Candidates vie for Washington insurance commissioner job

Jul. 29—For the first time in more than 20 years, Washington will have a new insurance commissioner this fall.

Eight candidates have filed for the statewide office, which hasn't been vacant since current commissioner Mike Kreidler took office in 2001. He declined calls to step down after he was accused in 2022 of using racist slurs and mistreating staff, but said last year that he would not seek reelection.

Though the role often gets less attention than other state offices, the insurance commissioner plays a key part in setting rates and overseeing the insurance industry in Washington.

Candidates have promised to stabilize home and auto insurance rates, which have soared over the past few years. Between inflation and climate change-related catastrophes such as wildfires and floods, some Washington residents are seeing more than 50% increases in their home insurance premiums, or the monthly cost they pay to ensure coverage. And as severe car crashes increase and repairs become more expensive, car insurance companies are also hiking their rates.

Two sitting state senators have raised the most money in the race so far. Patty Kuderer, D-Bellevue, has raised about $274,000, half from individual contributions and about a quarter from political action committees. Kuderer has spent close to $228,000 so far.

Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn, has raised close to $35,800 so far, and spent nearly $11,500. More than half of Fortunato's donations have come from individual donations. And about 38% of the donations for his campaign are business donations.

John Pestinger, a current employee with the Office of the Insurance Commissioner's consumer protection division who is running as a Democrat, has raised about $5,000 so far and spent about $3,100 and told The Seattle Times that he is not taking any money from outside donors.

Other candidates who've filed include several Washington residents who've worked in the insurance industry: Jonathan Hendrix, a longtime insurance, health care and benefits administrator; Bill Boyd, a life insurance salesperson; and Justin Murta, a senior vice president with the insurance broker Acrisure. Tim Verzal, a body shop owner and Chris Chung, a pharmacist, have also filed.

None of the other candidates have raised any money so far, according to the Public Disclosure Commission.

While all recognized the need to curb rising costs and protect consumers, the candidates identified vastly different tactics for doing so.

Kuderer said one of her top priorities will be to move the state toward universal health care. In 2019, Washington created a universal health care commission, which the office of the insurance commissioner is already a part of.

While the legislature would have to vote to make universal health care a reality, the insurance commissioner would be responsible for implementing the program.

"There's no deadline to create an actual blueprint that the legislature can vote on," Kuderer said. "There's no urgency. But for me there's a sense of urgency because I hear too much from people who are denied health care, or filing for bankruptcy because of health care bills. The system is just too complicated to use."

Fortunato staunchly opposed universal health care, decrying the costs he said would fall on all taxpayers.

"Dealing with the government is not a good situation when you're talking about your health care," he said.

Fortunato said his highest priority is to bring down rising insurance costs by reducing regulations and encouraging more insurance companies to operate in Washington.

"My philosophy is pretty simple. We need more competition," said Fortunato.

He criticized the current administration's strict regulations, which he said have driven insurance companies out of the state.

He also said he favors removing "mandatory coverage" for things like birth control.

"My approach is, if you want a policy that covers birth control, simply buy a policy that covers birth control," he said. "Why are you making everyone buy a policy that covers that?"

According to the Office of the Insurance Commissioner, most insurance companies are required by federal law to cover birth control. But a state can expand on that benefit and add it to state law to safeguard it from a future Congress repealing the benefits — as Washington has done.

Pestinger said his primary goal would be to stabilize the market.

"This is really not the time for legislators or regulators to make changes, instead it is time to hold the line and protect consumers," Pestinger said in an email. "Any proposed legislation or tightening of regulations will force insurers to raise rates. We can work within the existing regulations to get us through the hard market."

Kuderer and Pestinger both noted the importance of preparing for climate change-based disasters and educating consumers on how those events can affect their policies.

Kuderer said she would push companies to be transparent about price hikes, and supported strengthening community infrastructure, not just individual homes, against climate change catastrophes such as wildfires.

She also said she would consider whether insurance companies should have a uniform standard for evaluating homes for wildfire risk. Giving homeowners more information about how they're being evaluated, she said, will allow them to make better choices and in turn increase competition between insurance companies.

But she stopped short of saying she'd remove regulations on insurers, as Fortunato proposed.

"I'd like to see us removing unnecessary regulations, too, but I want to know what regulations we're talking about," she said. "Because it could be consumer protections, and that's not something I'll be running to do."

Pestinger also balked at the idea of removing consumer protections, and said he would wait until the market softens to make major policy changes.

"What I will say is, any policy changes in the future will be done in partnership with consumer groups and the insurance industry instead of adversarially," Pestinger said in an email.

He also said he would like to streamline insurance processes to reduce administrative costs and pay out claims to consumers more quickly to help them recover, especially after catastrophic events.

Pestinger, who has worked for the Office of the Insurance Commissioner for five years, also said he would aim to modernize the office, bringing it up to speed on the use of artificial intelligence in the insurance industry to make sure companies aren't misusing it.

Fortunato said he wanted to run for insurance commissioner because he views it as a more immediate way for him to have an impact, compared to his role as a minority member in the Legislature.

"Every time I go to run a bill, I have to beg to get my bills heard," he said. The insurance commissioner's office, he said, relies less on legislators.

"It's about rule-making," he said. "You can walk in on day one and say, 'I'm not going to do any of this,' change the rules, and then 30 days later, that's the way it is. So you can make a difference in everyone in Washington's life in 30 days."

For more information about the candidates and their platforms, visit the Washington Secretary of State's website.

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