the late 1990s and early 2000s," Jennison added.
Group Health's strong reserves were undoubtedly a key factor in the improved ratings, according to Jennison. "Solid reserves and financial stability give the rating agencies, and our members, comfort that we'll be here to serve this market for a long time," Jennison added.
Group Health Cooperative
Founded in 1947, Group Health is a consumer-governed, nonprofit health care system that coordinates care and coverage. Based in Seattle, Group Health and its subsidiary health carriers, Group Health Options, Inc. and KPS Health Plans, serve more than 568,000 members in Washington and Idaho. Group Health's commercial and Medicare plans have received the top rating of "Excellent" from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).Group Health encompasses medical and specialty centers, hospitals (including a full service community hospital), a nationally recognized research center, and a charitable foundation. Group Health and Group Health Permanente (its multispecialty medical group practice) combined employ more than 9,000 staff.
Please visit the virtual newsroom on our Web site, http://www.ghc.org/ under "Newsroom."
Group Health Cooperative
CONTACT: Katie McCarthy, +1-206-448-2149
Web site: http://www.ghc.org/
Source: PRNewswire
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