Health Insurance in the News

Several stories in the news recently... Via Slate's Today's Papers column, from an article in the LA Times by Lisa Girion titled "Healthy? Insurers don't buy it":

...the ranks of uninsured Americans have swelled to more than 46 million.

...part of what experts say is a largely hidden aspect of the nation's health insurance crisis: the uninsurables, people whom insurance companies won't touch, even though they can afford to pay high premiums. Some...pay steep rates for lean coverage from the state's high-risk insurance pool. Others simply go without. Insurers have wide latitude to choose among applicants for individual coverage and set premiums based on medical conditions. Insurers say medical underwriting, as the selection process is known, is key to keeping premiums under control.

Consumer advocates see the practice as cherry-picking - a legal form of discrimination that is no longer tolerated in schools, public accommodations or workplaces - and a way to guarantee profits.

According to regulators' postings, rejection letters and interviews with brokers, conditions that can lead to outright rejection or a higher premium include: AIDS, allergies, arthritis, asthma, attention deficit disorder, autism, bed-wetting, breast implants, cancer, cerebral palsy, chronic bronchitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic sinusitis, cirrhosis, cystitis, diabetes, ear infections, epilepsy, gender reassignment, heart disease and hemochromatosis (a common genetic disorder that causes the body to absorb too much iron). Other conditions are hepatitis, herpes, high blood pressure, impotence, infertility, irritable bowel syndrome, joint sprain, kidney infections, lupus, mild depression, muscular dystrophy, migraines, miscarriage, pregnancy, "expectant fatherhood," planned adoption, psoriasis, recurrent tonsillitis, renal failure, ringworm, severe mental disorders, sleep apnea, stroke, ulcers and varicose veins.

Also via Today's Papers, Dennis Cauchon reports in USA Today in an article titled "States to expand health coverage":

States are planning large expansions in health care coverage this year in an aggressive and potentially expensive attempt to reduce the ranks of the 42.4 million Americans who are uninsured. The states are acting at a time when Congress, now under Democratic control for the first time since 1994, has put health care lower on its agenda. Governors and state legislators in both parties and most states have made expanded medical coverage a priority for legislatures - all 50 of which are in session this year, 43 starting this month. Popular proposals include guaranteeing medical coverage to all children; subsidizing medical insurance at small businesses; and providing tax incentives for businesses and individuals to make coverage more affordable. A few states are considering universal health coverage for all residents. Others are focusing on price competition and preventive care.

And also via Today's Papers, Arnold is leading the charge to make sure everyone has healthcare in California as reported in an article titled "Gov. offers bold prescription" by Jordan Rau in the LA Times:

Calling for massive changes throughout a healthcare system he called "broken," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday proposed a $12-billion plan that would require all Californians to obtain medical insurance while helping the poorest to afford it. The plan, which both critics and supporters called the most audacious in the country, would dramatically reshuffle the financial underpinnings of an already fragile industry. The governor said his plan would control spiraling health costs while ensuring coverage for the quarter of a million children and 5.6 million adults who lack insurance.

Only Massachusetts has required all residents to carry insurance, but California's larger population of uninsured and poor makes Schwarzenegger's goals much more challenging. To pay for the plan, Schwarzenegger proposed placing new fees and obligations on doctors, hospitals, employers and insurers - all powerful lobbies in Sacramento. Schwarzenegger was widely praised for tackling such a huge issue so comprehensively. But many leading consumer advocates, academics and business leaders said they feared that the governor's proposal was inadequately financed and would shift more responsibility for healthcare to families while unintentionally encouraging businesses to drop or downgrade the coverage they now offer.