Health Insurance Providers
03/05/2007
Two fairly recent laws and a pending out-of-court settlement will have an effect on how much the government and health plans pay for drugs. The current pricing model is a Rubik's cube of jargon and formulas that artificially inflate costs. Based on so-called average wholesale price, it results in pricing condemned by health plans as arbitrary and excessive.
Drugs move from manufacturer to mouth through wholesalers and pharmacists, and everyone gets a cut. Manufacturers play the biggest role in determining price, but the wholesalers - who purchase drugs in bulk and distribute them to pharmacists - affect final pricing.
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03/05/2007
Virtually every company health plan sold includes at least a few members that tilt the scales of risk to the danger zone. Anyone who is obese or smokes is an automatic member of the club.
Until now, trying to pry them away from that high-cost group has often been an exercise in gentle persuasion. They might get a small bonus for joining a health club, gift cards for shedding weight, or perks for eating healthy food at a company cafeteria. However, last spring, a Michigan HMO intensified the campaign for personal fitness when it rolled out a plan that's aimed right at their pocketbooks.
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03/05/2007
Both sides say safety is their goal.
"Weight loss is so extremely unsuccessful for patients in the morbidly obese category that even with intense behavioral and nutritional counseling, the chance of success is remote," said Dr. John J. Kelly, surgical director of the Weight Center at UMass Memorial Medical Center. "Less than 2 percent would ever lose substantial weight and ever maintain that weight loss. Unfortunately, surgery is the only life-saving measure for this. Subjecting them to diet and nutritional counseling is like prescribing a therapy that will fail.
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03/05/2007
Before enrolling in a new managed care health plan, you need to be sure that you're comfortable with the services that it will provide. Sometimes your employer will pick a plan for you, in which case you should be aware of its rules. Sometimes you can choose a plan yourself, but not without answers to some pointed questions which you should pose. Here are ten questions (and some appropriate answers) to help you choose the right plan.
Which doctors can I choose? A managed care network can't be any better than the doctors and other service providers that it uses. Check to see if you recognize any of the providers' names on the network list.
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03/03/2007
Penny Wise Drug Pharmacist Stephen Rosati fills a prescription in the downtown store that has served Hollister since 1948.
Photo by: Nick Lovejoy/Photographer
Hollister - When Stephen Rosati began working in his family's Penny Wise Drug store in high school, there were three other pharmacies within a block on San Benito Street.
Now, more than 30 years later, Penny Wise is the only independent pharmacy left in Hollister, and one of only a handful left in the central coast area.
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03/03/2007
Consolidated revenues for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2006
increased 14% to $1.1 billion from $971 million in the same period last
year. Net income from continuing operations for the fourth quarter of
2006 totaled $21.5 million or $0.54 per diluted share compared to $25.5
million or $0.58 per diluted share in the fourth quarter last year.
Operating results for the fourth quarter of 2006 included certain items
that, in the aggregate, increased net income by approximately $2.0 million
or $0.05 per diluted share. These items included pretax income of $6.
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03/03/2007
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, which has come under fire for big profits and premium increases, paid its top executive $3.1 million last year, a 22 percent raise.
Several senior executives also received double-digit raises. Three earned more than $1 million in annual compensation for the first time, according to the company's annual report, which The News & Observer obtained from state regulators Friday.
The increases were driven by bonuses that chief executive Robert J. Greczyn Jr. and other executives earned for boosting Blue Cross' financial performance, said spokesman Mark Stinneford.
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03/03/2007
by Senator Larry Craig
During a visit to Indiana, Ronald Reagan once said, "If the federal government had been around when the Creator was putting His hand to this state, Indiana wouldn't be here. It'd still be waiting for an environmental impact statement." Although this comment was made in good humor, I have long found the logic beneath it to be true. While often well-meaning, the federal government is rarely as competent and efficient as the private sector in solving problems.
A great example of this principle is the prescription drug benefit known as Medicare Part D.
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03/02/2007
California Health Insurance Agency Announces Fast and Easy Quoting Website for Individuals of All Ages
McClerkin Insurance Services now offers instant California health insurance quotes for every age group through its new site, http://www.mcclerkinins.com [mcclerkinins.com title California Health Insurance].
Sacramento, CA (PRWEB) March 2, 2007 -- McClerkin Insurance Services, based in California, has announced today that it will now be offering instant, free health insurance quotes for California residents through their new quoting system at http://www.mcclerkinins.com [mcclerkinins.com title california health insurance quotes].
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03/02/2007
McClerkin Insurance Services now offers instant California health insurance quotes for every age group through its new site, mcclerkinins.com.
Sacramento, CA (PRWEB) March 2, 2007 -- McClerkin Insurance Services, based in California, has announced today that it will now be offering instant, free health insurance quotes for California residents through their new quoting system at mcclerkinins.com.
We want to eliminate this by constantly updating our site with the newest and best plans available. We want people to feel free to contact us and let us guide them in picking the very best plan for them and their families.
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03/02/2007
Jetstar and AIG Australia have formed a strategic alliance to offer Jetstar customers an affordable web based travel insurance solution to seamlessly add to their purchased flight itineraries.
The online insurance offering comes as Jetstar continues development of its "one stop shop" for online travel related products at Jetstar.com, consistently one of Australia's most popular travel websites.
During 2006, Jetstar launched Jetstar holidays through Jetstar.com and its web portal remains a key plank in its distribution of both domestic and international fares and travel products.
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03/02/2007
But health services costs rose more than that, 7.5 percent, and the result was a net underwriting loss of $39 million.
Most of that was covered by investments that HMSA maintains for precisely this purpose, investments that appreciated by millions of dollars in 2006. HMSA is also reaping a tax gain from the settlement of a dispute with the IRS.
A key factor in the higher than expected costs was higher payments to health care providers -- doctors, hospitals, and the like.
"Payments to health care providers in 2006 represented 93.4 percent of revenue, which is higher than HMSA's historical average of 92.
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03/02/2007
Home > Resource Center > News
AccessTN Open Enrollment Begins
Feb 26, 2007
AccessTN is the high-risk health insurance pool in the state of Tennessee that provides medical insurance options for those residents of the state that are unable to secure personal health coverage due to a pre-existing medical condition.
The State of Tennessee announced earlier this week that it has begun its open enrollment period for AccessTN, the state's new high risk health insurance plan.
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03/02/2007
At the same time a Bermuda insurance company enters the Bahamian life and health market, local giant ColinaImperial is chasing business outside of the country.
"From our perspective, we understand that the market is mature and we have to look for opportunities outside of this market," said ColinaImperial VP of Finance Catherine Williams. The company is an affiliate of The Nassau Guardian.
"But, we're not giving up this market or anything," she added.
Indeed, not.
For the nine months ending Sept. 30, 2006, Colina Holdings realized net premium revenues of $98.7 million, an increase of 3.6 per cent over the same period a year previous.
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03/01/2007
HELEN PALMER: Medicare links what it pays doctors to the rise in the Gross Domestic Product. Medical costs are rising much faster than GDP, so the formula means doctors get squeezed. Physicians cry "foul," and every year Congress rolls back the proposed cuts.
Cecil Wilson heads the American Medical Association Board.
CECIL WILSON: When my patients get sick, they don't check to see if the economy's growing well enough for them to get care. And so we need something that actually reflects inflation.
Wilson testified today before the Senate Finance committee.
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03/01/2007
NEVER go without health insurance -; it will just give companies a reason to deny you coverage later. Yes, the premiums are ridiculous if you are between jobs, so find a freelance group you can join for major medical. You may not be worried about making doctor visits; worry instead about being blindsided by a truck on a Tuesday afternoon.
If you have a mortgage or children, you MUST get life insurance for both of you, even if one spouse is not working full-time. If that spouse died, you would need a full-time employee just to handle the childcare he or she is now providing for free.
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03/01/2007
Today, Sprint provides an array of cost-effective mobile solutions that help healthcare providers balance patient care, operational efficiency, cost management and regulatory compliance. Information that was previously available only within the walls of hospitals can now be viewed remotely, in real-time on Sprint smartphones, saving critical minutes in life-threatening situations and enabling caregivers to function more effectively and efficiently.
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03/01/2007
On January 2, Massachusetts kicked off the second wave of enrollment for its individual health insurance mandate, signed into law last April by then-Gov. Mitt Romney (R).
The second wave, aimed at the state's 100,000 working poor, netted only a few hundred people during its first week, despite the incentives insurance companies are offering--proof that many state residents either don't want or don't believe they need health insurance, critics say.
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03/01/2007
Richard Harvey, the chief executive of Aviva, claimed that the UK's biggest insurer was outperforming the domestic competition - and its own internal targets - as annual operating profits rose 12 per cent to 3.2 billion.
In his last presentation to the City before handing over to Andrew Moss, his successor, Mr Harvey reported that profits from life insurance were 12 per cent higher at 2 billion, on an embedded-value basis. Operating profits from general and health insurance were up 8 per cent at nearly 1.7 billion.
Norwich Union, Aviva's UK arm, had a record year, increasing sales by almost a third to 13.
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