As per new federal laws, the nation’s medical records will soon be stored electronically. These new electronic records will be a part of the state-run health insurance exchange programs that are designed to help consumers find affordable health care. Insurers participating in these programs will have access to a person’s medical records to help price insurance policies. Going electronic has some major risks, however, and these risks have never been more apparent than they are today. While the advancement of technology has brought many benefits to humanity as a whole,…
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Lowest health insurance competition found to be in Alabama
According to a recent report from the Kaiser Family Foundation, the least competitive market for health insurance in the United States is in Alabama. The Kaiser Family Foundation is a nonprofit health policy organization and released the report which showed that 86 percent of the policies in the individual market in Alabama were sold by Blue Cross Blue Shield. In the small group market in that state, that insurer sold 96 percent of the policies. Though the report did indicate that individual insurers hold the majority of the insurance markets…
Read MoreMarket stability placates insurance rates, protects from wild increases, say analysts
As insurers begin to feel the weight of the Affordable Care Act, speculation abounds that suggests insurance companies may be raising their rates to offset the effects of the law. Indeed, health insurers throughout the nation have been raising rates, but most claim that higher premiums are being spurred by soaring medical costs and nothing more. Analysts from research firm Avalere Health say that rates should be rising much faster than they are now, yet the insurance industry confounds this estimation. The reason insurance rates are not soaring out of…
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