Assemblyman Hector De La Torre (D-Southgate) has introduced a piece of legislation that aims to curb the most unfair practices engaged in by some insurance companies. Most notably, AB 1945 will force insurers to prove that a pre-existing health condition was diagnosed prior to the policy having been written if they want to cancel the policy based on those grounds. There are more far reaching measures in the bill that would necessitate state review of all policy cancellations. State review would be performed by Department of Managed Health Care or the Department of Insurance and would effectively establish industry standards for application processes, restraining the incentive insurance companies have to clip the benefits of the insured at the time when they are most needed.  The Department of Managed Health Care has investigated claims by patients who had their policies canceled even when health conditions were diagnosed years after the policies were written. Such cancellations are already illegal. Tracking them down and levying fines is not difficult for State Agencies to do, but such measures are often beside the point for families facing health crises where quick, quality health care is critical to recovery. If this bill passes into law, it will be another complication for insurance companies looking to sort through possible customers. As insurance providers and brokers face new customer acquisition hurdles it may become increasingly important for them to optimize their sales and marketing through effective lead management and other software solutions.

Tags: Lead Management