S&P Is Cautiously Optimistic About Health Insurers’ Financial Prospects
Credit ratings firm S&P Global Ratings Inc. is mildly confident about the financial health of the health care industry. On May 13, S&P analysts gave health insurance companies a stable outlook, and graded payer debt with an A rating. Meanwhile, for-profit and not-for-profit providers both received negative outlooks.
S&P has not downgraded any health insurance firms this year. Those ratings are in line with a consensus across Wall Street that sees health insurance firms as a safe investment bet despite the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis. Publicly traded payers’ first-quarter earnings were all in line with their pre-COVID-19 guidance, and many firms exceeded their projected first-quarter results (HPW 5/4/20, p. 1).