Latest Health Insurance Headlines
All the headlines from our Health Insurance Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Massachusetts Health Insurer Ends Coverage of Compounded Drugs
Jun 14 2013 // The second largest health insurer in Massachusetts has announced that it will no longer cover specialty medications known as compounded drugs, months after a deadly nationwide meningitis outbreak was traced to a...
Small Health Insurers Assuming Big Role In Many States Under Obamacare
Jun 14 2013 // When the state of Mississippi begins offering subsidized health insurance under President Barack Obama’s reform law this year, residents will have only one choice – Magnolia Health Plan – a small insurer...
Ohio Regulators: Health Insurance Costs to Increase Under Exchange
Jun 12 2013 // The Ohio Department of Insurance said insurers’ health insurance plans for the federal insurance exchange for Ohio show that expenses for consumers will significantly increase. Based on a report released by the...
4 Insurance Companies Interested in Arkansas Exchange
Jun 5 2013 // Four insurance companies plan to sell their policies to more than 500,000 Arkansas residents through an online marketplace created under the federal health care law, the state Insurance Department announced. The department...
Some Carriers Opt Out of Minnesota Insurance Marketplace
Jun 5 2013 // With just four months to go before Minnesota’s health insurance exchange goes live, it remains to be seen how many new choices consumers will get. The companies that will offer competing plans via MNsure...
Florida Gov. Scott Signs Bill Limiting State Review of Health Insurance Rates
Jun 4 2013 // Florida Gov. Rick Scott has signed a bill that removes the ability of state regulators to challenge health insurance rates for a two-year period. U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson had called for the bill to be vetoed, saying the...
California Offers Glimpse Into Health Insurance Prices Under Obamacare
May 24 2013 // California unveiled prices on Thursday that consumers will pay for a selection of health plans offered through the state under the Affordable Care Act, providing a glimpse into how health care reform may look as it is...
Wisconsin Bill Would Require $50 Tobacco Use Fee for Health Insurance
May 23 2013 // Wisconsin state workers who smoke would have to pay $50 more per month for health insurance under a Gov. Scott Walker proposal that has won approval by the Legislature’s budget committee. The Joint Finance Committee...
Utah to Be First to Use Dual-Model Health Exchange
May 13 2013 // The federal government has approved Utah to become the first state to have a dual-model health insurance exchange in which the state and the federal government divide responsibilities. The plan allows Utah to continue to...
Ohio Insurance Director Warns of Healthcare-Related ID Scam
May 10 2013 // Ohio Lieutenant Governor and Insurance Director Mary Taylor issued an alert after reports surfaced that telephone con artists are attempting to steal Ohioans’ personal information using the Affordable Care Act (ACA)...
Hospital Charges Vary Widely, Even Within Cities: U.S. Data
May 9 2013 // The Obama administration revealed what over 3,000 hospitals charge for common medical procedures in an early effort to challenge healthcare costs by showing consumers how prices for the same service can vary by tens of...
Indiana State May Charge Tobacco Users More for Insurance
May 8 2013 // Next year, Indiana State University employees who smoke or use other tobacco products could face a $1,200 per year surcharge if they have university health insurance. Also, employees who voluntarily agree to health...
Fundamental Changes Spur Health Spending Dip: Study
May 7 2013 // Slower growth in the pace of U.S. healthcare spending reflects a fundamental change in the use of medical services that could save the country nearly $800 billion in the next decade, according to two new studies released...
Health Insurers Cautious About Joining State Health Exchanges
May 6 2013 // The nation’s largest health insurers are far from leaping at the chance to join new state health insurance exchanges under President Barack Obama’s reform law, making it likely that some markets will have...
Administration Shortens Health Care Application
May 1 2013 // The first draft was as mind-numbing and complex as tax forms. Now the Obama administration is unveiling a simplified application for health insurance benefits under the federal health care overhaul. It now includes a...
Arkansas, Oklahoma: No Plans to Move State Workers to Health Exchanges
Apr 29 2013 // As lawmakers in the state of Washington consider moving some part-time government workers out of a state-sponsored health plan and into an insurance exchange developed under the nation’s new health care overhaul law,...
Supreme Court Will Not Hear Drugmaker’s Appeal of Insurer’s Medicare Reimbursement Claim
Apr 15 2013 // The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider whether private insurers can sue giant drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline Plc over health costs incurred by its Avandia diabetes drug. Humana Inc.’s Humana Medical Plans...
Report: Fewer Californians Get Health Care At Work
Apr 12 2013 // Far fewer Californians are getting health insurance through their employers compared to a decade ago, a change that comes as the nation is about to undergo major reforms in the health care system, according to a report...
Study: Idaho Still Ranks Low For Employee Health Insurance
Apr 12 2013 // A new national study shows Idaho is again ranked among states with the lowest percentage of companies that offer workers employer-sponsored health insurance. Idaho ranks 4th nationally – trailing Alaska, Montana and...
Iowa Senate Panel OKs Small Business Health Coverage Tax Incentive
Apr 5 2013 // An Iowa Senate panel approved a bill that would give a new income tax break to small businesses if they cover part of their employees’ health insurance. The measure passed a Senate Ways and Means subcommittee with...
