Best’s News & Research Service - June 10, 2013 04:04 PM (EDT)
A.M. Best Revises Outlook to Positive for BETA Healthcare Group Members
OLDWICK, N.J. //BestWire// - A.M. Best Co. has revised the outlook to positive from stable and affirmed the financial strength rating of A- (Excellent) and issuer credit rating (ICR) of “a-” of the member companies of BETA Healthcare Group (BETA): BETA Healthcare Group Risk Management Authority (Alamo, CA) and Health Providers Insurance Reciprocal, a Risk Retention Group (Honolulu, HI).
The revised outlook is based on BETA’s improving risk-adjusted capitalization and operating results as evidenced by solid growth in its member fund balance and strong overall underwriting and investment results in the most recent periods.
BETA’s ratings reflect the group’s excellent capital position, extended history of overall profitability and favorable reserve development trends. The ratings also recognize the group’s leading position in its designated market providing health care liability and other coverages to qualified hospitals, health care facilities and medical groups in California. The organization is dedicated to supporting its members through extensive continuing education and loss prevention programs.
Partially offsetting the positive rating factors is the group’s exposure to the highly cyclical medical professional liability line along with product and geographic concentration. These factors are somewhat muted by the group’s long-term results within these constraints.
BETA’s ratings may be positively impacted by maintenance of the trend of improvement across multiple operating metrics. Conversely, issues that may impact the ratings adversely include, but are not limited to, items such as disruption in market dynamics, changes in tort legislation, shifting claims severity and frequency trends or adverse outcomes from the implementation of national health care reform.
The methodology used in determining these ratings is Best’s Credit Rating Methodology, which provides a comprehensive explanation of A.M. Best’s rating process and contains the different rating criteria employed in the rating process. Best’s Credit Rating Methodology can be found at www.ambest.com/ratings/methodology.