The Department of Health and Human Services has exercised one of the new authorities it has been granted under the Affordable Care Act this week. The agency has denied a rate proposal request from Everence Insurance of Pennsylvania. This marks the first time the agency has made use of its new authority over the nation’s insurance companies. Everence Insurance must now rework their rate proposal so that it aligns with what the HHS defines as reasonable. Earlier this year, Everence submitted a rate increase proposal to the Pennsylvanian Department of…
Read MoreTag: news on insurance
Insurers spend billions on large weather events from 2011
Insurance companies are continuing to make payments to policyholders who suffered damage from large severe weather events earlier this year. Officials in Missouri have now named the tornado that ripped through Joplin’s center earlier in 2011 as the most expensive insurance event in the history of the state. It has been estimated that insurers have already spent approximately $1.13 billion on claims related to this occurrence, and that when all claims have been made and paid out, that number will have grown to almost $1.9 billion. According to John Huff…
Read MoreIndiana’s request for exemption from the medical loss ratio rule is denied
Earlier in the year, Indiana’s Department of Insurance submitted an official request to the federal government seeking to free the state’s insurance companies from the medical loss ratio requirement of the Affordable Care Act. The health care law dictates that all insurers should spend no less than 80% of the money they collect on premiums on improving medical care. According to the law, if companies fail to meet the requirement, they must return the money to consumers. Indiana’s request for an exemption from the rule has been denied by the…
Read MoreNAPCO study shows that the U.S. property insurance market is under stress
A new study from NAPCO LLC, a wholesale broker of commercial property insurance coverage, suggests that the national catastrophe property market is quickly moving away from the soft market conditions that have governed insurance prices for several years. While this is typically good news for some insurers, the study shows that a low demand for insurance coverage may restrict the pricing power of insurers. David Pagoumian, CEO of NAPCO, says that property insurers are under heavy pressure to make profits in the current climate and may face even greater pressures…
Read MoreNationwide Insurance reports losses in the third quarter due to natural disasters and poor investment results
Nationwide Insurance has reported its third quarter financial results for this year. The report details a turbulent third quarter, which has been wracked by severe storms and other natural disasters along with costly investment mishaps. Overall, the report shows that the insurer has lost billions in investments and millions in claims relating to storm damage. While Nationwide has an optimistic outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, there can be no doubt that recent events will encourage changes to be made to the company’s policies. Nationwide reports that its…
Read More
