Opportunities for Brokers Evident as Health Reform Takes Shape By: TNS Published: Thursday, Jul. 14, 2011 – 10:06 am NEW YORK, July 14, 2011 — /PRNewswire/ — The importance of health insurance brokers and agents over the next three years — especially those who specialize in employee health benefits — will be increasing sharply in the eyes of middle market decision makers. This is based on a recent survey, conducted by TNS, a world leader in market information. According to the study, almost two-thirds (63%) of companies surveyed view their employee health insurance broker or agent as a valued partner with 33% describing them
Poizner Releases New Notification Tool for Online Health Insurance Rate Filings
Commissioner Poizner Releases New Notification Tool for Online Health Insurance Rate Filings E-mail Notification May Expand Scrutiny of Rate Hike
Furthering his commitment increase public scrutiny of health insurance…
Anthem Blue Cross again seeks rate hikes for Californians
Health Care Reform Should Not Be Derailed By Litmus Test, Says Ignagni
America‘s Health Insurance Plans Karen Ignagni, President and CEO of America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), gave the following remarks at a media teleconference this morning: “At this point in the summer of 2009, the country should be in the midst of a transformative national conversation about health care reform. Instead, a campaign has been launched to demonize health plans and the men and women who work hard every day in their communities to provide health insurance coverage to more than 200 million Americans. “For a country that is trying to accomplish what it has failed to do for a century – pass health care reform
Budget cuts devastate health care providers
BUDGET CUTS BY THE NUMBERS Sample budget cuts imposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger using the line-item veto: $80 million: Child welfare programs $61 million: County funding to administer Medi-Cal $52 million: AIDS prevention and treatment $50 million: Healthy Families, a low-cost health insurance program for poor children San Diego County health care providers say they are outraged and devastated by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s line-item veto of $394 million in state spending for health and welfare programs. The cuts will affect programs including those for child abuse and neglect, AIDS prevention and treatment and poor children without health insurance. “They’re eroding the safety net in San
House Democrats vow healthcare plan by August
By Donna Smith WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama‘s plans to overhaul the $2.5 trillion healthcare industry got a boost on Tuesday in the House of Representatives where Democrats predicted passage on schedule by August. House leaders from Obama’s Democratic party were set to release the final proposal in the afternoon with a planned tax on the wealthy to raise an expected $540 billion over 10 years to help pay for expanded care. Health insurance is a top priority for Obama, who took office in January. Millions of Americans are without health insurance, even though the country spends more on healthcare per capita than
Last Week’s Health Reform “Shocker”
Last week we learned that health reform could cost the federal government at least a trillion dollars over ten years, and that it will be really difficult to forge bipartisan agreement on legislation and keep major interest groups on board. This obviously brought more angst to the deliberations, several Republicans seized the moment to criticize the Democrats’ plans, and the press was all over it, with many commentators declaring health reform in dire straits. But experts have long known that this is roughly what the government price tag for universal coverage with comprehensive benefits would be, and everyone knows that bipartisan support will be very
Obama Officials Won’t Rule Out Benefit Tax in Health-Care Plan
June 28 (Bloomberg) — Obama administration officials refused to rule out a new tax on employer-provided benefits as part of an overhaul of the U.S. health insurance system. White House senior adviser David Axelrod, making the rounds of the Sunday talk shows, said President Barack Obama is flexible on the details of a plan to bring down health-care costs and provide coverage for the uninsured. “The president had said in the past that he doesn’t believe taxing health-care benefits at any level is necessarily the best way to go here, but there are a number of formulations,” Axelrod said on ABC’s “This Week” program today.
Democratic House Leaders Roll Out Health Care Reform Proposal
On Friday, House Democrats released a discussion draft of health care reform legislation, the New York Times reports. The bill’s authors said the legislation would provide coverage for 95% of U.S. residents. According to the New York Times, the bill did not include details on how much it would cost or how it would be funded. The proposal — drafted by House Education and Labor Committee Chair George Miller (D-Calif.), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) — includes:
Health care debate heats up
Republican senators urged President Obama to say no to a government-run health care plan, cautioning in a letter Monday that the public expects Congress to tackle an overhaul of the system in “an open, honest and bipartisan manner.” President Obama says a public health plan will help consumers and keep costs down. Obama told Congress this weekend that it’s time to deliver on health care reform, and he wants a bill on his desk by October at the latest. But as the debate heats up on Capitol Hill, it’s clear lawmakers don’t see eye to eye on the issue. Republicans are pushing for a private