Sen. Feinstein Announces Support for California Initiative to Control Insurance Rate Hikes

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein has announced her support for a California ballot measure that would give state regulators the ability to approve health insurance rates, according to an LA Times report.

The health insurance initiative would require health insurance companies to publicly justify rate hikes before they take effect. Sen. Feinstein said the measure is necessary to protect people to purchase health insurance coverage, who can be hit with increasing premiums with little to no warning.

California is one of only 17 states in the country that do not give state officials authority to approve individual health insurance rate increases. Sen. Feinstein said controls are needed to keep healthcare coverage affordable, according to the report. She cited data that shows the first largest health insurers in California made net profits of $5.95 billion in the first quarter of 2011 — a 16 percent increase.

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