NAIFA Vice President of Federal Government Relations Diane Boyle made the following statement regarding the HHS decision to grant Maine a waiver for the MLR requirement in the federal health care law requiring insurers to spend 80 - 85% of premiums on "medical costs":
“We are pleased that the Maine waiver was granted. However, NAIFA believes the MLR waiver process is not a promising way to address the service concerns. Superintendent Kofman started this waiver request in July. While it appears this six-month process will provide some relief to Maine, we are worried that other states without Maine’s persistence will not be as lucky.
“NAIFA believes timely congressional action is needed to preserve the valuable services and programs offered by licensed professionals that protect consumers and mitigate costs. NAIFA commends the efforts of legislators and the NAIC to draft corrective legislation to preserve consumer access to services provided by licensed insurance agents without impacting premiums.”