Several newspaper reports recently have drawn attention once again to the related subjects of containing healthcare costs, and controlling Health Insurance Premiums.
Major Health Insurance Companies are going to provide Claims information to a newly formed, previously unknown "nonprofit group" called "the Health Care Cost Institute". The purpose of providing their Health Claims information is to display the spiraling costs of Healthcare. Parenthetically, the wide variation in Healthcare costs makes a stark contrast to the costs of Medicare, which are uniformly lower than privately fund Healthcare costs -- i.e., Insurer-paid Healthcare charges. See Reed Abelson, "4 Insurers Will Supply Health Data" p. B1, column 6 (New York Times Nat'l ed., "Business Day" Section, Tuesday, September 20, 2011).
In another report, consistent with the handling of Healthcare Claims under the Federal Healthcare Reforms, State Insurance Commissioners are receiving grants from the Federal Government which are intended to beef up the ability of State Insurance Commissioners to review Premium Rate Increase Requests from Health Insurance Companies (the Federal Government not having assumed any powers to require Health Insurance Premiums to be lowered, although some States confer that power on their State Insurance Commissioners). Reportedly, Health Insurance Companies are not as happy with that effort to contain costs. See Noam N. Levey, "29 States Get Grants to Boost Health Insurer Oversight" (Los Angeles Times Online, Tuesday, September 20, 2011).
States receiving grants include those with Democratic Governors and those without, such as:
- California
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- New Mexico
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Utah and
- Wisconsin.
Texas has not yet made this list. It may. Reportedly, "Insurance premiums have risen more quickly in Texas than they have nationally over the last seven years. And when compared with incomes, insurance in Texas is less affordable than in every state but Mississippi, according to the nonprofit Commonwealth Fund." See Noam N. Levey, "Texas Healthcare System Withering Under Gov. Perry" (Los Angeles Times Online, Thursday, September 8, 2011). When statistics as of 2007 were analyzed, "nearly a third of the state's children did not receive an annual physical and a teeth cleaning". Id. Although infant mortality rates have declined in the United States in the last decade -- thankfully -- they have risen in Texas. Id.
A spokesperson for the Texas Governor's office has countered these facts with the observation that many individuals simply choose not to purchase Health Insurance. Id.
Maybe. But the costs of Health Insurance Premiums are every bit as much under the microscope as the costs of Healthcare -- as are policies of government which make it harder for people to obtain care and Coverage adequate to keep them and their children healthy, and alive.
The Author was invited to serve as Co-Chair of the American Bar Association's Health, Life and Disability Insurance Subcommittee of the Insurance Coverage Litigation Committee.
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