| N. Cotabato to launch health insurance program Monday | | Posted Sunday, December 17, 2006 1:03:12 PM by Blog57 Team | | NORTH Cotabato Governor Emmanuel F. Piol will lead the formal launching of the Cotabato Health Insurance Program (Chip) on Monday. Sun.Star Network Online's 12th Asean Summit Watch The launching program will be highlighted by the ceremonial enrollment into the program of Piol as the first Chip member. A memorandum of agreement between the Provincial Government and local government units (LGUs) signifying their commitment and support for the program will also be signed during the occasion. The much-awaited program aims to provide and implement an applicable health benefit package to poor constituents of the province. "The Chip will give flesh to our pronouncement that we care for the poorest of the poor of North Cotabato," Piol said.... | |
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| | | Dayton to pay for city councilmen s private health insurance | | Posted Monday, November 13, 2006 6:58:59 PM by Blog57 Team | | Against the advice of Dayton City Attorney Susan Arnold, the Dayton City Council approved on Monday a resolution to pay the health insurance premiums on individual, private medical insurance for council members who refuse the coverage that is available through the citys insurance program. The city currently offers to city councilmen payment for the same health insurance that it offers all city employees. According to the resolution, monthly payment would be made on individual premiums not to exceed the cost of the monthly premium of the insurance offered through the City of Dayton. The resolution directly affects councilmen Jim Barnes and John Heath, who have pre-existing medical conditions. Barnes voted against approving the resolution, while Heath excused himself from the conference room and did not vote.... | |
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| | | NY: Health Insurers Fined for Late Pay | | Posted Friday, November 10, 2006 7:09:40 PM by Blog57 Team | | Health insurers in New York were fined $310,000 over a six-month period for failing to pay claims on time, according to the state insurance department. The 21 insurers were fined for not paying claims within 45 days, as required by a law passed in 1997. The companies, including Aetna Inc., Cigna Corp. and Horizon Health Corp., were fined for violations between Oct. 1, 2005 and March 31, 2006. Each violation carries a $100 fine. Since the law requiring insurers to pay claims promptly was passed, insurers in the state have been fined $6.8 million for violations, according to the insurance department. When health insurers fail to pay claims, consumers might get barraged with hospitals bills they're not responsible for. "In some circumstances, the consumer could be forking over money they don't have to," said Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Group.... | |
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| | | Urbanhound Introduces Comprehensive Pet Health Insurance Guide | | Posted Tuesday, November 07, 2006 6:59:31 PM by Blog57 Team | | Responding to the surging costs of veterinary care, Urbanhound: The City Dog's Ultimate Survival Guide today announced the publication of the Urbanhound Pet Insurance Guide, a new, indispensable guide to pet health insurance. The guide is designed to help pet parents make sense of the tangle of available options when choosing the insurance plan that is right for their pet. Is pet insurance worth the money? How much will I actually be reimbursed? What's with all those hidden surcharges? If my dog has a chronic condition, will he lose coverage? What exactly is a "pre-existing condition"? Which breeds of dog are excluded from which plans? What does it mean that my policy "re-sets" every year? Answering those questions and more, the new Urbanhound Pet Insurance Guide, available online at http://ny.urbanhound.com/houndHealth/healthInsurance.asp, should be required reading for every pet owner.... | |
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| | | Briefs: New state law to ensure health insurance for kids | | Posted Monday, November 06, 2006 1:18:59 PM by Blog57 Team | | The Priory Court Children's Center in Hampton provided the backdrop Thursday for Gov. Ed Rendell to sign into law a bill that will allow thousands of additional Pennsylvania children obtain health care coverage. The legislation, dubbed "Cover All Kids," is designed to help children whose parents cannot afford private insurance, but make too much money to qualify for a government-sponsored program. State legislators last month approved an expansion of the state's Children's Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, created in 1992 to provide free or low-cost health care for children who are ineligible for welfare health benefits. By 2009, Pennsylvania will become the second state in the nation to offer health-insurance benefits to all uninsured children, joining Illinois. The state will have to ask the federal government for more than $10 million to supplement $4.5 million set aside in the state budget for the expansion.... | |
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| | | Tracking Health: Boro Leads City Fight On Diabetes, But Also Lacks Insurance, Flu Shots | | Posted Saturday, November 04, 2006 10:59:56 PM by Blog57 Team | | A study released Oct. 26 by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene takes broad strokes toward improving the lives of New Yorkers by identifying specific health risks, broken down locally across the five boroughs. The study, using neighborhood definitions established by the United Hospital Fund, concentrated on health topics deemed most urgent by Take Care New York, the DOHMHs citywide health initiative. The most recent release is an update and improvement of community health research started in 2003, compiled and kept as current as possible to help healthcare officials stay on top of community health issues across the city. In the study, Queens was the site of some benchmark improvements, but also showed some troubling tendencies. While Queens was among the most favorable when it came to asthma and up-to-date HIV testing, there was a troubling lack of insurance coverage, particularly in Western Queens.... | |
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| | | ICICI launches health insurance for diabetics | | Posted Monday, October 30, 2006 7:11:12 AM by Blog57 Team | | Mumbai, Oct 28: Private sector ICICI Prudential Life Insurance on Saturday announced the launch of a health insurance scheme for diabetic persons from November 1. Initially, the insurance product `Diabetes Care' will be available in 12 cities in the country. "We got approval (for the product) from Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) a few days back," ICICI Prudential CEO and M D Shikha Sharma said. "With over 20 per cent of the world's diabetic persons in India, the country is known as the "diabetes capital" of the world. ICICI Prudential aims to provide better care and financial support to diabetics," said Shikha. ICICI Prudential's policy will cover diabetic individuals in the age group of 25 to 60 years for sum assured options of Rs 3 lakh, Rs 5 lakh and Rs 10 lakh.... | |
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| | | Cities, towns facing 36 percent health insurance increase | | Posted Thursday, October 26, 2006 10:59:15 PM by Blog57 Team | | MONTPELIER, Vt. Vermont's cities and towns are facing a 36 percent increase in health insurance premiums. The Vermont League of Cities and Towns says it's spent two months negotiating with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont. About 300 cities, towns and villages buy their employee health insurance through the league, which contracts with Blue Shield. The league is considering plans that would require employees to pay higher premiums or deductibles or possibly shifting to health savings accounts. City and town leaders say they're trying to determine how to accommodate the higher costs. Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. .... | |
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| | | Report: N.J. raises don't cover health insurance hikes | | Posted Tuesday, October 24, 2006 6:59:35 AM by Blog57 Team | | WASHINGTON -- Working families in New Jersey are digging deeper into their pockets to pay for health insurance offered by their employers, and their annual salary increases aren't keeping pace. That's according to a report released Monday by Families USA, a Washington-based consumer advocacy group. New Jersey families have seen premiums for employer-provided health insurance shoot up 79 percent since 2000, the report says. The median earnings have risen by about 14 percent in the past six years. "Even after paying skyrocketing premiums, workers are experiencing higher out-of-pocket costs such as co-payments," the group's executive director, Ron Pollack, told reporters Monday. "Working families are paying more and more and are receiving less and less. More and more people are joining the ranks of the uninsured and the under-insured." About 1.3 million New Jerseyans lack health insurance Premiums paid by those who receive health coverage through work rose on average from $7,592 a year in 2000 to $13,620 now -- an increase of $6,028, the report found.... | |
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| | | FUTURE OF MUSIC COALITION OFFERS FREE HEALTH INSURANCE ADVICE TO ... | | Posted Sunday, October 22, 2006 1:14:25 PM by Blog57 Team | | The Washington, DC-based Future of Music Coalition has implemented the Health Insurance Navigation Tool (HINT), a health insurance guideline program for musicians, that will assist the well-being of U.S.-based independent art and music curators. The HINT program will provide information at the Future of Music Coalitions Web site (www.futureofmusic.org/hint) and will also offer free phone consultations with experts to discuss affordable health coverage options available to artists and musicians. As a safety net for working artists and musicians who remain uninsured, the FMCs Alex Maiolo and Chris Stephenson, both licensed insurance agents and touring musicians, will help interested parties to navigate through the often-confusing process of obtaining health insurance.... | |
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