AARP Arizona teams with insurance regulators to attempt to open up the state’s rate review process to consumers

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, insurers in Arizona are pushing for double-digit rate increases. The matter has not escaped the notice of the state’s Department of Insurance, of course, and regulators are reviewing the rate proposals from the companies involved. AARP Arizona has begun engaging regulators on the behalf of consumers. The organization believes that consumers should have a larger role in the rate review process, especially since it is them who will feel the impact of higher insurance rates. AARP officials are working with the…

Read More

Mortgage insurance – added problem for U.S. housing

In the present financial crisis, policymakers in the U.S. have started analyzing the structure of the U.S. housing finance system and the role of the federal government in supporting the flow of money to the housing sector. Private Mortgage Insurers rank among the lesser known components of the present housing finance system. The recent downfall of PMI Group’s credit indemnity trade is a hint to the fact that, a huge part of the private sector of U.S. housing require some modifications. Quite similar to it’s rivals, MGIC and Radian, PMI…

Read More

PMI Group shares plummet following capital requirement misses

PMI Group Inc. shares dropped by up to 41 percent on August 22st, following an announcement that two of the units of this mortgage insurance company were forced to stop writing new business because they had fallen short of meeting their capital requirements. Just before this announcement was made, PMI had stated that both PMI Mortgage Insurance Co. (MIC) and PMI Insurance Co. had been placed under regulatory supervision by the Arizona Department of Insurance. Since then, PMI has also revealed that the MIC subsidiary, PMI Mortgage Assurance Co., was…

Read More

Federal government to review Arizona’s insurance industry after the state fails to meet new standards

Arizona is not capable of moderating health insurance rate increases according to the state’s own law and those of the federal government. New federal standards accompanying the overarching health care reform dictate that states must be able to adequately review the rate increase process or default such authority to the federal government. Arizona’s current law dictates that insurers must submit paperwork regarding rate increases, but nothing more is required thereafter. Because Arizona does not meet federal requirements in this regard, federal regulators will be coming to the state to take…

Read More