What does the Washington state insurance commissioner do?

For the first time in 24 years, the race to be Washington's insurance commissioner is wide open. Incumbent Commissioner Mike Kreidler announced last year he would not run for the first time since 2000, prompting eight people to register to fill the partisan position.

But what is an insurance commissioner? And what does that person do?

The Office of the Insurance Commissioner is a regulatory and consumer advocacy agency. It provides volunteer advocates to help people navigate Medicare; licenses insurance companies and the individual businesses (there are 200,000) that sell insurance to consumers; regulates and audits the insurance industry; and approves premium rate hikes.

Washington's insurance commissioners have also lobbied the Legislature for law changes that affect consumer insurance coverage and prices. For instance, Kreidler has pushed for laws that would bar tying credit scores to insurance rates. (Kreidler issued an emergency ban on the practice in 2021, but a legal battle ended it.)

The Legislature also tasked the Office last year to study how changes in regulations and laws could make health insurance more affordable. While only 6% of Washington residents were uninsured, about 62% of Washington respondents reported running into a problem affording health care in the previous year, and 81% worried about affordability in the future. Kreidler's office reported last year that health insurance premiums have doubled since 2015.

This also is the office that consumers call to complain about an insurance company, or to ask questions about coverage. In 2023, the office reported responding to more than 9,400 consumer complaints, recovering $27.4 million related to insurance billings, refunds and various claim-handling issues, including helping a long-term care patient receive more than $126,000 for two years of care and recovering $105,000 for a boat owner whose insurance company delayed payments.

The Office also investigates and fines insurance companies for breaking insurance laws and regulations. In 2023 the Office levied at least $1.8 million in fines, with individual fines ranging from $1,000 to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The Office also recently started a consumer-focused podcast that addresses common questions about insurance, such as whether or not it's important to have pet insurance and how to avoid Medicare fraud.

Since the Office was created in 1890, all of Washington's insurance commissioners have tended to hang on to their positions for eight or more years, and Kreidler is no exception. An optometrist by trade, the Democrat was a longtime state legislator and U.S. Congressman before taking on the position after Deborah Senn left to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate (Senn died in 2022).

Kreidler announced in 2023 he wouldn't seek reelection — one year after he was accused of using racist slurs while interacting with employees, drawing criticism from both Democrats and Republicans. Kreidler issued a statement apologizing for his treatment of staff, but defending his official actions as a consumer advocate.

Open seat

This year, the open race for insurance commissioner drew eight contenders. Only three have raised any money at all, and only two have raised substantially more than $5,000.

Candidates for Washington State Insurance Commissioner. From left: state Sen. Patty Kuderer (D-Bellevue), state Sen. Phil Fortunato (R-Auburn) and John Pestinger. (Courtesy of the candidates)

Patty Kuderer, a Democratic state senator for the 48th Legislative District, has raised more than $274,000 — more than seven times the nearest competitor, Paul Fortunato, a Republican state senator for the 31st Legislative District, who has raised more than $35,750. A third contender, John Pestinger, a project manager in the Office of the Insurance Commissioner, has raised $5,001, according to the PDC.

Kuderer said she supports universal health care and access to abortions and reproductive health services; requiring liability insurance for gun owners; and simplifying the appeals process for denied medical claims, among other priorities on her campaign website.

Fortunato said his priorities as insurance commissioner would be to encourage affordable and consumer-driven options that encourage more competition, more choices, and lower costs for consumers, as opposed to what he calls "agenda-driven regulations that drive up costs without providing better and more affordable care."

Pestinger, running as a Democrat, says his priorities in office would include stabilizing the insurance market and bringing rates down, and preventing "polarizing political agendas" from destabilizing the insurance market.