business
Aetna pays $750,000 fine for Healthy New York program violations
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Feb. 22, 2010
New York officials found that Aetna failed to properly administer benefits as a contractor for the state's Healthy New York program and fined the company $750,000.
Healthy New York is a state-subsidized health insurance program for small business owners and their employees and others whose employers do not offer health insurance.
The company paid the fine and said it had corrected the problems identified by the state's review.
The New York State Insurance Dept. found that Aetna had failed to provide the required 30-day notice of rate increases to individual members; failed to tell more than 1,400 members it dropped that they had a right to convert to another policy; and didn't report enrollment figures to the state as required.
The state said the problems occurred between April 2007 and January 2009. Aetna admitted no wrongdoing.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2010/02/22/bibf0222.htm.
