Blue Cross

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Major Insurer Nixes Anesthesia Cap After Backlash

Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield had placed time limit on anesthesia coverage during surgery

(Newser) - A major health insurer has nixed a planned policy shift regarding a cap it placed on anesthesia coverage after intense public backlash against the plan. NPR reports on the 180 by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, which had initially announced it would no longer pay for coverage for anesthesia use...

Woman Who Said Vax Would 'Dishonor God' Wins $700K

Tanja Benton wins settlement against ex-employer BlueCross for refusing COVID vaccine mandate

(Newser) - Tanja Benton was pink-slipped in November 2021 from the biostatistical research scientist job she'd held for years with federal contractor BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, due to her refusal to adhere to her employer's COVID vaccine mandate. Now, a federal jury has awarded Benton nearly $700,000 in a...

Health Insurer Tries to Jack Rates—59%

Blue Shield of California cites rising costs, new health care law

(Newser) - Blue Shield of California wants to jack up its health insurance rates a whopping 59% for individual policyholders this year, saying the increase is “absolutely necessary” to deal with rising health care costs and restrictions in the new health care law. Policyholders have complained to the state insurance commissioner,...

At the Mall? Pick Up Some Health Care

Blue Cross sells coverage from a Fla. storefront

(Newser) - The nation's largest health provider is trying a new tack: selling insurance from a stripmall storefront. The suburban Florida Blue Cross shop hopes to attract some of the state's 4 million uninsured residents, and it's part of an "overall retail transformation" of the industry, a spokesman tells NPR. Consumers...

US Insurers Warming to Medical Tourism

Sending patients to India, elsewhere could save $20B a year

(Newser) - If you’re in need of high-priced surgery, your insurance company might have a plane ticket for you. Insurers are starting to warm to “medical tourism” for the same reason uninsured Americans are: Surgery is significantly cheaper overseas. At least 150,000 Americans go abroad for medical procedures every...

States Push to Restrain Insurers
States Push to Restrain Insurers
Feb 21, 2008 5:10 PM CST

States Push to Restrain Insurers

Legislators see rise in unfair cancellations of individual plans

(Newser) - As more Americans buy individual health insurance, states are acting to make sure insurers don’t cancel the plans without fair cause, USA Today reports. Plans can be canceled if applicants misreport their medical history, whether accidentally or on purpose. But amid complaints that companies are cutting the plans unjustly,...

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