Delaware to Regulate Health Insurance Rates
Calling it a move to create "a level playing field and a competitive market," Delaware
Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart praised state legislators for giving
her office oversight over health insurance rates.
Gov. Jack Markell recently signed into state law Senate Substitute 1 for Senate
Bill 35, putting premiums charged by insurance companies for medical coverage under
the same level of scrutiny from the Delaware Department of Insurance as homeowners,
auto and workers' compensation policies. The department now has the authority to
reject proposed premium increases if a health insurer cannot justify the rate hike.
"This law will protect Delawareans who are already being squeezed by rising insurance
costs," Markell said in a statement. "While the federal government continues working
on how to reform the nation's health care system, we can take concrete actions in
Delaware to hold down costs and make insurance more affordable."
Weldin Stewart's predecessor, Matt Denn, who now serves as the state's lieutenant
governor, introduced and lobbied for the legislation during his four years as insurance
commissioner. The Department of Insurance and State Sen. Patricia Blevins (D-Elsmere)
introduced the bill in the latest session.
In a statement, Denn said that "after four years of hard work and many roadblocks,"
he was pleased to see the bill become law.
Weldin Stewart said that health insurers should be treated no differently than workers'
compensation and property-casualty insurers, "particularly at this time when health
care costs are the biggest cost to the economy."
By regulating rates, she said, the insurance department can ensure that private
insurers pay out benefits "that are reasonable" relative to the premiums they collect,
she added.
"In Delaware, the top five companies hold approximately 88% of the health insurance
market," Weldin Stewart said in a statement. "The bill signed into law by Governor
Markell assures a level playing field and a competitive market. With so few companies
holding such a large percentage of the market, it is critical for the Insurance
Department to monitor rates. The new law is a boon for both small business and individual
policyholders."
Back to News
»