Troubled Iowa insurer CoOportunity Health may be liquidated

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Omaha World Herald

By Steve Jordon

CoOportunity Health, the Iowa health insurance cooperative set up with federal assistance, is short of capital and may be liquidated, Iowa’s insurance commissioner said Wednesday.

The company’s 120,000 customers, most of them in Nebraska and the rest in Iowa, are still covered on their existing policies and should continue making premium payments to CoOportunity but should start looking for other coverage, said Nick Gerhart, head of the Iowa Division of Insurance.

The company is not insolvent and claims will continue to be paid, he said.

"Nothing has really changed on their plans today," Gerhart said. "They have coverage. ... The company is not liquidated as of today. If they can’t present a viable plan to continue, it would be faced with liquidation at a later date."

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://www.omaha.com/money/troubled-iowa-insurer-cooportunity-health-may-be-liquidated/article_825f0962-8b7d-11e4-b6d3-ef7555754633.html

[jwirr]

1. Okay. apparently the original plan under ACA was working until a bill was passed on Dec. 13 that

would give them less help. So anyone know what that bill was and if it was President Obama and the Democrats who did this or was this once again the Rs trying to kill the ACA and the peoples faith in it?

The woman I was working with and trying to help find a new plan told me a similar story about her old plan that was going broke and told them to find another plan. Is this happening in other states as well - I am in MN.

[cynzke]

2. The Blame, Guess!

Gee, funding got cut somehow. WELCOME TO THE HIGH AND DRY CLUB! Now WHO could possibly be behind a bill that cut funds for these Coops. Read this....."Consumers may have not heard much about co-ops as an option, because opposition from the insurance industry forced the government to offer loans instead of grants to the co-ops, and to forbid co-ops from using any loan money to market their businesses." (Neat trick, legislate that the competition CAN'T MARKET THEIR PRODUCT!)

SO, PRIVATE INSURANCE COMPANIES with the help from SOMEBODY in government, are undermining Coops. What are Health Coops....."The co-ops have been created by consumer groups, doctors, membership associations — such as for small businesses — and other non-profit organizations". Ah, yes....PRIVATE INDUSTRY trying to choke out a CONSUMER/MEMBER OWNED COOP, using friends in high places to kill the COMPETITION.

Get the picture? But most people won't and will blame Obama for this INSTEAD.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/19/coops-poised-as-new-insurance-option/4292657/

http://healthaffairs.org/healthpolicybriefs/brief_pdfs/healthpolicybrief_107.pdf

[jwirr]

3. Thank you. I assumed as much but had not heard there even was a bill. That is really sick. Coops

built this country. For example in Iowa where I grew up the REA comes to mind first - without them we would not have had electric power. Then there are all kinds of farm coops from fuel companies to feed companies. Most still exist.

Several weeks ago the local electric company sent me a letter as the oldest living member of my family. They were going through their records and found that my grandfather had bought a $13 membership in 1939 and it had never been turned in. It wasn't worth anything but they needed to get it off their books.

Now the corporations and the Rs no longer want to recognize their contribution. Not surprising.

Happy holidays.