The FAIR Act, the health insurance premiums in check
Turn on the news or open the paper, and you read countless stories about how families and small businesses in Colorado are being heavily by rising gas prices at home foreclosures to the cost of health care. It seems like every sector of the economy is in difficulty, except perhaps in the health care industry and health insurance companies in particular. You’ve never had it so good. Insurance profits continue to rise, fueled by higher insurance premiums and Coloradans have little recourse to push back.
To provide information on health insurance premiums and prices are sure to pay for medical care and not unduly industry profits, a bill was in the Colorado state legislature would require that the insurance companies to justify increases and state approval, before they come into force can.
Authored by State Rep. Morgan Carroll (D-Aurora), the FAIR Act is a fair and steady approach to ensure that Coloradans and small businesses get real value for the health insurance premiums they pay each month. More than 30 states already have similar laws on the FAIR Act to prevent insurers from putting profits before people.
Families and small business households throughout the country - and not less in Colorado - are under the crippling burden of rapidly rising cost of health insurance. In Denver, small shops Premiums for a family of four jumped a staggering 140% from 2000 to 2005. This leads to more families and small businesses to health insurance coverage.
As Rep. Carroll has pointed out, Colorado will pay more for less. Although one of the healthiest populations in the U.S., insurance 7th Prices are from the top. And despite spending less per person on health care than the U.S. average, Coloradans more money for insurance premiums than the U.S. average. It is clear that something more than the cost of health care drives health insurance premiums in Colorado.
To be sure, the health insurance industry in the fields of business to make money. According to the Consumer Federation of America, the insurance industry has more than $ 600 billion in surplus maintained the money the industry continues and builds each year. The insurance industry is a great deal of effort to protect their financial prosperity.
In the year 2006, according to the National Institute of Finance of the State policy, the insurance industry contributed $ 33.5 million in campaign contributions to state legislators. In the same year, according to OpenSecrets.org, industry (at $ 133 million) in addition to the pharmaceutical industry (at $ 182 million) in money spent lobbying the Congress to beat back sensible insurance reforms.
Each state legislator, State House reporter, or the person has the trek to Denver to testify in an important part of the legislative knows that the insurance lobby influence in states is just as strong.
Despite this expenditure, and given the inaction of the Federal to address the cost of health insurance, says the whole country to help ensure consumers and small businesses get value for their health insurance premiums. More than 30 states already have laws on the books similar to the FAIR Act. And in 2008, goes on to rein in the insurance industry and the people before profits.
At the beginning of this year, Washington State legislators, the insurance commissioner the authority to reject unjustified premium increases. This law was fueled after reports that a non-profit insurer with headquarters in Washington, Premera Blue Cross, had funneled $ 49 million in premium income of three years faltered to a for-profit subsidiary in Arizona.
Pennsylvania legislators are moving legislation also would allow state regulators to reject unfair premium increases. Recent news that one of the state’s largest insurer, Hohenschwangau Mark, posted a $ 3.5 billion surplus only fuel support for the legislation. The surplus is 3.5 times more than what is needed in case of unforeseen medical treatment costs, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
It is time for Colorado to the growing number of states protect consumers and small businesses from unfair premium increases. With the adoption of the FAIR Act, Colorado legislators will have the people on insurance industry profits and reject the undue influence of the insurance industry lobby.
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