News & Public Affairs
New study shows health insurance premiums rising sharply
11/29/11 Robert LoreiRadioactivity: Live Call-In (Tuesday) Listen to this entire show:
Tags: health insurance premiums, Commonwealth Fund, Sara Collins, health care reform, Affordable Care Act, insurance
Last week the Commonwealth Fund released a new report which reveals that premiums for employer-sponsored family health insurance plans have increased by 50 percent from 2003 to 2010. The report presents a state-by-state analysis of employer-sponsored family health insurance costs between 2003 and 2010—before the Affordable Care Act was passed.
Health insurance costs are outpacing family income growth in every state in the country, out-of-pocket costs are...
Be the first to commentSeniors told to "not trust anybody" at fraud prevention forum listen
10/19/11 Josh HoltonWMNF Drive-Time News Wednesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: fraud, senior citizens, seniors, seniors issues, insurance, insurance companies
Identity theft and fraud are a threat to many people these days, but seniors can be especially vulnerable. Yesterday members of Florida’s Department of Financial Services visited the Sunshine Center in St. Petersburg to help seniors stay alert.
Carol Radin is with the Office on Aging for the City of St. Petersburg, and said that seniors in particular need to be aware of scams and fraudulent offers in the mail.
S...
Be the first to commentPreview of Citizens sinkhole insurance rate hike hearing at Tampa Convention Center listen
09/13/11 Josh HoltonWMNF Drive-Time News Tuesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: sinkholes, Citizens Property Insurance, rate increase, Citizens, insurance, Mike Fasano
Many homeowners in the Tampa Bay region could face steep rate hikes on sinkhole insurance premiums. This afternoon there is a hearing at the Tampa Convention Center on proposed rate increases by state’s government-backed insurance program. State legislators held a press conference to voice opposition to the hikes this morning.
Citizen’s Property insurance has reacted to a higher number of sinkhole claims by ...
Be the first to commentGovernor Rick Scott and top state employees receive huge health insurance subsidy
08/17/11 Robert LoreiRadioactivity: Live Call-In (Wednesday) Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Rick Scott, health insurance, subsidized, State of Florida, insurance, public workers
Our guest Adam Weinstein, a reporter with Mother Jones Magazine, wrote this last week about Florida Governor Rick Scott: "Last year, political neophyte Rick Scott spent $73 million of his own money to bring the tea party's anti-government, pro-privatization agenda to the Florida governor's office. Today, the former executive pays just $30 a month for health care—and lets taxpayers cover the rest.
"Th...
Be the first to commentTampa Bay homeowners outraged over Citizens sinkhole insurance rate hikes
08/17/11 Josh HoltonWMNF Drive-Time News Wednesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Citizens Property Insurance, sinkholes, sinkhole, sb 408, insurance rates, insurance, insurance industry, mortgages, fraud, Mike Fasano
More than a hundred furious protestors shouted and waved signs outside Pasco County government offices yesterday. They rallied to protest massive rate hikes proposed for sinkhole insurance coverage.
Last year there were far more sinkhole rate claims in the Tampa Bay area than in previous years. While many say the drought is to blame, some politicians in Tallahassee think fraud is at work. So State Senate Bill 408 was written to address the fraud, but also did away with a 10% annual rate h...
1 commentsSenator Mike Fasano calls for special legislative session and repeal of SB 408
07/28/11 Mitch PerryLast Call Thursday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Mike Fasano, Citizens Property Insurance, insurance
New Port Richey state Senator Mike Fasano comes on the program to discuss the outrageous rate increases announced this week by Citizens Insurance.
1 commentsState Senator Mike Fasano on homeowner's insurance, privatization, & the "Taj Mahal" courthouse; open phones
05/18/11 Robert LoreiRadioactivity: Live Call-In (Wednesday) Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Mike Fasano, insurance, Taj Mahal courthouse, 2011 Legislative session
Good morning, welcome to Radioactivity. I'm Rob Lorei. Coming up on the first part of today's program is State Senator Mike Fasano (R-Pasco County). We'll talk with him about his opposition to the insurance bill signed yesterday by the Governor, the latest on the Taj Mahal courthouse scandal and privatization of prisons and Medicaid. Later we'll open the phone lines.
1 commentsLawmakers aim to reduce Citizens, the state insurer of last resort listen
04/25/11 Kate BradshawWMNF Drive-Time News Monday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Ciitizens Property Insurance, insurance industry, Rick Scott, 2011 Legislative session, insurance
If you own a home near the Florida coast, pretty much your only option is Citizens’ Property Insurance, which was intended to be the insurer of last resort. The governor and state legislature are hoping to shrink Citizens, if not do away with it all together.
Citizens’ covers some 1.3 million homeowners. The Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported Saturday that Governor Rick Scott wants to do away with Citizens by the end of his term. Tampa lawyer Sean Shaw, who served as the Insurance Consumer...
Be the first to commentHealth-care reform faces budget challenges listen
05/13/09 Mitch E. PerryWMNF Drive-Time News Wednesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Health care benefits, insurance
Today the White House emphasized health care reform, for the third straight day this week.
President Obama met with leaders in the House this morning, and said "the stars were aligned for health care legislation to happen this year."
Obama met with insurance executives and doctors on Monday, who have been some of the strongest critics of health care reform in the past.
Yesterday he met with business leaders who are finding ways to improve their health care costs.
In his brief co...
Be the first to commentReport: Nearly 5.8 million Floridians were uninsured in the past 2 years listen
03/19/09 Mitch E. PerryWMNF Drive-Time News Thursday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Politics, health care, insurance, underinsured
A new report from a health care advocacy group says that almost two of every five Floridians under the age of 65 were uninsured for some period of time in the past couple of years.
Ron Pollock is executive director with Families USA, the organization that released the study. He said approximately 5.8 million Floridians were uninsured for at least six months within the past two years, that's 38 percent of the state’s population.
Tampa area Democratic Congresswoman Kathy Castor says th...
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