Live Insurance News

Health care reform law may be having a modest impact on the uninsured

May 14, 2014May 12, 2014 S.Vagus

The uninsured may not see a need to use insurance exchanges One of the primary goals of the Affordable Care Act in the U.S., widely known as Obamacare, is to make health insurance coverage more accessible to those that did not have insurance coverage in the past. A new study from McKinsey shows, however, that the vast majority of those that have received coverage through the federal law’s provisions already had insurance. Notably, the survey suggests that many of the people that have enrolled for coverage through their state’s insurance…

Payments for exchange health insurance policies begin coming in

May 13, 2014May 12, 2014 S.Vagus

Insurers are reporting that first payments for exchange policies are beginning to come in from consumers Several large insurance companies in the U.S. have reported that the vast majority of people that have received insurance policies through exchanges have begun to pay for their coverage. Approximately 80% of these people have already made their first payment, with more to follow in the coming weeks. This information was shared during a hearing concerning the Affordable Care Act, wherein legislators sought to establish a better understanding of how the law was affecting…

Oregon health insurance exchange owes agents $900k

May 13, 2014May 13, 2014 G. Turner

Insurance Agent News oregon health insurance

While these professionals enrolled thousands throughout the state, many have not been paid for their services. According to the Oregon health insurance exchange, it owes around $900,000 to the agents who received their training and certification through the program, and who worked to enroll thousands of people throughout the state to make sure that they had the coverage that they needed to comply with the affordable care act, but who haven’t received their own paychecks in six months. Many of these hardworking people haven’t seen a dime of their pay…

E-cigarettes are causing insurance confusion

May 12, 2014May 10, 2014 Julie Campbell

Now that the FDA plans to regulate the devices like their tobacco alternatives, insurers are facing complications. The Affordable Care Act has allowed health insurance companies to charge premiums that are up to 50 percent higher to smokers and other tobacco users than they would to nonsmokers, but the introduction of e-cigarettes into the marketplace have started to make rates calculations a little bit less clear for those insurers. These battery operated devices have some of the properties of their tobacco based counterparts, but not others. Therefore, when it comes…

New tax targeting health insurance products is approved in D.C.

May 12, 2014May 9, 2014 S.Vagus

D.C. Council introduces new tax in order to mitigate financial blow of failed insurance exchange The D.C. Council has approved a new tax that will be placed on all health insurance products that are sold throughout the district. The tax is meant to resolve a specific issue: The financial problems that have been caused by the district’s insurance exchange. The exchange was meant to provide D.C. residents with access to affordable insurance coverage, but it proved quite difficult for these residents to access the exchange due to severe technical difficulties.…