|
medpundit |
||
 |
 |
|
Thursday, July 24, 2003I still believe that tort reform is essential if the current liability crisis is going to be curtailed, but it strains belief to think that the insurance company has to increase premiums by several thousand dollars a month to make ends meet. We live in a litiginous world, but the jury awards and lawsuits haven't been exploding at that rapid a rate. In fact, everything about the insurance company suggests they know they're in the catbird seat. In addition to ramping up prices every month, they're slow to process applications, and their insurance agents take days to return calls. It's as if they don't care about attracting customers. They've got enough gold to mine already. So why do I stick with them? Because they're one of the few companies in our area that are still "A" rated, a quality that's essential to maintain hospital privileges. And because, until yesterday, I thought they were a good company. Before yesterday, when I read things like this, I tended to dismiss it as trial-lawyer propaganda. But now, I've got considerable doubts as to whether the insurance companies can be trusted to offer fair market prices for their product. We just might need some sort of regulation of premiums to prevent price gouging if we're going to prevent the continued decline in access to care that the crisis is causing. I hate to admit it, but the insurance companies are proving their critics right. posted by Sydney on 7/24/2003 06:57:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
|
