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News Reports

Insurers pay too slow: The Kansas City Star did an article on May 12, 2000, about how insurers consistently pay claims late and how states are passing laws that penalize insurers who can't pay claims within certain time constraints. Kansas just passed legislation several weeks ago that requires insurers to pay within 30 days or be required to pay a 1% monthly interest penalty. Missouri failed to pass any new legislation.

Having been in the insurance industry for many years I can attest to the fact that this is a real problem. But don't expect these laws to change the current practice much. Dozens of states already have laws in place addressing this problem and if I had to guess, most, if not all, insurers regularly ignore the interest penalty. Only a provider or consumer who is aware of their own state law regarding this and has the time or inclination to fight for it will get the true amount they're due. Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing the insurers because there are many factors that go into processing a claim and often times medical claims are not submitted with all the information needed to pay them promptly. But there are things that can be done to process the claims more quickly. Maybe the states can work with the insurers to find answers and solutions to resolving this problem to everyone's benefit.

Word of warning: if your insurer is consistently pay claims late it may indicate they are having financial problems. Call your state commissioner of insurance to verify the financial stability of your insurer.

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