Sen. Jeff Bingaman Touts New Protections Against Unfair Increases in Health Insurance Premiums

Senator Jeff Bingaman today said beginning next month the new health insurance law will provide increasing transparency and scrutiny over proposed health insurance premium hikes. Because New Mexico’s health insurance premiums are among the fastest rising in the nation, Bingaman believes this increased scrutiny could greatly benefit the state.

Today, the Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a new rule that gives states greater authority to perform more thorough reviews of a health insurance companies request for an increase in rates. Insurance companies will also be required to publicly disclose significant proposed increases, along with a justification.

The Affordable Health Care Act, enacted earlier this year, gave states this increased authority to oversee premium hikes. It also provided millions of dollars to states to hire staff and conduct analysis of insurance premium hikes proposed by insurance companies as well as to provide direct assistance to individuals and families experiencing difficulties with insurance companies.

“One of the main goals of the health insurance reform is to ensure American families are paying a fair amount on their premiums and getting high quality health care in return,” Bingaman said in a written statement. “Before reform, New Mexico premiums were increasing at an unsustainable rate. Because of the new law, health insurance companies will not only be required to spend more of the premiums they collect on delivering quality health care, they will also have to demonstrate that their proposed increases in premiums are justified.”

More information on the regulation is available in this fact sheet. More information on the regulation and other premium review information can be found here.