Tag: Oregon health insurance

Cover Oregon becoming an example for health insurance cost reduction in the US

Logan B.
Oregon Health Insurance exchange

Oregon health insurance exchange becoming a favorite for the federal government Oregon may be home to one of the country’s most favorable health insurance exchanges, from a federal perspective. The state is one among several others that has chosen to build and operate its own health insurance exchange system, called Cover Oregon. Initially, this exchange received conditional approval from the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the enactment of the Affordable Care Act. Cover Oregon has since become one of the most favored health insurance exchange systems of…

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Health insurance costs predicted by two states to be low in 2014

G. Turner
Alibama Health Insurance Costs

Washington and Oregon have both found that rates will be considerably lower than initially predicted. The Affordable Care Act has just received a boost, as two northwestern states revealed that health insurance companies have submitted applications for selling on the state exchanges at rates that are considerably lower than what some execs had forecasted for these marketplaces. These marketplaces are expected to bring coverage to many of the 49 million uninsured Americans. In doing so, the design was meant to help to curb the extreme spending that has been caused…

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Health insurance for transgender patients still being denied in Oregon and California

transgender LGBT Gay health insurance trends

These two states require coverage of this nature and are telling insurers to stop denying healthcare. California and Oregon regulators have now issued a relatively quiet directive to some health insurance companies in order to have them cease their policies for denying coverage to transgender patients due to the nature of their gender identities. Insurers in these states aren’t required to provide specific medical treatments but cannot deny healthcare. The regulators in California and Oregon have now instructed some private health insurance companies that they cannot deny the claims for…

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Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield looks to raise rates in Oregon

S.Vagus
Health Insurance rate increases

Insurer’s rate proposal may be unjustifiable, according to the OSPIRG Foundation Recently, Oregon’s Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield sought to increase rates for individual health insurance plans. According to the rate increase proposal, some consumers may see their premiums rise by as much as 16% if the proposal is accepted by state regulators. A new analysis released by the OSPIRG Foundation, a consumer advocacy group, suggests that the health insurance company is not able to justify its need for rate increases. The rate proposal from Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield…

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Oregon shows insurance agents are vital to state exchange

Live Insurance News
Auto Insurance survey

Health insurance agents in Oregon needed The state’s Health Insurance Exchange intends to train and utilize insurance agents to assist residents and small businesses that are uninsured to find the right plans by 2014 when the new health care mandate goes into effect. What has still not yet been entirely defined is specifically what role the agents will play and how that will influence consumers who could depend on them for their advice and suggestions. The Oregon Health Insurance Exchange board met last Thursday and, according to Kim Wirtz, an exchange…

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Senate in Oregon gives its last minute approval to state health insurance exchange

Julie Campbell

The Oregon Senate has given its overwhelming last minute approval for a measure toward the implementation of the state’s online health insurance exchange marketplace, which is the heart of the Obama administration’s healthcare reform and will provide individuals and small businesses a place to shop for coverage. The vote on Monday was for a measure that was championed by Governor John Kitzhaber, and was passed by 55-5 for the rules that will govern the exchange. This will give the state the ability to build an insurance marketplace ahead of the…

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Oregon Legislature convenes to determine the course for the last days of the legislative session of February

Marc

February is quickly coming to an end, but the Oregon Legislature still has much to discuss. State lawmakers met in the city of Salem this week to map out their plans for what remains of this month’s legislative session. The topics that will receive their attention in these latter days are education initiatives, construction bonds, logging and use of water, and the state’s plans to build its own health insurance exchange. Notably, Governor John Kitzhaber’s plans to reform the state’s Medicaid program have been cut from the current session. Though…

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