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Kentucky aims to close its health insurance exchange

January 15, 2016January 13, 2016 S.Vagus

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Governor Matt Bevin intends to shut down the Kentucky health insurance exchange Kentucky lawmakers are beginning to move forward with plans to close the state’s health insurance exchange. In late December of 2015, Governor Matt Bevin sent a letter to federal officials informing them of the plan. The governor noted that the exchange will no longer be operational “as soon as is practicable.” According to federal law, this will be a year-long process, at least, and will not have an impact on the health insurance policies that were sold through…

Aetna leaves prominent health insurance trade group

January 13, 2016January 12, 2016 S.Vagus

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Aetna will no longer be part of America’s Health Insurance Plan Aetna, one of the largest insurers in the United States, has left the health insurance industry’s largest trade group. This has raised concerns among critics of the Affordable Care Act, who claim that as more insurers leave the trade group, the federal law may be in jeopardy. Aetna is the second large insurer to leave the America’s Health Insurance Plans group, which was a major supporter of the Affordable Care Act as it was being drafted. Trade group is…

Growth of health insurance in the US stalled in 2015

January 11, 2016January 10, 2016 S.Vagus

Efforts to reduce the country’s uninsured population began to slow significantly in 2015 Health insurance has expanded in the United States, with the Obama Administration noting that some 11.3 million people have enrolled for coverage through exchanges throughout the country. Efforts to reduce the country’s uninsured population may not be going smoothly, however. The recent Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index found that reducing the uninsured rate among adults stalled in 2015. This has raised concerns that the Affordable Care Act may not be having the impact that President Barack Obama had intended.…

New law in Texas makes changes to auto insurance requirements

January 8, 2016January 7, 2016 S.Vagus

New law targets ride-share companies, requiring them to have more insurance coverage A new law in Texas will require drivers for both Lyft and Uber to have more auto insurance coverage. The law also applies to all Transportation Network Companies and is meant to address concerns regarding a gap in auto insurance for drivers. Previous to the law, drivers were required to have a minimum of $30,000 per person injured in an accident, $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 in property damage per accident. Typically, this degree of coverage was enough…

Texas sees an increase in those enrolling in health insurance exchange

January 6, 2016January 5, 2016 S.Vagus

HHS finds that 56,000 people have enrolled in federal insurance exchange last week The number of Texas residents enrolling for health insurance coverage through the state’s exchange has grown last week. The Department of Health and Human Services recently released a report showing that some 56,000 people have enrolled for coverage in Texas through HealthCare.gov as of last week, bringing the total number of Texans signing up with the exchange to approximately 1.1 million. Despite the growth, enrollment in Texas has lagged behind that being seen in other states. Many…

Homeowners insurance premiums may grow in Texas due to natural disasters

January 4, 2016January 3, 2016 S.Vagus

2015 has been filled with natural disasters, placing pressure on Texas insurers This has been a troublesome year for many homeowners in the United States when it comes to natural disasters. In Texas, powerful storms have left many homeowners with damaged properties and the storms may have a significant impact on homeowners insurance overall. Insurers are expected to experience financial losses due to the high number of claims that have received as a result of the storms in Texas and this may lead to higher insurance premiums in 2016. Hail…

Legislation in New York secures health insurance access for pregnant women

December 30, 2015December 29, 2015 S.Vagus

Governor signs bill allowing pregnant women to enroll for coverage through state’s exchange New legislation signed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo will ensure that pregnant women will be able to enroll in the state’s health insurance exchange whenever they please. Originally, pregnant women would have to wait for the exchange’s open enrollment period in order to find coverage. Those with qualifying life events can enroll for coverage whenever they want, but the state did not consider pregnancy to be such an event until the new legislation was signed into…