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November 08, 2010 at 08:50 AM
Thomas R. Sullivan, Connecticut insurance commissioner, announced Tuesday that he would resign, just days after an outcry from consumer groups and auto body groups demanding his removal.
Sullivan was reported by BestWire on Oct. 26 to have approved rate increases up to 46.9% for Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield individual policyholders after the passage of the health care reform bill. The action caused Citizens for Economic Opportunity, comprised of advocacy groups and labor unions, to call on Connecticut Gov. Jodi M. Rell to remove him from office. He was appointed by Rell to the post in 2007.
On Oct. 29, auto body groups had also called for his removal, charging that he “hurt small businesses and automobile insurance consumers in part by failing to act on claims of insurer misconduct in settling collision repair claims and siding with the insurance industry on the use of after-market parts.”
The commissioner had also opposed a bill that would compel the insurance department to hold a public hearing on any requested rate increase of 10% or higher. He has also, according to NU Online News Service, supported retained asset accounts (RAAs), which veterans’ groups and others oppose.
