CAHI Releases Updated State Mandate Publication

    ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today the Council
 for Affordable Health Insurance (CAHI) released the 2007 edition of "Health
 Insurance Mandates in the States." According to the study, the number of
 state mandated benefits continues to grow -- to 1,901 nationwide, up from
 1,843 last year.
     "Policymakers are increasingly focusing on how to reduce the number of
 uninsured Americans," stated CAHI Director Dr. Merrill Matthews.
 "Ironically, these same policymakers continue to pass laws that drive up
 the cost of coverage and make policies unaffordable for millions of
 Americans."
     A health insurance mandate is a requirement that an insurance company
 cover specific health care providers, benefits or patient populations.
 While mandates make health insurance more comprehensive, they also make it
 more expensive because mandates require insurers to pay for care consumers
 previously funded out of their own pockets. Based on our analysis, mandated
 benefits currently increase the cost of basic health coverage from a little
 less than 20% to more than 50%, depending on the state and the specific
 legislative language.
     The study's authors, CAHI Research and Policy Director Victoria C.
 Bunce and State Affairs Director J.P. Wieske, track hundreds of mandate
 bills and identify those that actually pass. The study also includes an
 estimate, provided by a team of health actuaries, of how much each mandate
 adds to the cost of a health insurance policy.
     "At a time when policymakers are complaining about the high cost of
 health insurance, CAHI wants state legislators to know they are responsible
 for the mandate explosion, and what those mandates do to the cost and
 availability of health insurance. We hope this publication will encourage
 them to refrain from exacerbating the problem," concluded Matthews.
     A copy of the 2007 edition of "Health Insurance Mandates in the States"
 is available on CAHI's website, http://www.cahi.org. Also available on the
 web site are corresponding documents "Trends in State Mandated Benefits,
 2007" and "Mandated Benefit Definition Memo, 2007."
     Founded in 1992, CAHI is a non-profit research and advocacy association
 whose mission is to develop and promote free market solutions to America's
 health care challenges. CAHI's membership includes health insurance
 companies (active in the individual, small group, HSA and senior markets),
 small businesses, physicians, actuaries and insurance brokers.
     Contact:
     Larry Siedlick
     (703) 836-6200 ext. 389
 
 

SOURCE Council for Affordable Health Insurance