California health insurer holds off on rate increase

WellPoint Inc., one of the nation’s top health insurers based in California, announced earlier this year that it would be raising premiums on individual policies by 16.4%. After increased pressure from state legislators and insurance commissioner Dave Jones, however, the insurer has proposed a new increase of no more than 9.8%. Furthermore, the company has heeded Jones’ call for delays on rate hikes and has announced that the increases will not take effect until July. According to Jones, the rate increases will affect more than 600,000 policyholders in the state.…

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California health insurance deadline quickly approaching for open enrollment

March 1st marks the deadline for open enrollment for health insurance that would cover children with pre-existing conditions in California. Parents are being urged to sign up for coverage before its too late or run the risk of higher health insurance rates. It is estimated that in California more than 1.1 million people under the age of 25 are diagnosed with pre-existing medical conditions which may seriously inhibit their ability to obtain adequate coverage. Parents who miss the deadline stand to face paying as much as 20% more for coverage.…

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