INDIANAPOLIS, IN and ARMONK, N.Y. – Sept. 12, 2011 – WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP), and IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced an agreement today to create the first commercial applications of the IBM Watson technology. Under the agreement, WellPoint will develop and launch Watson-based solutions to help improve patient care through the delivery of up-to-date, evidence-based health [...]
Like a lot of people, you may think you only need to go to the eye doctor if your eyes are blurry or you have problems seeing. You may feel like a yearly eye exam is a waste of time or money. You may be surprised to learn that yearly eye exams are an easy, [...]
The AP (8/4, Kusmer) reports Aetna “is the latest” health insurance company “to leave the individual policy market in Indiana in another sign of diminishing competition to benefit consumers who purchase policies through a state insurance exchange under the federal health care overhaul.” The company “informed the Indiana Department of Insurance in an April 29 [...]
The history of Mother´s Day is centuries old and dates back to the times of ancient Greeks. Here in America, in 1907, Anna Jarvis, a Philadelphia schoolteacher, began a movement to set up a National Mother´s Day in honor of her mother, Ann Jarvis. In 1914, Anna´s hard work finally paid off when President Woodrow [...]
Choosing the right health insurance plan for you and your family can often seem like an overwhelming and confusing task. Your family’s health and wellbeing are your top priority, and making sure they are protected should anything ever happen is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make. So what questions should you ask [...]
COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act): Have you recently left your employer? COBRA allows former employees, retirees, and their dependents to temporarily keep their health coverage at group rates. It is more expensive than group insurance. Why? When you are employed, your employer usually pays some or all of the premium for your health insurance. [...]
The Los Angeles Times (8/26, Helfand) reports, “California insurance regulators cleared the way Wednesday for Anthem Blue Cross to implement scaled-back rate hikes after a previous increase was canceled amid an uproar over its size.” The insurer “said it intends to put the new rates — averaging 14% and as high as 20% — into [...]
The Los Angeles Times (8/24, Hennessy-Fiske) reports in its “LA Now” blog that the “number of Californians who lost jobs and health insurance probably increased in every county last year, according to a study released Monday by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.” The new analysis “found that 37 counties — including Imperial, Kern [...]
Did you know: Specialty drugs contribute to high and rising health care costs? According to the Kaiser Family Foundation and Sonderegger Research Center, specialty drugs – drugs that are usually used for unique reasons – can save and extend lives, but they’re much more expensive than other drugs. For example, a new cancer drug can [...]
The Los Angeles Times (7/21, B1, Helfand) reports on the front page of its Business Section that Leslie Margolin, the “president of Anthem Blue Cross, announced her resignation Tuesday amid stinging criticism of double-digit rate increases that infuriated consumers, lawmakers and government regulators.” Margolin “steered Anthem at a time when its parent company, WellPoint, Inc., [...]