Oregon Dept. of Consumer & Business Services
Emergency Messages as of 7:49 am, Thu., September 02, 2010
No information currently posted; operating as usual.
News Releases
Deadline for filing claims in bogus insurance case is August 31 - 08/19/10
Salem, Oregon – Oregonians who paid money to American Trade Association Inc. (ATA) or several affiliated companies that were selling illegitimate health insurance plans have until August 31 to file any unpaid claims with the Tennessee-based liquidator who is shutting down the operation. The other companies are Smart Data Solutions LLC (SDS) and Serve America Assurance Ltd (SAA). ATA may also go by American Trade Association LLC.
A Proof of Claim form and instructions for what must be submitted with the form can be found here: www.americantradeliquidation.com. No payments will be made on any policy claims until all "Proof of Claim" forms are reviewed and the court approves a plan of distribution. Creditors are owed far more than is available from the assets.
An estimated 400 Oregonians purchased health insurance – or thought they did – through a group of illegitimate companies that marketed themselves through Internet advertising and fax blasts. The Oregon Insurance Division recently filed a cease and desist order to immediately disallow any insurance transactions in this state by ATA, SDS and SAA. You can find the order here: http://insurance.oregon.gov/admin_actions/actions_2010/producer_2010/10-06-005cd.pdf
Tennessee regulators allege that ATA and SDS engaged in the unlicensed, unauthorized sale of nonexistent insurance coverage, taking premium payments from thousands of consumers when there was no licensed insurance company to fund claims. They said that SAA paid a relatively small number of claims, which contributed to the deception.
The incident is a reminder that anyone buying insurance over the phone or Internet or as the result of an unsolicited letter or fax should proceed with caution. To find out if a company or agent is legitimate in Oregon, call the Insurance Division's consumer advocates at 503-947-7984 or toll-free at 1-888-877-4894 or visit insurance.oregon.gov/insurer/insurer.html.
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The Insurance Division is part of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, Oregon's largest business regulatory and consumer protection agency. Visit www.dcbs.oregon.gov. Follow DCBS on Twitter: http://twitter.com/DCBSCory. Receive consumer help and information on insurance, mortgages, investments, workplace safety, and more.
Salem, Oregon – Oregonians who paid money to American Trade Association Inc. (ATA) or several affiliated companies that were selling illegitimate health insurance plans have until August 31 to file any unpaid claims with the Tennessee-based liquidator who is shutting down the operation. The other companies are Smart Data Solutions LLC (SDS) and Serve America Assurance Ltd (SAA). ATA may also go by American Trade Association LLC.
A Proof of Claim form and instructions for what must be submitted with the form can be found here: www.americantradeliquidation.com. No payments will be made on any policy claims until all "Proof of Claim" forms are reviewed and the court approves a plan of distribution. Creditors are owed far more than is available from the assets.
An estimated 400 Oregonians purchased health insurance – or thought they did – through a group of illegitimate companies that marketed themselves through Internet advertising and fax blasts. The Oregon Insurance Division recently filed a cease and desist order to immediately disallow any insurance transactions in this state by ATA, SDS and SAA. You can find the order here: http://insurance.oregon.gov/admin_actions/actions_2010/producer_2010/10-06-005cd.pdf
Tennessee regulators allege that ATA and SDS engaged in the unlicensed, unauthorized sale of nonexistent insurance coverage, taking premium payments from thousands of consumers when there was no licensed insurance company to fund claims. They said that SAA paid a relatively small number of claims, which contributed to the deception.
The incident is a reminder that anyone buying insurance over the phone or Internet or as the result of an unsolicited letter or fax should proceed with caution. To find out if a company or agent is legitimate in Oregon, call the Insurance Division's consumer advocates at 503-947-7984 or toll-free at 1-888-877-4894 or visit insurance.oregon.gov/insurer/insurer.html.
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The Insurance Division is part of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, Oregon's largest business regulatory and consumer protection agency. Visit www.dcbs.oregon.gov. Follow DCBS on Twitter: http://twitter.com/DCBSCory. Receive consumer help and information on insurance, mortgages, investments, workplace safety, and more.
2010-08/1073/37606/OyesLogo.jpg
(Salem) – "Speak Up!" from the director's chair and promote young worker safety and health in a 45-second public service announcement. High school students across Oregon are invited to enter the third annual video contest. The top three entries will take home cash prizes ranging from $300 to $500 and will earn a matching amount for their school.
The Oregon Young Employee Safety Coalition (O[yes]), Oregon OSHA, SAIF Corporation, American Society of Safety Engineers, the Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxicology (CROET), and the DHS-Public Health Division are sponsoring the contest.
The contest is designed to increase awareness about safety on the job for young people, with the overall theme of "Save a Friend. Work Safe." Specific video guidelines are outlined in the contest rules. Students are encouraged to use humor, get creative, and use the message "Speak Up!" while emphasizing ways to protect themselves at work. Submissions will be judged on the following:
•A teen worker health and safety message based on the concept of "Speak Up!" as the main focus of the video (See rules for more specific details)
•Creativity and originality
•Overall production value (video and audio quality)
•Youth appeal
The deadline for submissions is Feb. 1, 2011.
Contest winners will be unveiled at a screening event to be announced in the spring, and winning entries will be posted on YouTube. For detailed contest information including contest tips, rules, and entry forms, go to www.orosha.org/psacontest/.
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Oregon OSHA, a division of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, enforces the state's workplace safety and health rules and works to improve workplace safety and health for all Oregon workers. For more information, go to www.orosha.org.
Attached Media Files: 2010-08/1073/37606/OyesLogo.jpg
Oregon receives $1 million grant to enhance insurance rate reviews - 08/16/10
Salem, Oregon – Federal officials today approved Oregon's $1 million grant proposal to bolster the review of health insurance rate requests through more detailed analysis and stronger consumer feedback.
"This grant gives us better tools to address rising health insurance costs and provides more information to consumers," said Cory Streisinger, director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS).
The grant to Oregon is part of a five-year, $250 million national program established in the new federal health reform law to help states start or improve rate reviews. Federal officials set aside $1 million per state for 2010.
The DCBS Insurance Division, which reviews rates for small employer, individual, and portability health plans, will use the funds to:
• Increase the scrutiny of rate filings by looking more closely at how a rate increase affects a range of consumers and auditing the numbers insurance companies submit as questions arise.
• Bolster public input into rate reviews by providing funding to a consumer group to provide in-depth comments on rate requests.
• Develop a process to address large group rates to avoid unreasonable increases. The department does not currently review rates for large employer groups (more than 50 employees).
• Provide consumers better information about what drives health insurance premiums by requiring insurers to provide a detailed breakdown of medical costs (such as hospital care versus prescription drugs versus doctor fees) and posting the information online. Computer system changes will make it easier for consumers to read about rate requests on the division's website, as well as help the division better collect and report data about insurance rates and medical costs to federal officials and consumers.
Oregon already has a strong rate review law, thanks to its own reform efforts. Since April, the division has been able to consider such factors as a company's overall profitability, surplus, and investment earnings when reviewing a rate request. The April reforms also established a 30-day public comment period once a rate request is filed.
The changes are part of a larger effort by Oregon to address the rising cost of health care. Because health care costs drive insurance rates, any effort to increase the affordability of insurance will not succeed until health care costs are brought under control.
For more on the department's grant proposal, go to: http://insurance.oregon.gov/consumer/federal-health-reform/rate-review-grant.html
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The Insurance Division is part of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, Oregon's largest business regulatory and consumer protection agency. Visit www.dcbs.oregon.gov. Follow DCBS on Twitter: http://twitter.com/DCBSCory. Receive consumer help and information on insurance, mortgages, investments, workplace safety, and more.
Salem, Oregon – Federal officials today approved Oregon's $1 million grant proposal to bolster the review of health insurance rate requests through more detailed analysis and stronger consumer feedback.
"This grant gives us better tools to address rising health insurance costs and provides more information to consumers," said Cory Streisinger, director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS).
The grant to Oregon is part of a five-year, $250 million national program established in the new federal health reform law to help states start or improve rate reviews. Federal officials set aside $1 million per state for 2010.
The DCBS Insurance Division, which reviews rates for small employer, individual, and portability health plans, will use the funds to:
• Increase the scrutiny of rate filings by looking more closely at how a rate increase affects a range of consumers and auditing the numbers insurance companies submit as questions arise.
• Bolster public input into rate reviews by providing funding to a consumer group to provide in-depth comments on rate requests.
• Develop a process to address large group rates to avoid unreasonable increases. The department does not currently review rates for large employer groups (more than 50 employees).
• Provide consumers better information about what drives health insurance premiums by requiring insurers to provide a detailed breakdown of medical costs (such as hospital care versus prescription drugs versus doctor fees) and posting the information online. Computer system changes will make it easier for consumers to read about rate requests on the division's website, as well as help the division better collect and report data about insurance rates and medical costs to federal officials and consumers.
Oregon already has a strong rate review law, thanks to its own reform efforts. Since April, the division has been able to consider such factors as a company's overall profitability, surplus, and investment earnings when reviewing a rate request. The April reforms also established a 30-day public comment period once a rate request is filed.
The changes are part of a larger effort by Oregon to address the rising cost of health care. Because health care costs drive insurance rates, any effort to increase the affordability of insurance will not succeed until health care costs are brought under control.
For more on the department's grant proposal, go to: http://insurance.oregon.gov/consumer/federal-health-reform/rate-review-grant.html
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The Insurance Division is part of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, Oregon's largest business regulatory and consumer protection agency. Visit www.dcbs.oregon.gov. Follow DCBS on Twitter: http://twitter.com/DCBSCory. Receive consumer help and information on insurance, mortgages, investments, workplace safety, and more.