Insurance

No Legislative Or Voter Action Prompted By Announced Covered California Rate Increase

August 19, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<div class="teaser"> <p>SANTA MONICA – A more than 13 percent increase in health insurance premiums for 2017 announced by <a href="http://www.coveredca.com/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Covered California</a> hasn't prompted any action from California lawmakers or voters, an industry spokeswoman said during a recent interview.</p>

More Ethics Questions Plague Brown Administration

August 15, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<div> <p>On a cloudy Sacramento day in 2001, a low-level aide to then-Gov. Gray Davis secretly met a representative of the Oracle Corp. software company, accepting a $25,000 check for Davis’s re-election fund.</p>

The Mystery of California’s High Gas Prices

August 11, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Californians pride themselves on being number one. Highest population. Biggest economy. Top public university system. Most In-N-Out locations per capita. Let us count the ways in which the Golden State comes first in the nation.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-2c6eda23-7ad2-1fc3-c54e-d3c33d15287c">But in the competitive category of money spent on gasoline, Californians hold a more dubious distinction: Across the contiguous United States, nobody pays more to</span><span id="docs-internal-guid-2c6eda23-7ad2-1fc3-c54e-d3c33d15287c"> </span>fill ’er up.</p>

Another Tesla Autopilot Accident Reported in Beijing

August 10, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>With two federal safety investigations already underway in the U.S., Tesla Motors could face scrutiny in China, as well, in the wake of an incident involving a Model S sedan operating in Autopilot mode.</p>

State Farm Overcharged On Premiums And Should Issue Refunds, Judge Says

August 9, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>A judge has recommended that State Farm refund tens of millions of dollars to its California customers and lower its rates after finding that the insurance giant charged excessive premiums over the last year for rental and home insurance policies.</p> <p>But customers shouldn’t expect a refund just yet. The recommendations released Monday must still be approved by California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, who has not indicated whether he will go along with them. </p>

California Watchdog Group Wants State Farm to Reduce Rates by 40%

August 3, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Consumer Watchdog filed a petition in California challenging State Farm’s proposed rates for its homeowners insurance and wants the insurers to cut its rates by as much as 40 percent.</p> <p>The Santa Monica, Calif.-based consumer group said insurer will be overcharging more than 280,000 homeowners policyholders in the state unless it cuts its rate by as much as 40 percent, or nearly $100 million.</p>

Editorial: Health insurance Rate Hikes Show Need For Cost Reforms

July 28, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>The two largest insurers in the Covered California health insurance exchange are jacking up their monthly premiums by 17 and 20 percent next year.</p> <p>The news was appalling, but it should not have been surprising.</p> <p>And all of us should remember that there is nothing we can do about that, even though we once had a chance to place controls over those rates.</p>

Controversy Over Tesla ‘Autopilot’ Name Keeps Growing

July 21, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>What’s in a name? For Tesla’s driver-assist system “autopilot,” plenty of controversy.</p> <p>Some of the most enthusiastic proponents of autonomous vehicles and features are worried that autopilot — not the technology itself, but the very name, which some find misleading — might slow down the evolution of the driverless car. They say that would be a shame, as autonomous technologies are designed to make driving safer by preventing minor fender-benders as well as reducing the number of traffic fatalities. </p>

Big Jump Coming In Health Care Cost

July 20, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><strong>California's insurance marketplace carriers will raise rates in 2017; Covered California rates to jump average of 13 percent in 2017</strong></p> <p> </p> <p>After two years of moderate rate increases, Californians who get their coverage through the state health insurance marketplace will see their 2017 premiums increase by an average of 13.2 percent.</p>

Obamacare: Covered California’s Health Plan Prices Soar

July 19, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p class="bodytext"><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_print">Californians who buy coverage through the state's health insurance exchange better get ready for a dose of sticker shock: Average premiums next year will shoot up more than 13 percent statewide -- and could even double that in some parts of Northern California.</span></span></p>

Covered California Health Plan Rates To Jump 13.2 Percent In 2017

July 19, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<div class="article-body"> <p>California’s Obamacare premiums will jump 13.2 percent on average next year, a sharp increase that is likely to reverberate nationwide in an election year.</p> <p>The Covered California exchange had won plaudits by negotiating 4 percent average rate increases in its first two years. But that feat couldn’t be repeated for 2017, as overall medical costs continue to climb and two federal programs that help insurers with expensive claims are set to expire this year.</p>

California Obamacare Rates To Rise 13% In 2017, More Than Three Time The Increase Of Last Two Years

July 19, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>remiums for Californians’ Obamacare health coverage will rise by an average of 13.2% next year — more than three times the increase of the last two years and a jump that is bound to raise debate in an election year.</p> <p>The big hikes come after two years in which California officials had boasted that the program helped insure hundreds of thousands people in the state while keeping costs moderately in check.</p>