Latest Health Insurance Headlines
All the headlines from our Health Insurance Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Mass. weighs health insurance minimum payments
Sep 4 2006 // Massachusetts officials are grappling to come up with how much lower-income residents should have to pay for insurance under the state’s landmark health care reform law that requires citizens to procure...
Census: New Mexicans Held onto Health Insurance in 2005
Aug 31 2006 // U.S. Census figures show the average percentage of New Mexicans without health insurance over the past three years has remained relatively unchanged, but state officials say the figures don’t take into account their...
Survey Says: Mass. Uninsured Population Down 19%
Aug 29 2006 // The number of Massachusetts residents without health insurance dropped 19 percent in the past two years, according to a survey released this week by the state’s Division of Health Care Finance and Policy. The survey,...
Neb. Approves High-Risk Health Pool Rate Change of 23.5 Percent
Aug 21 2006 // The Nebraska Department of Insurance announced recently that it has approved the recommendation of the Nebraska Comprehensive Health Insurance Pool (CHIP) Board of Directors to increase the high-risk pool rates by 23.5...
Oklahoma, Texas have most uninsured children
Aug 21 2006 // Arkansas led the nation in the reducing the number of uninsured children in that state between 1997 and 2004, but Texas and Oklahoma lagged behind the rest — ranking last and next to last, respectively, in the...
Wis. Governor Unveils Plan to Make Health Premiums Tax-deductible
Aug 18 2006 // Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle unveiled a plan this week to exempt all health insurance premiums from state taxes, a break that he said would save families who qualify hundreds of dollars per year. The governor said the plan...
Study Shows Decline in Number of N.D. Children Without Insurance
Aug 10 2006 // North Dakota has made progress in reducing the number of children without health insurance, a new report says. The state saw one of the biggest declines in the percentage of uninsured children since the start of the State...
N.J. Governor Vows to Unveil Health Insurance Plan in Sept.
Aug 9 2006 // New Jersey will consider adopting a program that “approaches universal health care” as it seeks to provide health insurance to small businesses and uninsured residents, the governor said recently. Gov. Jon S....
Maryland Seeks Answers for Uninsured After Wal-Mart Law Nixed
Aug 6 2006 // With Maryland’s groundbreaking Wal-Mart health care bill declared invalid by a federal judge, state officials are re-examining their options for providing medical care to many of the almost 800,000 people who have no...
Kan. Commissioner Warns Medicare Beneficiaries About New Scam
Jul 27 2006 // Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger wants Kansas seniors to know that the “$299 Ring” scam recently has escalated into a higher priced scam involving, in some cases, a new Medicare card, instead of a...
Minn. Blues Refunds Nonsmoking Policyholders Charged Smoker Rates
Jul 21 2006 // Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota has announced a new policy to issue refunds to nonsmoking individual policyholders who, although eligible, have not been paying tobacco-free premium rates. “Blue Cross has done...
Californians Eligible, But Don’t Often Sign Up for Health Insurance
Jul 18 2006 // Approximately 43 percent of the reported 6.7 million California residents that qualify for government-sponsored health insurance aren’t signed up, according to statewide studies. Upon discovering this information,...
Mo. Governor Signs Health Care Bill to Aid Small Businesses
Jul 17 2006 // Gov. Matt Blunt recently signed legislation aimed at increasing access to affordable health insurance for employees of small businesses. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Jay Wasson, R-Nixa, expands eligibility for association...
Pennsylvania’s Two Biggest Health Insurers in Merger Talks Again
Jul 17 2006 // Pennsylvania’s two largest health insurers are discussing a possible merger, which could happen as early as September. Independence Blue Cross, based in Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh-based Highmark Inc. are part of...
Generali Signs Deal to Acquire 51% Stake in Bulgaria’s Orel-G Holding
Jul 11 2006 // It’s not just the Italian Football (soccer) team that’s in an expansive mood. Italy’s Generali Group announced that it has signed an agreement for the acquisition of a 51 percent shareholding in Bulgarian...
Group Sues Michigan State University Over Same-sex Benefits
Jul 7 2006 // A conservative group this week filed suit to stop Michigan State University from offering health insurance to the partners of gay workers and said the school is violating a 2004 amendment to the state constitution. The...
R.I. Adopts Multi-Pronged Health Care Affordability Program
Jul 7 2006 // The Rhode Island General Assembly recently passed the Health Care Affordability Act, a set of 14 bills intended to lower health insurance costs for small businesses, strengthen state control over provider expansion,...
Del. Chief Hails Anti-Fraud, Med Mal Bills; Vows Retry on Credit Score Ban
Jul 6 2006 // According to Insurance Commissioner Matt Denn, the 2006 Delaware General Assembly session produced some positive accomplishments, but also left some of what he says are his pro-consumer initiatives undone. “There are...
N.D. Poolman Cautions Against Medicare Scams
Jul 5 2006 // North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jim Poolman warned seniors and other Medicare recipients to be on the look out for telephone scams. Callers, posing as representatives of fictitious companies such as Pharma Corp.,...
VIRGINIA ADOPTS SMALL BUSINESS INSURANCE PURCHASING BILL
Jul 3 2006 // Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine has signed a General Assembly bill that allows small businesses to collectively purchase health insurance, a measure supporters hope will help address health care concerns within the...
