Dozens of self-employed people with Blue Cross Blue Shield New Mexico individual health plans who showed up for a Wednesday hearing seeking relief from a double-digit rate hike, and a chance to speak, were doubly frustrated.

They will have a long wait — more than six weeks — to find out if hearing examiner Alan Seeley finds the increase is warranted.

And on Wednesday, they had to wait five and a half hours to offer a comment.

More than 100 people, about half of them not attorneys or state staff, packed the Apodaca Hall at the PERA building for the hearing, which began at 9 a.m. Lawyers for the state Attorney General's Office, the insurance company and their witnesses gave testimony first.

The public didn't get to talk until 2:30 p.m. By then, about half had left. Several said they had to go to work.

Jack Huberman, a Blue Cross Blue Shield member since 1995 who faces the rate hike, stayed to the bitter end. "I'm self-employed," Huberman said, "and being here means I'm not earning money. I'm dismayed by the nature of this hearing. People here have had to sit through a showing of lawyers ... all well-paid to be here. My frustration with this process knows no bounds."

Those who stayed to speak are self-employed policyholders whose premiums are scheduled to go up an average of 21 percent in October under an agreement reached in April between the insurer, the state attorney general and the state insurance superintendent. The rate increases would affect 7,100 people in Santa Fe County and 40,000 people statewide. Most of those who spoke at the hearing said they face a 26 percent increase.

It was the second public hearing scheduled in the case. The first one was scheduled in April, but the settlement was reached shortly before the hearing was to begin. It took a legal battle before the state Supreme Court to make the second hearing happen.

The public on Wednesday wasn't allowed to ask questions of the state or Blue Cross Blue Shield attorneys. A couple of times, the hearing examiner had to remind obviously upset and vocal members of the audience to refrain from comments during testimony.

Paul Bardacke, attorney for Blue Cross Blue Shield New Mexico, defended the rate increase, saying Blue Cross Blue Shield had lost $20 million in the last three years in the individual-plan market and expected to lose $11 million this year. He said 70 cents of every premium dollar in New Mexico is spent on medical costs.

Brian Harris, an assistant attorney general, said the attorney general still supports the settlement, which reduced by 3.3 percent the rate hike sought by Blue Cross Blue Shield. "We think this is the best deal we can make," Harris said. "The stipulation is not the best, but it is the best we could do at the time."

During public comments, state Sen. Dede Feldman, D-Albuquerque, said she thought it was unfair that all the evidence presented at Wednesday's hearing was basically in support of the rate increase. "Maybe it is time to get an independent actuarial analysis of the rate case," the legislator said.

Others questioned why a company whose parent corporation in Illinois has more than $7 billion in a reserve fund needs another rate hike. Timothy Wong, a Santa Fe business owner, said if he tried to raise his prices 20 percent a year during a recession he would be out of business. "Every sensible business, including mine, has been cutting costs," he said. "The company you work for has no business sense."

Bryana Mares, a single mother who owns a property-management business in Santa Fe, has Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance for herself and her son, who just graduated from law school in Virginia. She told those at the hearing, "The thing that disturbs me most is I don't have any say or a voice as a member. Every year, I just get a premium increase.

"Every letter I get (announcing a premium increase) says Blue Cross Blue Shield is trying to keep costs down," Mares said. "Try harder."

Contact Staci Matlock at 986-3055 or smatlock@sfnewmexican.com.