In a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, the industry's top lobbyist said insurers will accept new regulations to dispel uncertainty over a much-publicized guarantee that children with medical problems can get coverage starting this year.This is not a surprise at all. Not only would denying coverage have been a public relations nightmare, government bureaucrats have pretty much free range to draft insurance company policy. It is either do what the government wants or they will step in and further regulate your business--likely into "bankruptcy.
Quick resolution of the doubts was a win for Obama — and a sign that the industry has no stomach for another war of words with a president who deftly used double-digit rate hikes by the companies to revive his sweeping health care legislation from near collapse in Congress.
"Health plans recognize the significant hardship that a family faces when they are unable to obtain coverage for a child with a pre-existing condition," Karen Ignagni, president of America's Health Insurance Plans, said in a letter to Sebelius. Ignagni said that the industry will "fully comply" with the regulations, expected within weeks.
I guarantee the ambiguous language will be used as a defense in a any potential legal wrangling over coverage.
