Buying Individual Health Insurance

Dewhurst says health care overhaul will bust Texas’ budget
WASHINGTON – Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst warned Wednesday that new federal health care legislation will bust Texas’ budget, saddling state taxpayers with $27 billion in extra costs over the next decade.

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UK house insurance premiums to rise dramatically as climate change increases flood risk
Association of British Insurers warns some areas of Britain will become uninsurable Climate change will increase the risk of flooding in the UK, which could lead to dramatic rises in insurance premiums for homeowners and businesses and make some areas of the country uninsurable, the Association of British Insurers has warned. “Flood risk is the main catastrophic risk in the UK and we know that …

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Rate for Brown County residents without health insurance better than states
More than 9 percent of Brown Countys residents younger than age 65 were uninsured in 2007, according to data released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Montco renews CBIZ contract
COURTHOUSE — A health insurance consultant that has had a virtual monopoly on professional services it provides Montgomery County for more than a decade got the nod Wednesday from two commissioners for a two-year contract beginning next year.

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Tennesseans against health care reform 2-to-1
NASHVILLE — Tennesseans oppose the national health care reform law enacted by Congress at the urging of President Barack Obama by a margin of almost 2-to-1, according to a recent poll by The Tennessean and other media outlets.

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Health insurers cutting some policies for kids
WASHINGTON — Some major health insurance companies will no longer issue certain types of policies for children, an unintended consequence of President Obama’s health-care overhaul law, state officials said Friday.

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Make no mistake about it. Health care reform is coming. But what’s the best way to fix our health care system, which is an inefficient, complicated mess of private actors, third-party payers, public subsidies, and innumerable state and federal regulations? Should we place our faith in the government or in the free market? ObamaCare supporters argue that the answer lies in more government—more subsidies, more regulations, a law mandating individuals buy health-insurance coverage and, of course, more taxes to pay for it all. The alternative is to base reforms on what works in the other five-sixths of the US economy, where choice and competition increase quality and drive down prices over time. Can a market-based health care system work? We can begin to answer this question by looking at Lasik, a medical procedure that’s not covered by health insurance. And has gotten better—and cheaper—over time. “How to Fix Health Care” proposes three simple reforms that will put us on a path to a health-care system that’s better, more affordable, and more accessible. And get this—these market-based reforms can be implemented without creating new government programs or raising taxes. Approximately 8.30 minutes. Produced by Paul Feine and Meredith Bragg. Hosted by Nick Gillespie. For downloadable versions of this and other videos, go to reason.tv

Health Highlights: July 22, 2010
Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

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Insurance commissioner challenges new fees on health care plans
State Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland has asked the Oklahoma Supreme Court to block the collection of a 1 percent fee on health care plans adopted earlier this year by the Legislature.

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As the health insurance reform debate enters into its final stages in Congress, the President denounces the desperate and deceptive last-ditch efforts of the health insurance companies to derail it. October 17, 2009. (Public Domain)

BILL MOYERS: You know from the news that early next week the Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote on its version of health care reform. And therein lies another story of money and politics. Polls show the overwhelming majority of Americans favor a non-profit alternative — like Medicare — that would give the private health insurance industry some competition. But if so many Americans and the President himself want that public option, how come we’re not getting one? Because, the medicine has been poisoned from day one, in part because of that same revolving door that Congresswoman Kaptur and Simon Johnson were just talking about. Movers and shakers rotate between government and the lucrative private sector at a speed so dizzying they forget who they’re working for.

New high-risk health care pool for Missouri approved
Some 3,000 Missourians unable to buy health insurance due to a pre-existing condition are eligible for a new high-risk pool as part of health care reform.

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Kandiyohi County To Pay Some Health Care Premiums
A west-central Minnesota county is taking steps to help some of its poorest and sickest residents from slipping through the health care cracks. The Kandiyohi County Board agreed Tuesday to pay a $4 per-person monthly insurance premium to enroll the low-income adults in MinnesotaCare for six months.

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Liberty National Named to Ward’s 2010 Top 50 Life & Health List
Liberty National Life Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Torchmark Corporation , has been named to the 2010 Ward’s 50 list of top performing life and health insurance companies. Â Every year since 1995, Liberty National has been named to the Ward’s 50 Life-Health List. Â Liberty National was recognized for achieving outstanding financial results in the areas of safety, consistency, and …

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No appeal on suit against Mo. health care measure
The people who challenged a Missouri ballot taking aim at a key provision in the new federal health care law have decided not to appeal a judge’s decision against their lawsuit.

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