health insurance

Health insurers pull a fast one in proposed reform

(Los Angeles Times) - It might have looked as if real progress toward healthcare reform was made last week when leading insurers proposed ending their long-standing practice of charging higher rates to sick people and denying coverage to those with chronic conditions.

But not so fast.

A closer look at the insurance industry’s plan reveals a potentially huge loophole that could short-circuit genuine reform.

The insurers are saying that they’ll treat all people fairly in return for a government requirement that everyone buy their product.

Yet if you read the fine print in their plan, it turns out that they’re reserving the right to charge different prices for different levels of coverage — a practice that would effectively keep us where we are, with sick (or potentially sick) people paying more for insurance.

The loophole was included — “hidden” is a more apt word — in a letter sent to prominent senators from a pair of industry leaders: Karen Ignagni, president of America’s Health Plans, an industry group; and Scott P. Serota, president of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Assn.

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