Health insurance prices won’t heat up until ’09: Fitch

Last Updated: 2007-12-04 15:01:02 -0400 (Reuters Health)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Fitch Ratings said on Tuesday it doesn’t expect price competition in the North American health insurance market to heat up until 2009.

"We anticipate 2009 will be a transitional year in which price competition does not increase and modestly affects margins," Fitch said in its forecast for 2008 and beyond. "However, we envision this shift in market conditions to be modest, as pricing rationale is not anticipated in vanish."

(Reporting by Tim McLaughlin; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)