Healthcare

Court Allows Suit Against HMO

April 10, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>A federal appeals court has ruled that an HMO may be sued over the quality of health care in a case in Texas, the only state that has a law permitting such claims. However, the ruling does not allow patients to sue because an HMO won't pay for a particu</p>

Senate Panel OKs Bill on HMO Liability

April 7, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Measure Would Expand Patients' Ability to Sue - Previous Attempt was Beaten Back by Former Gov. Wilson, Insurers, and Employers</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>SACRAMENTO -- A state Senate committee approved a bill Tuesday that would hold health maintenance organizations liable for interfering in the quality of care provided to 14 million Californians. The action dealt a substantial setback to the managed care</p>

Group Sues to Halt Kaiser Permanente Ads

March 18, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">New York Times</p> <p>In the latest legal attack on managed health care, a consumer advocacy group asked a California court this week to halt advertising by Kaiser Permanente, the nation's largest health maintenance organization, contending that the company's advertising recru</p>

Kaiser Sued Over Ad Campaign

March 17, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>A consumer advocacy group sued Kaiser Foundation Health Plan over a television advertising campaign in which the nonprofit health maintenance organization proclaims that its doctors, not its administrators, make all decisions on patient care, basing them</p>

Aetna-Prudential Deal Getting Close Scrutiny

February 20, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Hartford Courant</p> <p>Aetna's $1 billion deal to buy Prudential HealthCare isn't sailing through the U.S. Justice Department's antitrust review as quickly as Aetna's previous health-care acquisitions.</p>

Aetna-Prudential Plan Goes to State Hearing

February 18, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Hartford Courant</p> <p>Connecticut insurance regulators will hold a public hearing Friday on Aetna's planned purchase of Prudential HealthCare, which is drawing protests from the state medical society and a California consumer group.</p>

Jury’s Verdict is a Loud and Clear Message to HMOs: A $120 Million Award Says that Aetna and Other Firms Must Do Better at Authorizing Treatment

January 27, 1999  ·  Jamie Court

<h3>Opinion Editorial by Jamie Court</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>Should the life and death appeals of HMO patients really be in the hands of private reviewers who are hired by the HMO and use private protocols to reach their decisions? Privatization advocates have long tried to turn public control of our schools, cour</p>

$116 Million Punitive Award Against Aetna

January 21, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">New York Times</p> <p>A jury in California yesterday awarded $116 million in punitive damages to a patient's widow who contends he died after a subsidiary of Aetna Inc., the nation's largest health insurer, delayed approving treatment for stomach cancer that its own doctors ha</p>

Don’t Let HMOs Privatize Reforms

January 20, 1999  ·  Jamie Court

<h3>Opinion Editorial by Jamie Court</h3><p class="source">San Diego Union-Tribune</p> <p>Should the life-and-death appeals of HMO patients really be in the hands of private reviewers who are hired by the HMO and use private protocols to reach their decisions? Privatization advocates have long tried to turn public control of our schools, cou</p>

HMO Domination in Houston

January 19, 1999  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Aetna Tries to Soothe Doctors' Fears</h3><p class="source">Houston Chronicle</p> <p>Aetna U.S. Healthcare is the managed-care company many physicians love to hate. Once a genteel company that earned the nickname "Mother Aetna," the giant health insurer is coming under fire from Houston-area doctors as it prepares to take over more than</p>

Making a Killing

January 1, 1999  ·  Jamie Court

HMO’S AND THE THREAT TO YOUR HEALTH A Landmark Exposé on Managed Care Jamie Court and Francis Smith take on the corporate world of managed...

An Equal Chance: Hospitals Need Backbone to Cut Deals with Health Plan

December 31, 1998  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>One of the most hard-nosed of all the health plans, Blue Cross of California, has yielded ground in recent negotiations with three San Gabriel Valley hospitals, agreeing to raise its reimbursements for medical procedures.</p>