Maryland limits health insurance rescissions

[many a good man]

Source: American Medical News

Lawmakers in other states are seeking similar protections against health plans that cancel coverage for the wrong reasons.

By Emily Berry, AMNews staff. Posted May 6.

Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley is expected to sign into law a new rule limiting health insurance companies' ability to cancel policies retroactively. Meanwhile, lawmakers in other states are considering such proposals.

The Maryland bill, passed unanimously by both the Senate and House of Delegates, shifts the burden of proof to insurers when they want to cancel a policy based on the member's alleged misrepresentation.

Insurance companies, particularly in California, have been accused of closely examining a member's application and trying to rescind coverage after a costly medical bill.

Without technically admitting wrongdoing, health plans, including Kaiser Permanente, Health Net and WellPoint, have paid millions of dollars in fines in California after state regulators accused them of rescinding individual policies for economic reasons.

Read more: http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2009/05/04/bisd0506.htm

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Looks like Maryland just gave those insurance companies a black eye! Way to go O'Malley. Ah-Nold vetoed a similar bill recently in California. Texas is blocking it as hard as they can. It looks like this has a good chance of passage in Wisconsin.

[pleah]

1. K&R Good. n/t

[Vidar]

2. Good for O'Malley.

[bemildred]

3. Cover everyone, no exceptions.

Anything else is bullshit.

[gulfcoastliberal]

4. Those fines are chump change. It's cheaper to pay the fines than do the right thing. nt