Category: Health Insurance

UnitedHealth’s lower-than-feared costs lift profit, shares

  • July 23, 2023
  • 2 min read

July 14 (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group's (UNH.N) quarterly profit beat Wall Street estimates on Friday as a smaller-than-expected jump in medical costs allayed fears that a resumption in long-delayed surgical procedures would hit profit growth.The company's results allowed investors to breathe a sigh of relief following a $60-billion wipeout in industry market value last month, after United Health raised alarms about rising costs.Its shares ended up 7%, while rivals Humana (HUM.N), Cigna (CI.N) and Elevance Health (ELV.N) closed 2% to 5% higher on Friday.The results were a "welcome response," after several weeks of pain for investors in health insurance companies,…

Can You Protect Your Child’s Inheritance From Their Spouse?

  • July 22, 2023
  • 3 min read

Many of our clients want to plan for their children's future, when drafting their estate plans. However, some of our clients are concerned about their child's spouse accessing the inheritance. We can help you stay on top of the latest news that affects your everyday life. Subscribe to stay up to date. (To subscribe to our blog click here). While each client has different concerns and requires tailored estate planning, one question we often hear relates to protecting the inheritance of the spouse of their child. So can inheritance be protected from a spouse of your child? Yes, there are…

The Biden administration is asking employers to give more help to workers who are losing Medicaid

  • July 21, 2023
  • 3 min read

(AP) – The Biden administration on Thursday asked employers to give workers who lose Medicaid coverage more time to sign up for health insurance through their jobs.Medicaid is the state- and federally funded program that covers health care costs for people with low incomes. States have resumed checks for Medicaid eligibility this year after pausing the practice during the COVID-19 pandemic.Federal officials have estimated that about 3.8 million people who lose Medicaid coverage may qualify for health insurance through their employers, which is how most people in the US get coverage.Employers typically give people 60 days to sign up for…

Can You Prevent Telehealth Fraud?

  • July 20, 2023
  • 3 min read

Telemedicine has continued to thrive in a post-pandemic world, but with the expansion of services comes the expansion of fraud. We can help you stay on top of the latest news that affects your everyday life. Subscribe to stay up to date. (To subscribe to our blog click here). The Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) has warned healthcare entities to use 'heightened scrutiny' when entering telemedicine arrangements that have suspect characteristics of a fraud scheme. The OIG has stated that a common characteristic of fraudulent schemes is the use of kickbacks to recruit and award healthcare practitioners. The OIG further…

Are short-term health insurance plans ‘skimpy’ as the Biden administration says?

  • July 20, 2023
  • 5 min read

Qthe Biden administration recently proposed cutting back on short-term, limited-duration insurance plans for healthcare, which it derides as “skimpy” coverage. The Trump administration had expanded that form of coverage, making it an effective workaround of the Affordable Care Act, former President Barack Obama's signature domestic achievement. The 2018 Trump administration federal rule allowed insurance companies to offer healthcare coverage outside the ACA framework. MONTANA GOP SENATE CANDIDATE WINS RUBIO ENDORSEMENT IN BID TO UNSEAT JON TESTER Now the Biden administration aims to scale these plans back. Cabinet agencies have dropped a rule in the regulatory pipeline to that effect. The…

Exclusion of migrant farm workers from public health insurance puts Nova Scotia agriculture at risk, advocates say

  • July 17, 2023
  • 7 min read

Amidst the worsening labor crunch in Nova Scotia's agriculture sector, the government's exclusion of many migrant workers from public health insurance potentially puts over 1,600 farmworkers and the agri-food supply at risk, advocates warn. Migrant advocates say that the provincial government's “deliberate policy” excludes migrant workers from public health insurance, leaving them vulnerable. Unlike provinces such as Ontario or Quebec, where migrants in the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program are covered by public health upon arrival, in Nova Scotia farm workers must wait 12 months to be covered by the Medical Services Insurance. However, most contracts only range from three to…

Aretha Franklin’s Wills Dispute – Rickard & Associates

  • July 14, 2023
  • 3 min read

If you have been following the news, you may have seen that there is a dispute regarding Aretha Franklin's estate plan. Her sons are in court fighting over her estate and multiple wills. We can help you stay on top of the latest news that affects your everyday life. Subscribe to stay up to date. (To subscribe to our blog click here). Aretha Franklin died in 2018, and because she did not have a trust, she wills went through probate court where they are being disputed by her sons. A Will from 2014 and two Wills from 2010 were found…

9K across WNC and state to lose health insurance each month until Medicaid expansion

  • July 13, 2023
  • 9 min read

ASHEVILLE – Amanda Branks loves to spend time with her two children, but she purposely hides a lot from them. Her husband is a sanitation worker, bringing in about $31,200 per year. Branks, who is 29-year-old and lives in Hendersonville, does her best to conceal her family's tight budget from her kids.Summer camps are not feasible for her family. She and her husband took their kids camping in Pisgah National Forest. Her husband teaches the children about the dangers of poison oak and ivy. Brans teaches them about flowers. They make s'mores at night and tell ghost stories.“I was raised…

Terminating Your Physician Employment Agreement

  • July 12, 2023
  • 3 min read

Many of our physician clients are unaware of their termination rights prior to meeting with us. We can help you stay on top of the latest news that affects your everyday life. Subscribe to stay up to date. (To subscribe to our blog click here). If you want to terminate your employment, the first thing you need to do is read your contract. Most physician employment agreements have substantial termination provisions. You need to know what yours says regarding termination with and without cause, what notice is required, and what other provisions will be triggered by termination. Many times, employment…

What is an Irrevocable Trust?

  • July 8, 2023
  • 3 min read

A trust is an estate planning tool that allows a person to control their assets during their lifetime and make provisions for incapacity and death. Many trusts are revocable, however, irrevocable trusts can be an incredibly useful way to plan for your future. We can help you stay on top of the latest news that affects your everyday life. Subscribe to stay up to date. (To subscribe to our blog click here). One thing you should know about irrevocable trusts is that, unlike revocable or living trusts, irrevocable trusts cannot be changed or amended. They are set in stone. A…