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January 04, 2008 at 11:48 AM
State insurance regulators in Washington and Alaska have released the results of a multi-state examination of units of an active player in the market for individual medical coverage.
The targeted companies, subsidiaries of HealthMarkets Inc., North Richland Hills, Texas, appeared to have significant problems with training agents, educating customers, handling claims and working with regulators during the period covered, which extended from Jan. 1, 2000, to Dec. 31, 2005, Washington state officials say in a summary of the exam findings.
“Transparency of activities, relationships and financial arrangements between various affiliated HealthMarkets entities and the associations was insufficient and an ongoing area of concern,” officials say.
The Washington and Alaska regulators led the exam effort for a group that included a total of 36 states and other jurisdictions.
Regulators now are starting to develop enforcement action recommendations, officials say.
The HealthMarkets examined include Mega Life and Health Insurance Company, Mid-West National Insurance Company of Tennessee, and Chesapeake Life Insurance Company.
The examiners themselves note that the HealthMarkets underwent a change in ownership in April 2006 and have made many changes in compliance and complaint-handling procedures since the end of the exam period.
