Payer Updates:
Mass. Insurers Sue to Block Rate Hike Decision
Published on Mon Apr 19, 2010
Plus, AMA offers help to physicians claiming damages from UnitedHealth settlement. A group of the top health insurers in Massachusetts recently filed a lawsuit against that state's insurance regulators, in response to a ruling by the Division of Insurance (DOI) that put a rate cap on premiums for small businesses. Insurers had proposed base price hikes averaging 8 percent to 32 percent. The DOI in turn argued that any increases should be closer to the medical consumer price index, which has a 4.8 percent inflation rate. The Massachusetts Association of Health Plans (MAHP) filed the lawsuit on behalf of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and five association members: Fallon Community Health Plan, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Tufts Health Plan, Neighborhood Health Plan, and Health New England. In other news: The AMA recently launched a new online resource that aims to assist thousands of physicians who filed claims in the [...]