Report shows insurance is an economic player in California

A new report has shown that the property and casualty industry for California insurance is responsible for bringing billions of dollars into the state. The report, which was released by the Insurance Information Institute, showed that in 2008, that sector of the insurance industry brought $34.7 billion into the economy. It also showed that insurers are responsible for approximately 2 percent of the total gross state product for California. In fact, in that state, there are more insurance professionals employed than in any other state in the country. In 2009,…

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Forecast predicts a third of companies will cut health benefits

A new study from prestigious consulting firm McKinsey & Company suggests that as much as 30% of the nation’s employers will be making drastic changes to the insurance they provide to their employees. The firm suggests that the more these companies learn about upcoming insurance changes stemming from last year’s Affordable Care Act the more likely they are to make such changes. The study anticipates that these businesses will cease offering health care benefits or restrict access to such benefits to a select few in their service. If the study…

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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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