
Unreasonable and unquestioned increases in health insurance rates can happen in Texas under the 2010 federal health care reform law.
The federal law states that the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) can review health insurance companies' rate increases, but has no authority to veto them. Also, the TDI does not have the right to inform the public about problems with rate increases, nor can the department stall or postpone such increases.
Add to this, the Texas Legislature's inattentiveness, for when there was scope for a review five months ago, the TDI did not create a system to publicize high increases in rates. The agency now wants to provide consumers with information about rate increases and is developing it.
Texas is notably, one of the weaker states in the US in terms of lawful authority to review health insurance rates.
Source: Medindia