Iowa Regulator Delivers LTC Report

By Trevor Thomas

September 08, 2008 at 10:46 AM

Share & Print

Iowa Insurance Commissioner Susan Voss has issued a report describing the efforts of the Iowa Insurance Division to strengthen regulation of long term care insurance.

The Iowa division has instituted new review procedures for carrier rate increases and is moving forward with an independent system for reviewing carriers' denials of LTC insurance claims, Voss writes in the report, which is addressed to Iowa Gov. Chester Culver, D.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Kansas City, Mo., is studying Iowa's new claim-denial review system for possible adoption as a national model, Voss writes.

The new review process will go into effect in Iowa Jan. 1, 2009.

Representatives of some LTC insurance carriers have asked Voss to meet with them to discuss insurance claim issues, but no date for a meeting has been set, Voss writes.

Voss says the Iowa division also is moving ahead with efforts to encourage the introduction of innovative LTC insurance products.

"We have encouraged the industry to consider products that provide greater benefit flexibility to consumers, i.e., long-term care insurance products with a life insurance component," Voss writes. "We are seeing some products with these types of features being filed with the division for sale in Iowa."

NOT FOR REPRINT