Thursday, April 29, 2010

insurance rescissions ending next month

Politico:
The health insurance industry has decided to end its practice of cancelling claims once a patient gets sick next month, well before the new health care law would have required it, the industry’s chief spokesman said Wednesday.

"While many health plans already abide by the standards outlined in the new law, our community is committed to implementing the new standards in May 2010 to ensure that individuals and families will have greater peace of mind when purchasing coverage on their own," AHIP president and chief executive Karen Ignagni said in a letter to top House Democrats.
...
Congressional Democrats and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius had pressured companies to end the practice early. The overhaul plan will ban the practice in September, except in cases of fraud or intentional misrepresentation, and subject it to a third party review.

White House health reform czar Nancy-Ann DeParle said the administration will be watching to ensure the industry does indeed institute the ban.

There was a lot of BS in the healthcare bill, and too many compromises were made with people who negotiated in bad faith, but at the end of the day the single worst practice in the American healthcare system is coming to an end. This is going to save lives.

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