Healthcare Consumer Priorities Key for Surprise Medical Bill Laws

PatientEngagementHIT | April 09, 2019

Legislation crafted to address surprise medical bills must take into account the priorities of patients and healthcare consumers, says a group of patient advocacy groups. In a recent letter to Congressional leaders, the groups, which included the likes of Families USA and organizations from 17 states, stated that the patient perspective will be critical when creating laws that tackle the issue of surprise medical bills. Surprise medical bills are unexpected healthcare costs that patients did not think they would receive or did not expect to be so high. These charges usually occur when a patient receives treatment at an in-network facility from an out-of-network provider, or when the patient is incapacitated and transported to an out-of-network facility. These situations typically arise when patients need emergency care. Surprise medical bills have come to the forefront as a growing healthcare industry problem. Sixty-seven percent of patients have said they worry about receiving a surprise medical bill, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Spotlight

The Property and Casualty (P&C) insurance industry is being dramatically transformed by digital technologies that are shifting the customer relationship back to the carriers. Beyond working through third-party agents or brokers to purchase insurance policies, more customers are going directly to insurance carriers via their website and other digital channels. Driven by the convenience of online shopping, insurance companies are now expected to provide information that helps customers learn about policies, compare options and even complete an application from virtually any connected device, 24/7.

Spotlight

The Property and Casualty (P&C) insurance industry is being dramatically transformed by digital technologies that are shifting the customer relationship back to the carriers. Beyond working through third-party agents or brokers to purchase insurance policies, more customers are going directly to insurance carriers via their website and other digital channels. Driven by the convenience of online shopping, insurance companies are now expected to provide information that helps customers learn about policies, compare options and even complete an application from virtually any connected device, 24/7.

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Inszone Insurance Acquires Jack E. Gilbert Insurance to Expand Reach

Inszone Insurance Services | March 15, 2023

On March 14, 2023, Inszone Insurance Services, a rapidly expanding national provider of benefits, personal, and commercial lines insurance, informed that the company has acquired Jack E. Gilbert Insurance Agency, Inc. This acquisition is poised to enhance the capabilities of Inszone Insurance Services and is a strategic step in the company's growth trajectory. Headquartered in San Jose, Jack E. Gilbert Insurance Agency, Inc. has been catering to clients in California, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Texas, and Washington since 1980. Over the years, the agency has gained immense popularity for its comprehensive range of insurance programs, which include specialized programs for transportation, trucking and towing, and worker's compensation. Chris Walters, CEO of Inszone Insurance Services, stated, "Jack E. Gilbert Insurance Agency has a long-standing reputation for providing exceptional customer service to its clients." He added, "We are excited to welcome their team of insurance professionals to the Inszone Insurance family, as we continue to expand our presence in California and beyond." (Source – Business Wire) The acquisition of Jack E. Gilbert Insurance Agency, Inc. will provide Inszone Insurance Services with access to the agency's extensive expertise and client base. This strategic move aims to strengthen the capabilities of Inszone Insurance Services and enable the company to offer top-notch insurance services to its clients while also expanding its market reach. The team at Jack E. Gilbert Insurance Agency will continue to operate under the Inszone Insurance brand, maintaining the same level of customer care and service that their clients have come to expect. This acquisition represents a crucial step in Inszone Insurance's growth strategy, as the company aims to expand its national footprint and further cement its position as a leading insurance provider in the United States. About Inszone Insurance Services Inszone Insurance Services, founded in 2002 and headquartered in Sacramento (California), is a full-service insurance brokerage firm that provides a comprehensive range of property & casualty insurance, along with employee benefits solutions. With an experienced and dynamic management team, the company continues to grow both organically as well as through strategic acquisitions. It presently has 40 locations spread across California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon, Texas, and Illinois and is poised to expand its presence throughout the United States.

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RISK MANAGEMENT,INSURANCE TECHNOLOGY

Insurity Introduces New Analytics Feature for Sure Premium Audit Solution

Insurity | January 13, 2023

Insurity, a leading cloud-based software and analytics provider for insurance carriers, brokers, and MGAs, announced the launch of Sure Premium Audit Analytics on January 12, 2023. This product is a part of its Sure Premium Audit solution that integrates robust predictive analytics from Insurity Predict into the auditing process to enhance operational efficiency by up to 15%. Identifying exposure risk in the premium auditing process remains arduous for many P&C carriers. It may be hard or even impossible for premium audit departments to check all of their business. Instead, many carriers' current premium auditing process is highly responsive and based on standard policy features such as premium, location, and industry. Sure Premium Audit Analytics addresses these issues with robust predictive models and machine learning built on Insurity's 20+ years of industry experience in premium auditing. Carriers can use Sure Premium Audit Analytics to improve their audit workflows with embedded AI and machine learning, allowing them to optimize the premium audit process by forecasting audit results before the audit is even ordered. Additionally, users can simplify the auditing process by developing custom predictive models on a low-code, configurable interface. Existing Sure Premium Audit customers and P&C carriers can quickly get started with Insurity's turnkey analytics system, which has been fully integrated into the Sure Premium Audit platform. In addition, customers can synchronize these predictive models into any workflow or in-house tool using Insurity Predict. Chief Insurance Officer at Insurity, Sylvester Mathis, said, "Premium audits can be a time-consuming process, resulting in carriers leaving hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars of missed premium on the table." He added, "Sure Premium Audit Analytics takes the guesswork out of identifying premiums to audit by proactively flagging policies possessing the characteristics to generate exposures outside initial estimates. Audit costs are reduced, or practically eliminated and time-consuming processes are removed by leveraging the most efficient audit methods." (Source – Businesswire) About Insurity Hartford-based Insurity is a top cloud-based software provider for brokers, insurance carriers, and MGAs. Insurity has over 400 cloud-based deployments and is recognized by 7 of the top 10 MGAs and 15 of the leading 25 P&C carriers in the United States. The company is uniquely equipped to offer exceptional value through its unrivaled industry experience, best-in-class digital platform, and the industry's most robust analytics offerings. With Insurity, customers can optimize their operations, focus on their core businesses, and provide superior policyholder experiences.

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Future Capital and Ease Bring Valuable Retirement Planning Services to Insurance Brokers

PRweb | March 23, 2023

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