It has been a tumultuous year for Connecticut’s state health insurance exchange, but the latest – and most significant – blow could come Monday if its largest insurer decides not to offer plans next year.
Connecticut Insurance Department
Posted inHealth
Health insurers face outcry over requests for sharply higher rates
After proposing sharp rate increases for next year’s health insurance plans for individuals and small groups, a trio of insurers faced a barrage of criticism from elected officials and the public during a series of hearings Wednesday and Thursday.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Justice Dept. sues to block Aetna-Humana, Anthem-Cigna mergers
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department filed lawsuits Thursday to block both proposed mergers between Aetna and Humana and Anthem and Cigna. The insurers said they would fight the suits.
Posted inHealth
State deems insurance co-op, HealthyCT, financially unstable
About 40,000 people will lose their health insurance in the coming months as a result of a state evaluation that has deemed the financial health of Connecticut’s nonprofit health care co-op unstable.
Posted inNews
CT ethics board to consider Common Cause petition seeking Wade investigation
Connecticut ethics officials will consider a petition filed by Common Cause late Monday that asks them to rule on whether Connecticut Insurance Commissioner Katharine L. Wade’s ties to her former employer, Cigna, require her to recuse herself from reviewing a proposed merger of Cigna and Anthem. The Citizen’s Ethics Advisory Board will vote Thursday on whether a review will be done.
Posted inHealth
Major health insurers seek sharply higher rates in Connecticut
Some of Connecticut’s major health insurers are seeking rate increases far beyond medical inflation, including an average increase of 26.8 percent for the individual plans offered by the state’s biggest insurer, Anthem Health Plans, according to requests released Monday. The filings come as the insurance industry, state Insurance Commissioner Katharine Wade and her department are under intense scrutiny over proposed mergers.
Posted inPolitics
CT approval of Aetna-Humana merger draws fire
Updated at 5:30 p.m.
WASHINGTON — Opponents of the proposed Aetna-Humana merger on Thursday blasted the state insurance department for approving the deal, saying it was “rubber stamped” without public input, and asked the department to reopen the case.
Posted inHealth, Politics
CT signs off on Aetna-Humana merger, but other hurdles remain
WASHINGTON — The Connecticut Insurance Department has signed off on Aetna’s proposed merger with Humana, but other hurdles remain for that deal and another merger proposed by Cigna and Anthem.
Posted inHealth
Critics urge more transparency in Anthem-Cigna merger review
Saying that “all eyes will be on Connecticut,” critics of two pending mergers of major health insurers have asked the state’s insurance commissioner to take steps they say would increase transparency in the review of Anthem’s proposed acquisition of Cigna.
Posted inHealth
State says UnitedHealthcare can’t ax broker commissions
The Connecticut Insurance Department has blocked UnitedHealthcare’s plan to stop paying broker commissions for plans sold through the state’s health insurance exchange, but will let them pay a lower rate.
Posted inHealth
How to manage a high-deductible health plan
High-deductible health plans, which are increasingly common, don’t just require people to pay more when they get care; they also leave people with more to understand, from figuring out how much care costs to handling bills that aren’t always clear. Here are some tips from experts on how to manage a high-deductible plan. This story is the latest in a series on how to better navigate the health care system.
Posted inHealth
Ethics office won’t call for Wade to recuse herself on Cigna deal
The Office of State Ethics is not calling for Insurance Commissioner Katharine L. Wade to recuse herself from overseeing her agency’s review of Anthem’s proposal to buy Cigna, where Wade previously worked and her husband serves as an attorney. But Executive Director Carol Carson said the office has raised concerns.
Posted inHealth
CT’s insurance CO-OP sticking around, but still a work in progress
The nonprofit insurer lost $28 million in 2014 and, as of June 30, had lost $9.5 million this year. CEO Ken Lalime said early losses are not unusual for a new company, and said HealthyCT has the capital to get through the initial, unprofitable years.
Posted inHealth
CT removes age limit for infertility treatment coverage mandate
Health insurance plans sold in Connecticut will no longer be allowed to limit coverage of medically necessary infertility treatment to people under 40, according to new guidance issued by the Connecticut Insurance Department Thursday.
Posted inHealth
Insurer: Cost of cholesterol meds, other drugs driving rate hikes
High-cost specialty drugs, including a new class of cholesterol medications expected to come to market later this year, are key drivers of the need to raise health insurance premiums by nearly 10 percent, ConnectiCare’s chief actuary told regulators Monday