CBS News/ September 22, 2010, 12:57 PM

Insurers to Bail on Child-Only Policies as Health Care Law Looms

NEW YORK (CBS) Parents of kids with preexisting conditions will have fewer options in several states as major insurers are bailing on the practice of selling child-only policies.

The insurance companies' decision apparently comes in response to the federal health care law passed earlier this year, which would have forced them to insure children under age 19 regardless of their medical histories. Sales of child-only policies for some companies will end the day the federal law is enacted, according to a recent Los Angeles Times article.

The paper reports the decision will only affect new coverage sought for children and not to existing child-only plans, family policies or insurance provided through kids' parents' employers.

Anthem Blue Cross, Aetna Inc., UnitedHealth Group Inc., Cigna Corp., are among the companies that plan to halt all or part of their child-only policy sales.

For more on these changes, check out the full Los Angeles Times story, "Big Health Insurers to Stop Selling New Child-Only Policies" here.

What do you think of these planned changes?

17 Comments Add a Comment

: linkicon reporticon emailicon
hybridashley says:: Thanks for giving this informative article post on Insurers to Bail on Child-Only Policies as Health Care Law Looms. According to the insurance companies' decision apparently comes in response to the federal health care law passed earlier this year the parent of every child under 19 years should insure their kids. Insurance for Children are really helpful for them as they are like relief for the parents regarding their kids health security.
http://www.insuranceforkids.net/; reply

: linkicon reporticon emailicon
Parsifal_tx says:: Everybody is wrong PPACA (ObamaCare) has very little flaws, it's working as intended. A large percentage of ObamaCare provisions was written to force insurance companies out of the market or lose money (without increasing premiums). I assure you, every time a new provision kicks in ObamaCare will slowly transition the United States to a Single-payer system, it may not be within Obama's first term but maybe within the next 10-15 years.; reply

linkicon reporticon emailicon

nehicks says:

Health Insurance companies have never been in the business of caring about your health. What they gamble on, and you do too, is that you won't get sick enough to need the money you paid in. The more people who pay in and don't get sick, the less money they have to pay out = profits. Health care has always been available to anyone who will pay for it. The problem lies in the underlying costs of providing the health care. To become a doctor, you will graduate with no less than $200K in school loans; to apply for your license costs a few thousand more. Because Americans are so quick to sue if they don't like what the doctor says, malpractice insurance will cost the doctor thousands of dollars a year in order to protect themselves. If they want to set up their own business, the cost of the equipment is staggering. Like any business, they have to set their costs to recoup the cost of equipment, salaries, maintenance, repairs, etc. Then, the labs, where all the tests are sent, charge very high rates to process all these tests. Some tests are needed in order to provide a good diagnosis, but others are not needed, but required by the same insurance companies that people want so they don't "have to pay". Also, for some people, if you don't run the needless tests, they will sue because you got the answer wrong. The government went about this all wrong by ramming through the health care bill. They should have started with putting a cap on medical malpractice, set up a government physician program, so that graduating doctors could give a set amount of time, say 4 years, to a government clinic in exchange for student loan payments, and setting a standard of care for how to treat illnesses without requiring ridiculous tests that are not needed.


elmwsalem replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; All excellent ideas. Had these been considered (implemented) along with mandatory coverage for children it would have been a good bill. America is paying for it's greed (corporate greed and consumer greed ... and yes, there is greed in the medical profession as well). Sadly the youngest and most innocent will pay.


guycoolio replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; The facts are simple. Insurance companies are making record profits and have done so for years! Ask WellPoint's CEO who made over $500,000,000 over the last 5 years. His predecessor left after making more than 1 billion dollars over his tenure. Malpractice lawsuits are a minor cost of business that the actuarial tables fully account for. [I am a former insurance defense counsel.] Yes, it is true that doctors pay extremely high insurance premiums [have a sister in-law that is a practicing obstetrician] but that is again an example of how the insurance company never loses.In short, most of your ideas and many more were blocked from being implemented by surrogates of the insurance industry. People forget that the Civil Rights Act had to be amended at least 4 times before it protected rights that it was intended to do. Similarly, the health care bill will need to be tweaked several times until it truly causes the health insurance system to reform. It took 18 months to pass [over heavily funded opposition] so I would hardly say it was rushed into law.

: linkicon reporticon emailicon
guycoolio says:: So the insurance industry no longer likes the rules of the game and are deciding not to play? Not exactly. Insurance companies are like casinos. They never lose money. Even under the new law they could easily use actuarial tables to set the premiums so that they could insure every sick kid and still make a profit. This is a political effort before the mid-term elections to try and boost the Republican turnout and depress democratic enthusiasm. Why? Insurers like the old rules. From 1999-2009 insurance rates went up each year often by double digits. With more republicans in office chances improve for the insurance companies that business as usual [huge profits] continue. Insurance is about making money not providing health care.; reply

: linkicon reporticon emailicon
BrianJ606 says:: "Parents of kids with preexisting conditions will have fewer options" as opposed to what? Not being able to get approved for health insurance by any company before this law goes into effect?; reply

: linkicon reporticon emailicon
Parsifal_tx says:: Oops, another ObamaCare blunder! Maybe they should've read the bill before voting for it, or perhaps got healthcare insiders advise instead of ACORNs.; reply

: linkicon reporticon emailicon
RobAla says:: Will it make health care more expensive for most Americans? YES
Will it place greater burden on suffering businesses? YES
Will it add to the national debt? YES

No amount of propaganda will make crap smell better.

Americans were asking Washington to help bring down the cost of health care, but instead Washington took this as an opportunity to fatten itself at our expense. This bill will cause premiums to go up dramatically, and the higher taxes will result in our standard of living going down. Washington turned a deaf ear to the majority of Americans, and we will have an opportunity to set things straight come November.; reply

: linkicon reporticon emailicon
stn_sage says:: A society that refuses to take care of those least capable of taking care of themselves---children, is a society that's doomed to FALL!; reply

linkicon reporticon emailicon

stn_sage says:

Congress 'bends over backwards' to profit insurance profits and create a new class of 'captive insurees' while at the same time allowing insurance companies to refuse to insure those LEAST capable of taking care of themselves---the nations' children! LOVELY!

Way to go, insurance industry! Way to go, Congress! #$%^&&!


stn_sage replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; Congress 'bends over backwards' to profit insurance profits, should read

Congress 'bends over backwards' to PROTECT insurance profits...