Wednesday
Nov042009
Arizona Republican Urges Democrats To Reverse Key Provision In Healthcare Bills
Wednesday, November 4, 2009 at 5:49PM
By Meagan Wiseley - University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service
Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.) and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) to exclude a provision that exempts insurance companies from tort claims from the proposed health care bills in the House and the Senate.
Section 514 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) states, among other things, that if an insurance company improperly denies benefits to an individual, it cannot be sued for any resulting injury or wrongful death, regardless of whether it acted in bad faith in denying benefits.
“Why does a health care reform bill continue immunity to insurance companies so they can injure and kill people?” Shadegg asked during a press conference Wednesday.
The intent of the ERISA provision is to prevent the misuse and loss of pension funds to protect American retirees. Section 514 of ERISA contains a preemption that does not allow civil courts to sue insurance companies for injury or wrongful death, because 514 is a federal statute.
Standing alongside Shadegg was Florence Corcoran, who suffered the loss of her unborn baby in 1989. Corcoran took to the podium and explained that she was diagnosed with Toxemia during her 36th week of pregnancy. Her doctor had requested that she be admitted to the hospital for further monitoring of her unborn child, but her insurance company, United Health Care Inc., maintained that she would be adequately cared for while on bed rest at home. Corcoran left the hospital, and the next week her baby went into distress and died.
“Insurance companies, all they look out for is money. That’s all, it’s not the patients health that they are concerned about,” said Corcoran.
Shadegg offered an amendment to strip the immunity in section 514 in the House Energy and Commerce Committee, but said the amendment was rejected by Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) The Arizona Republican said that he will offer an amendment to remove this language in the House Rules Committee.
“I hope...that the American people will rise up and demand that Nancy Pelosi fix this bill before it’s voted on in the House...or that in the conference committee it be fixed.”
Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.) and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) to exclude a provision that exempts insurance companies from tort claims from the proposed health care bills in the House and the Senate.
Section 514 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) states, among other things, that if an insurance company improperly denies benefits to an individual, it cannot be sued for any resulting injury or wrongful death, regardless of whether it acted in bad faith in denying benefits.
“Why does a health care reform bill continue immunity to insurance companies so they can injure and kill people?” Shadegg asked during a press conference Wednesday.
The intent of the ERISA provision is to prevent the misuse and loss of pension funds to protect American retirees. Section 514 of ERISA contains a preemption that does not allow civil courts to sue insurance companies for injury or wrongful death, because 514 is a federal statute.
Standing alongside Shadegg was Florence Corcoran, who suffered the loss of her unborn baby in 1989. Corcoran took to the podium and explained that she was diagnosed with Toxemia during her 36th week of pregnancy. Her doctor had requested that she be admitted to the hospital for further monitoring of her unborn child, but her insurance company, United Health Care Inc., maintained that she would be adequately cared for while on bed rest at home. Corcoran left the hospital, and the next week her baby went into distress and died.
“Insurance companies, all they look out for is money. That’s all, it’s not the patients health that they are concerned about,” said Corcoran.
Shadegg offered an amendment to strip the immunity in section 514 in the House Energy and Commerce Committee, but said the amendment was rejected by Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) The Arizona Republican said that he will offer an amendment to remove this language in the House Rules Committee.
“I hope...that the American people will rise up and demand that Nancy Pelosi fix this bill before it’s voted on in the House...or that in the conference committee it be fixed.”
Labor Regulations Aim To Protect Retirement Funds
By Janie Amaya
The U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) announced Monday a regulation that, starting Dec. 27, 2011, will allow employers to provide investment advice to employees in an effort to protect their retirement accounts.
EBSA Assistant Secretary Phyllis Borzi said that implementing this type of fiduciary transaction can help reduce investment mistakes made by people across the country.
“This regulation circumscribes or assists fiduciaries [trustees] so they can provide good, quality, unbiased investment advice to the participants in the 401(k) plan and to clients in the IRA market,” Borzi said.
Official fiduciaries, Borzi added, have the choice of being compensated on a level-fee basis in which the fees they receive can’t vary based on the investments they select or investments will be recommended based on computer models that are certified as unbiased by an independent expert.
Economic analysis of the regulation indicates that the cost of investment miscues are projected to be reduced by $7-18 billion annually.
“Given the rise in participation in 401(k)- type plans and IRA’s, the retirement security of millions of America’s workers increasingly depends on their investment decisions,” Boriz said in a statement.