AHU Commends Legislation that Takes on Medicare Rule
The Sacramento Association of Health Underwriters (SAHU) and the National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) recently sent a written statement commending House of Representatives members Suzan DelBene (D-WA), Ron Estes (R-KS), Joe Courtney (D-CT) and Glenn Thompson (R-PA) for taking the lead on introducing bipartisan legislation (H.R. 3650) to eliminate Medicare’s three-day mandatory inpatient stay rule for a skilled nursing center. Here’s a bit from the statement:
The Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act addresses Medicare’s “two midnight” policy. “At issue is the requirement for Medicare beneficiaries to spend at least three days in the hospital on an inpatient basis in order to receive their 100 days of covered skilled-nursing services,” explained NAHU CEO Janet Trautwein. “Hospitals have increasingly admitted seniors on an ‘observation status’ basis and not as an inpatient, which is an important technical distinction that is generally indistinguishable to hospital patients but can lead to extremely costly Medicare denials.“These archaic policies are leading patients who are extremely sick and need skilled nursing care to not qualify for paid Medicare skilled-nursing centers and for others to later have their admission status changed so that their care is now billed to them and not Medicare.
We agree…bravo to the lawmakers for tackling this problem!
MEDICARE SUMMIT
9th Annual Senior Summit: Chart Your Course and Navigate Into the Future
Special shout out to the folks organizing the Senior Summit! We inadvertently left you out of events last week. So take notice readers: this year’s Senior Summit will be IN PERSON at Pechanga Resort & Casino August 31-September. This is an excellent event! We’ll be there. In fact, Cal Broker will be celebrating its 40th anniversary at the Summit. More on that later. Online registration for the Senior Summit is open through August 19. See you at the Summit! Register here.
EMERGENCY
UnitedHealthcare ER Scrutiny Now Delayed
After UnitedHealthcare announced it would be more strict about covering hospital emergency room claims starting July 1, the company has now had a change of heart. The insurer had said that it improved its ability to determine whether a patient’s visit to an emergency room was really related to a true emergency, according to the provisions of commercial health insurance plans. However, providers pushed back. Now the health insurer announced on its website that no changes will be made until after the pandemic.
CAL BROKER
Seeking Additional Ad Salesperson
We’re looking to hire an additional advertising salesperson to join our team. Knowledge of insurance products and/or sales experience desired. Flexible hours and you can work from wherever you are. Interested? Send an email to publisher Ric Madden: ric@ricmadden.com.
INSURTECH
Global Insurance Symposium June 28-30
This year’s Global Insurance Symposium will be held both virtually and in-person in Des Moines, Iowa, June 28-30. Global Insurance Symposium attendees will have the opportunity to hear experts and industry leaders discuss global risk and the post-pandemic future as well as how to bridge the diversity gap in the insurance industry. In addition, the Commissioner Panel will offer critical regulatory updates and the InsurTech Expo will highlight the latest technological developments in the industry. View the full agenda and session details here.
FINANCIAL PLANNING
MDRT Finds COVID Impact
A recent MDRT study examined how 2020 events, including the COVID-19 pandemic and recession, altered Americans’ financial outlooks, goals and values:
- 57% of Americans say the COVID-19 pandemic and recession will have long-term, negative impacts on their ability to save for important life goals.
- 44% of Americans without financial advisors say the events of 2020 have made them realize the benefits of working with a financial professional.
- 33% of Americans with advisors and 30% of Americans without an advisor named identifying and preparing for long-term financial goals as their top priority in working with a financial advisor in 2021.
NETWORKING
ICMG Hosts New Networking Event
We recently heard from the Inter-Company Marketing Group (ICMG), a non-profit association that aims to foster business networking among insurance and financial services professionals and firms. ICMG tells us it held its first-ever mid-year insurance networking event on May 25. According to organizers, the event seemed to answer the question of whether executives are ready to get back to face-to-face meetings. The organizers anticipated that the event would be essentially a regional affair, but insurance executives from 14 states ended up on site. As is the hallmark of ICMG conferences, the organizers put a strong focus on networking and making personal connections. In addition, the event featured a panel discussion on the best insurance takeaways from the pandemic year and more. The ICMG’s 2022 Annual Conference is scheduled for February 1 and 2, 2022, in Miami, Florida. More information can be found at ICMG’s website, www.icmg.org.
PEOPLE
Rhonda Fenner joins AmeriLife as SVP Operations Transformation
AmeriLife Group announced Rhonda Fenner has been hired as senior vice president, operations transformation. The company says that in her new role Fenner will “collaborate with AmeriLife’s TPA and agent services functions to identify and implement core process improvements and enhance the points where people, processes and technologies intersect.” She will also put into action improvements in agent onboarding and service experiences.
EVENTS
- IICF International Inclusion in Insurance Forum, June 15-17. Register here.
- SIIA Mentor Connection Forum, Virtual, June 16-17. Register here.
- NAIFA-LA, Advanced Retirement Planning Seminar, Virtual, June 17, 11:30am-1:30pm. Register here.
- NAHU Annual Convention & Grow Your Business Expo, theme is “The Path Forward”, Virtual, June 27-29, info here.
- BenefitsPro Broker Expo, in person in San Diego, August 16-18. Save 15% with promo code RIGHTPLAN. Agenda here, register here.
- 9th Annual Senior Summit: Chart Your Course and Navigate Into the Future, in person at Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, August 31-September 2. Online registration is open through August 19. Register here.
- American Association for Medicare Supplement Insurance, National Medicare Supplement Insurance Industry Summit, Sept 8-10, in person at Schaumburg Convention Center, Chicago area. Info here
- SIIA 41st Annual National Educational Conference & Expo, In-Person & Virtual, October 3 – 5, JW Marriott, Austin, TX. Info here.
