LITTLE ROCK — State insurance set for Aug. 1 launch date
Starting Aug. 1, Arkansans will be able to apply for the state’s version of high-risk insurance pools as part of the national health-care overhaul.
Some states are allowing the federal government to run their plan, but Arkansas has started its own.
The plan - the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan - is for people who have been denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions and haven’t had insurance for at least six months.
The Arkansas Insurance Department in a release Tuesday said people interested can call (800) 285-6477 or e-mail chipark [email protected].
The program will be administered by Blue Advantage Administrators.
Premiums for nontobacco users will range from $156 to $624 a month.
Annual deductibles will be $1,000 and out-of-pocket maximums will be $2,000.
Arkansas suing firm
over phone charges
Arkansas’ attorney general has filed suit against a Nevada-based telecommunications company, alleging it charged Arkansas customers for services after they canceled long distance services.
The company pitches low-cost communication services, but customers have had trouble canceling services such as long-distance plans, according to a release from Attorney General Dustin McDaniel’s office. When customers try to switch providers, the company keeps charging the full price for bundled services, the release says.
Only later, if at all, are customers told that they’re bound by an agreement under which they must cancel the whole bundle - rather than one part like long distance - before charges stop, department officials said.
McDaniel says the company’s practices violate the state’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
The suit was filed Tuesday in Pulaski County Circuit Court. McDaniel is asking for restitution for consumers in the state, as well as civil penalties.
Efforts to reach the company were unsuccessful Tuesday.
Arkansas Index rises 3.42; most stocks up
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, rose 3.42 to 171.07 Tuesday.
“U.S. stocks staged a midday rally on speculation that the Federal Reserve will take steps to encourage lending,” said Chris Harkins, senior vice president and managing director of Delta Trust Investments Inc. in Little Rock. “All but one of the Arkansas Index stocks finished higher on Tuesday.”
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business, Pages 25 on 07/21/2010