The U.S. Department of Justice is challenging what it says is the largest merger in the history of the health insurance industry. On Monday, the Justice Department will begin arguing its case against Anthem’s $54 billion acquisition of Cigna Corp. This merger would be particularly painful for St. Louis area consumers where these two insurers have a significant portion of the market share. http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/consumers-should-pay-attention-to-insurance-antit ...
Category: Health Care
MO ins rates sky rocket, data questionable
The Affordable Care Act made health insurance accessible for millions of Americans. But rising rates, a lack of transparency in policy changes and little oversight in the process puts the entire system at risk. Rates in MO are rising by alarming rates and the data behind these rates hikes are questionable. http://acasignups.net/16/06/01/2017-rate-request-early-look-missouri ...
Aetna pulls out of MO marketplace, we deserve better
http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/mailbag/americans-deserve-better-than-choosing-among-crummy-insurance-plans/article_ea5d9127-29e2-5bc7-8301-1f7d3bf2535d.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=user-share ...
Gov. Nixon Signs Bill Protecting Consumers
Gov. Jay Nixon today signed into law a bill that will help protect Missouri healthcare consumers. Senate Bill 865 gives authority to the Missouri Department of Insurance to review rates for health plans offered under the federal Affordable Care Act. Currently, the only review of those rates could be done by federal regulators, acting on behalf of the state. https://governor.mo.gov/news/archive/gov-nixon-signs-bill-protect-consumers-allowing-state-review-rates-health-insurance ...
Instructions for Commenting to HHS on a Specific ACA Health Insurance Plan’s Rate Increase of More Than 10%
If you really want to get in the weeds and comment on a SPECIFIC PLAN with a proposed increase of 10% or more, do the following: • Go to https://ratereview.healthcare.gov • Select "Search ACA-Compliant Products.” • Select Missouri and click on “Submit Search.” • The search will return a list of insurance plans in the state with proposed rate increases of 10% or greater. Click on a plan to see the details about the rate hike. • CLICK ONLY ON PLANS SUBM ...
CCM Asks Feds to Hold Hearing, Find Health Insurance Rate Hikes Excessive
St. Louis, MO (July 30, 2015) -- Consumers Council of Missouri is calling on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to investigate projected rate increases from Coventry Health Insurance and four other Missouri insurers, each of whom has proposed raising rates by more than 10 percent in 2016. Coventry Health Care, which is owned by Aetna, is one of the major carriers on the federal exchange for Missouri. It has filed for 2016 rate increases of more than 20 percent. F ...
Rate Hike Proposal for Health Insurance in Missouri Draws Consumer Group’s Ire
KWMU, July 31, 2015 Large rate increases for health insurance may be in the works for some Missourians this year, but we won’t know the final prices for a few months. Last month, insurance companies nationwide submitted their bids for rate increases. The Missouri proposals from Coventry Health Care were among the steepest, including a 29 percent hike for individual plans sold on Healthcare.gov. According to rate filings, Coventry's rate increases could affect 70,000 people. ...
First Ever Rate Review Process Could Lead to Lower Health Insurance Rates
Consumers Council of Missouri, July 2015 Missouri is the only state in the country in which the Department of Insurance has no authority over health insurance rates. As a result, under the requirements of the Affordable Care Act the federal Department of Health and Human Services reviews the rates for Missouri. Because the state doesn’t review rates on behalf of consumers, Consumers Council of Missouri teamed up with Missouri Foundation for Health to analyze the rates for 20 ...
Effect of Health Insurance Merger Concerns Local Consumer Advocates
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 11, 2015 A proposed merger between two health insurance giants is drawing concerns around the country and in Missouri, as some fear the consolidation could leave older adults in the state with fewer choices for health care. Earlier this month, Aetna Inc. announced it would acquire Humana Inc. for about $37 billion, a combination that would produce the nation’s second-largest health insurer, just behind UnitedHealth Group Inc. Spurred on by the ...
CCM’s Cause: Fair Health Insurance Rates
Recent media reports take note of Consumers Council of Missouri's work on behalf of consumers buying health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. CCM is spearheading the effort to review proposed rates before they go into effect. Health Insurance Costs to Rise, But How Much Depends on State KBIA, July 8, 2015 The cost of health insurance premiums - the amount you pay each month for your plan - will likely go up in 2016. If state governments approve insurers’ proposed hike ...
Close