Insurers Directed to Cover Preexisting Conditions in Children

Will they, or won't they? That question about insurers and their plans for covering preexisting conditions in children has been asked a lot in the last week. The verdict seems to be yes, not only for one infamous case in Texas but for kids nationwide.

 

We mentioned the Texas case on our blog last week regarding the Crowley newborn with a rare and potentially fatal heart condition, whose coverage was being denied by a private insurer on the grounds of a preexisting condition. This week, good news came for little Houston Tracy and his family, as CBS News learned early in the week that Blue Cross Blue Shield had reached an agreement to cover the infant. 

 

But on the same day as that announcement, The New York Times printed the discouraging news that insurers were looking for ways to continue to deny coverage to children. Following the report, the United States Health and Human Services Secretary sent a letter to insurers on the topic, and the American Health Insurance Plans leadership responded with a letter promising to comply with the law's provisions to cover children with preexisting conditions. The exchange settled the matter, according to The Wall Street Journal.

 

Final Score in these related stories this week: