Insurance

Gov Signs, Vetoes Consumer Protection Bills

October 12, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

A bill that would have extended a low cost auto-insurance program in California another three years has been vetoed by the Governor. The program offers bare-bones auto liability insurance to good drivers for about $350 per year. The pilot program has provided insurance to about 50,000 motorists, but is set to end next year. The bill by Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento would have extended the program to 2015. "This veto is out of touch with the real economy that many Californians are facing," said Doug Heller, Executive Director of the nonpartisan Consumer Watchdog. "Why would a program that has allowed nearly 50,000 Californians to buy auto insurance instead of driving uninsured and doesn't cost the taxpayers a dime be on the Governor's chopping block?"

Couple Battle To Make Insurers Liable For Coverage Decisions

October 7, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>Their wrongful-death suit against Cigna over the loss of their 17-year-old daughter was blocked. Now they aim to bring change.</strong> <p> With Congress considering a healthcare overhaul -- including a requirement that individuals buy health insurance -- Potter, the Sarkisyans and their supporters want lawmakers to undo the high court's 1987 ERISA ruling. Santa Monica-based Consumer Watchdog sent a letter to key congressional leaders urging them to undo the ERISA ruling, and president Jamie Court said Nataline's case shows why such a move is crucial to any healthcare reform. "If the insurer decides they don't want to pay for the treatment because they can save a lot of money, there is not a dime available in damages if the person dies or is injured," Court said. "It's cheaper to kill you. If you die, you can't go to court." It's not the first time this aspect of ERISA has come under fire. </p>

Why is Washington DC afraid of premium regulation?

October 7, 2009  ·  Jamie Court

The head of the American health insurance lobby Karen Ignani is urging Congress to increase tax penalties under the mandatory health insurance reform. How about mandatory health insurance premium regulation instead? It's worked for auto insurance in California.

WellPoint Cuts Workers’ Health Insurance Benefits

October 5, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

WellPoint health insurance company, which has encouraged its employees to lobby against health care reform, is now cutting their benefits. The insurance giant plans to raise deductibles and premiums for some of its employee health benefits. "Your cost per paycheck will probably increase," said a memo to Wellpoint employees that was <a href="http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20091003/BIZ/910030367/WellPoint+cuts+workers+health+benefits">obtained by Bloomberg News</a>.

The Missing Health Care Debate

October 5, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

I’ve been observing the health “reform” saga on two levels. One is the spectacle of the insurance industry having its way with Congress. The other is the Venice Family Clinic in Los Angeles, which provides free health care to the uninsured working poor. In Congress, the Senate is plodding toward approval of a huge giveaway to the insurance industry. It is considering a proposal requiring almost everyone to buy an insurance policy. But so far, the plan fails to impose any serious regulation on the insurance companies. That’s a blatant gift to an industry that will benefit from the many millions of new policyholders without giving up anything in return. In California, where I live, we have mandatory auto insurance, but thanks to a voter initiative, Proposition 103, the companies are strongly regulated and consumers are authorized to fight rate increases. Such regulation should be part of any federal health reform legislation. One need only visit a free clinic to find out why.

Californians: Urge Gov. Schwarzenegger to extend innovative Low-Cost Auto Insurance Program (UPDATE)

October 1, 2009  ·  Doug Heller

<p> Please <a href="http://gov.ca.gov/interact" target="_blank" rel="noopener">contact Governor Schwarzenegger</a> and urge him to sign AB 725 (Jones), which would extend California's Low-Cost Automobile Insurance Program through 2015.   </p>

Everything You Need To Know About The Baucus Bill In Two Minutes

September 29, 2009  ·  Jerry Flanagan

It's important to understand what a bill without that public option would actually do. Brave New Films got <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj6GyFEA3FI">Jerry Flanagan of Consumer Watchdog to explain</a> the elements of Baucus-care without a public option, and it's not a pretty picture.

Opinion: Insurance Rules Miss An Environmental Opportunity

September 29, 2009  ·  Carmen Balber

<p> Our cars have improved since the 1960s, but how we pay for the miles we drive hasn't. Drivers can pay as much for auto insurance whether they drive five miles a month or five hundred. Unfortunately for California drivers, regulations by California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner that became law this past Sunday do nothing to protect drivers from overpaying for auto insurance or protect the environment. </p>

Clipping coupons? Watch out for higher credit card rates

September 29, 2009  ·  Carmen Balber

<p> You may have seen the <a href="http://cbs4.com/business/credit.credit.card.2.1213759.html">reports today</a> about Kevin Johnson, whose credit card company lowered his credit line by $6,200 based in part on where he shops. Charging people more based on where they shop is just the kind of sketchy behavior financial regulators should be investigating... </p>

Health Overhaul Bills Await Governor

September 28, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p> <strong>WOMEN'S POLICY COSTS, COVERAGE WOULD BE AFFECTED</strong><br /> </p> <p> Without clear standards, the law in California isn't strong enough to halt the practice of rescinding health insurance, said Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog. Court said fines that state officials ordered companies to pay for rescissions were paltry -- $1 million for Blue Cross -- and that insurers are offering skimpy reimbursement. Consumer Watchdog tracked the case of Fort Bragg resident Lee Rider, for example, who was saddled with $92,000 in medical bills when his policy was canceled after his insurer said he failed to disclose that a doctor had diagnosed him with neck strain. The insurer offered him $5,000 to close his case. He turned it down, and the matter is in arbitration. </p>

65% want public health option — Can lobbyists still kill it?

September 25, 2009  ·  Judy Dugan

<p> Message to fence-sitters in Washington: A <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2009/09/25/us/politics/25pollgrx.html">major national poll</a> today from CBS and the New York Times finds that 65% of Americans still want a public insurance option as a voluntary alternative to private insurance. In the face of that desire for a public option, its top opponents in Congress let the veil slip this week about about the lobbyists they're answering to. Time for fence-sitters to quit dithering and say whose side they're on. </p>

Reform Plans Not Expected To Halt Soaring Premiums

September 24, 2009  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>The healthcare bills in Congress do not call for limits on prices, raising fears that costs will continue to grow.</strong><br /> <br /> WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In the drive to bring health coverage to almost every American, lawmakers have largely rejected restrictions on how much insurers can charge, sparking fears that consumers will continue to face the skyrocketing premium increases of recent years. nThe legislators' reluctance to control premium costs comes despite the fact that they intend to require virtually all Americans to get health insurance, an unprecedented mandate -- long sought by insurance companies -- that would mark the first time the federal government has compelled consumers to buy a single industry's product, effectively creating a captive market. "If the government is going to require people to buy an insurance policy, they have to guarantee it is affordable," said Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog. "It is unconscionable not to."