White House wants insurer to justify hike

In a letter to the president of Anthem Blue Cross, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said she was very disturbed to learn of the planned increases, calling them “extraordinary.’’ She said they were hard to understand particularly considering the profitability of Anthem’s parent company, WellPoint Inc.

“I believe Anthem Blue Cross has a responsibility to provide a detailed justification for these rate increases to the public,’’ Sebelius wrote. She said the company should also make public what percentage of customers’ premiums go to medical care versus administrative costs.

Peggy Hinz, a spokeswoman for Anthem, said she would check whether the letter had been received.

President Obama cited the Anthem rate hikes in an interview with CBS’s Katie Couric on Sunday as a reason to move forward with his health overhaul legislation, which is stalled in Congress.

“That’s a portrait of the future if we don’t do something now,’’ Obama said. “It’s going to keep on beating down families, small businesses, large businesses. It’s going to be a huge drain on the economy.’’

In a statement last week, the company blamed the increases on rising costs of medical care.