The U.S. Supreme Court has decided to perform a review of the healthcare overhaul by the Obama administration in order to determine if it is constitutional. This debate will no doubt be a topic that will help to decide the shape of the presidential election in 2012, and will help to determine how much power the federal government will have over healthcare and insurance. The Supreme Court justices have said that they will be considering the constitutionality of the healthcare overhaul’s requirement that all Americans must purchase health insurance by…
Read MoreTag: mandatory health insurance
Georgia receives waiver for medical loss ratio provision of the Affordable Care Act
While many provisions of the Affordable Care Act have been submerged in controversy, one provision, in particular, has garnered the ire of the insurance industry. The new federal law requires all health insurers to spend at least 80% of the money the collect from premiums on improving medical care for patients. If insurers cannot meet the standard, they are required to return the money to policyholders. This single provision has major financial implications on the nation’s insurers, both big and small. Insurers have been petitioning state lawmakers to obtain a…
Read MoreD.C. court upholds the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act
If there was ever any doubt that the Affordable Care Act would make it to the Supreme Court, a new ruling from a federal appeals court in the District of Columbia may have made it a sure thing. A panel of judges from the Court of Appeals in D.C. has ruled that the Affordable Care Act, particularly the provision for mandatory health insurance, is constitutional. The ruling conflicts with that coming from other appeals courts throughout the country that have deemed the law unconstitutional. To date, 26 states have filed…
Read MoreHealth insurance marketplace clambers to prepare for state exchanges
The entire health care system is facing a massive change with the upcoming implementation of the state insurance exchanges which are the heart of the overhaul to the system made by the Obama administration. Businesses ranging from pharmacies to insurance companies, and from therapists to doctors and virtually any healthcare-related industry are now being forced to prepare for the new shape of the insurance marketplace and are all coming up with their own unique opinions based on the circumstances in which they are finding themselves. Among all of those different…
Read MoreIllinois legislators to decide the fate of a state-run insurance exchange this week
This is an important week for the health insurance industry in Illinois. The state has entered the national limelight as it draws closer to making a decision regarding the establishment of a health insurance exchange. Legislators have been torn on the issue since the passing of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. A law that would make the exchange a reality is currently before the state Legislature and lawmakers are expected to determine the fate of the exchange initiative by the end of the week. If the law is passed,…
Read More