BCBS sued for tricking customers to leave better health insurance plans

Someone should lock all the insurance executives and the airline executives in a room together and watch them try to nickel and dime each other.  From the SF Chronicle:

When Blue Shield of California raised the rates for Robert Jeffrey Martin's family insurance policy by 23 percent, the health insurer offered him two options: Stay in his expensive old plan or switch to a policy that offered his family skimpier benefits with a higher deductible.

Martin, 59, knew finding a new insurer would be tough and felt like he had no choice. The Gilroy farmer, who grows olives trees and bottles his own olive oil, switched to the new policy.

But then Blue Shield backed off on the proposed increase on his previous policy. When Martin tried to switch back, the insurer told him that was no longer possible because his old plan was closed to new members.