insurance
Consumers protest Anthem rate hike request
Consumer advocates demonstrated their concerns at a CT Insurance Dept. public hearing about Anthem’s request to raise premiums 20% or more. The consumers outlined the enormous economic burden this places on state residents and businesses while unemployment remains high and Anthem’s parent company made millions in profits last quarter. Policymakers questioned Anthem’s documentation to justify…
Read MoreNovember web quiz
Test your knowledge of CT managed care plan performance. Take the November CT Health Policy Web Quiz.
Read MoreCT managed care report card out and medical loss ratios
The CT Insurance Dept. has published this year’s comparison of health insurers with interesting comparisons across managed care plans. (Study up for next month’s webquiz). Near the end, on p. 48, medical loss ratios are reported across insurers. It is important to note that the MLR definition used for the report is stricter than the…
Read MoreCID will hold rare public hearing on Anthem’s 2011 increase request
The CT Insurance Dept. has decided to hold a public hearing on Anthem’s requests for 2011 premium increases. The Commissioner was strongly criticized for approving Anthem increases of 47% for the end of this year with little review and no modification. Anthem has not yet submitted their proposal for 2011 rate increases, and the hearing…
Read MoreFeds urge CT Insurance Dept. to reverse Anthem 47% rate hike approval
HHS has sent a letter to CT Insurance Department (CID) Commissioner Sullivan asking him to reconsider the department’s approval of Anthem 47% health insurance rate hikes for next year. “The consumers of Connecticut expect and deserve transparency and a fact-based rationale as to why their rates are increasing,” according to the letter. The insurance department…
Read MoreOffice of Health Care Advocate saved CT consumers over a million dollars this quarter
CT’s Office of Health Care Advocate (OHA) returned $1.36 million in savings to health care consumers in our state between July and September of this year. OHA assists consumers struggling with insurance companies to access the care they need. So far this year, OHA has saved consumers $3.3 million in health costs. The savings include…
Read MoreHUSKY HMOs made $19 million profits last year; families paid $323.16 to HMO profits
At the very end of yesterday’s Medicaid Care Management Oversight Council meeting, DSS reported that the HUSKY HMOs made $18.8 million in profits on the program during 2009. This profit is on top of their administrative costs. Aetna made most of that profit — $14 million – despite having only one fourth of total enrollment.…
Read MoreNational health reform standards may not cover college health plans
The Wall Street Journal raises the question of whether the notoriously inadequate health plans offered to college students will be covered under national health reform regulations. While these plans are generally inexpensive they typically include caps on coverage and would not meet new standards on how much of premiums must be spent on health care.…
Read MoreSurvey predicts employee share of health insurance to rise 12.4% next year
Hewitt’s annual survey of large US employers estimates health costs to be $9,821 per worker in 2011, up from $9,028 this year. While total costs are expected to rise 8.8%, workers’ share of that bill will rise 12.4%, continuing a trend of shifting more costs onto consumers. From 2001 to 2011, while total premiums will…
Read More236,400 CT residents eligible for health care tax credits in 2014
A new report by Families USA estimates that $830 million in tax credits will be coming to 236,400 middle income CT residents to help pay for health coverage. The credits are structured on a sliding scale, targeted toward those who need assistance the most. The majority of people who will benefit have incomes just over…
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