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Archive for October, 2009

BC/BS of Michigan Gets 4.7% Medigap Increase Approved; 31.2% Increase Still Pending with the State of Michigan Department of Insurance and the State Courts

Posted in Medigap Rate Changes/Introductions, Michigan on October 30, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

There are 210,000 Medicare Beneficiaries in Michigan with the Blue Cross/Blue Shield Plan in Here is the Article from the Detroit Free Press.

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Demonstration of Medicare Quote Engine with 2010 Data

Posted in 2010 MA Plans on October 30, 2009 | 2 Comments »

Enjoy this brief demonstation of our Agent Use Only tool!

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CMS Marketing Guidelines on Agent In Good Standing May Affect Medicare Advantage or Medicare Part D Renewal Commission Payments for Independent Agents

Posted in CMS on October 27, 2009 | 7 Comments »

I haven’t seen much talk about this, but there is a new provision in the Managed Care Manual under Chapter 3 – Marketing Guidelines (click to view manual). If you go to page 153 in section 120.5.4, you will find the following in the third bullet:  Plan sponsors should pay compensation in accordance with the structure [...]

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60 Minutes Reports on Fraud in the Medicare System

Posted in News on October 27, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Here is a link to watch the 60 Minutes report.  http://www.fancast.com/tv/60-Minutes/97707/1307867823/60-Minutes%2C-10.25.09/videos The section on Medicare Fraud starts around 2:30 and runs about 14 minutes to 16:30. There are a lot of people who point to Medicare’s low administrative cost as a positive, but $60 Billion/year in fraud is a high price to pay for low [...]

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Notification form for Marketing Events for Cigna Published on RitterIM.com Website

Posted in All, Cigna on October 26, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

To obtain the form to report marketing events for Cigna: Go to our Resources Page (you will need to be logged in) Company = Cigna Product = Medicare Advantage or Part D Resource = CMS Marketing Materials Hit “Submit” The fax number for where to send the form is on the form.

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2010 Coventry Medicare Advantage and Part D Presentation Checklist Now Available on RitterIM.com

Posted in All, CMS, Coventry, Health America on October 25, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Coventry has put together a checklist for their Appointed and Certified Agents to ensure that you are following all the required steps in making a compliant Sales Presentation for 2010. We have posted the Checklist in the Agent Secure portion of our Resource Center. To access the Checklist, please click here to go to the [...]

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NAHU Comments on Impact of Repeal of McCarran-Ferguson Act for Health Insurance Companies

Posted in News on October 24, 2009 | 1 Comment »

NAHU put together a paper on what this impact of Repealing the current Anti-Trust exemption for Health Insurers would have on the marketplace.  Click here to view the document.  Health Insurers are currently subject to regulation by the states which outlaws the bid-rigging and anti-competitive behavior which the repeal is supposed to address.  Health Insurers use the [...]

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AHIP’s Karen Ignagni’s Op/Ed in the Washington Post

Posted in News on October 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Here is Karen’s Op/Ed piece.  AHIP was roundly criticized by Senator Baucus and the President for releasing the PriceWaterhouseCoopers report the day before the Senate Finance Committee’s vote on Heath Care Reform. The PWC report did not include the impact of the subsidization of insurance premiums included in the Baucus mark.  AHIP had backed reforms [...]

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Congress Cranks up Pressure on Insurance Industry; Bill would Repeal Industry’s Anti-Trust Exemption for Health Insurance and Medical Malpractice Industries

Posted in News on October 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Here is the full article from Reuters.  The proposal would, essentially, repeal the McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945 which gave the Insurance Industry an exemption from Federal Anti-Trust Regulations.  The repeal which is being proposed would impact Health Insurance and Medical Malpractice Insurance and not other insurance lines.  This would open the door for the Federal Trade Commission to [...]

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Aetna Signs Agreement with Boca Raton Community Hospital; Agreement Expands Access for Aetna Medicare Advantage Members to Include the Hospital and Its Physicians

Posted in 2010 MA Plans, Aetna, Florida on October 22, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Here is the full story from Reuters!  I blogged back in March about Aetna adding Lee Memorial to improve it’s Medicare Advantage network in Southwest Florida. Now the addition of Boca Raton Hospital and Physicians will improve the network in Southeast Florida in Palm Beach county.

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