Coverage controversy red herring

For several weeks now a major topic of discussion and opinion pieces have referred to Mississippi and other states 'allowing' insurance companies to deny health insurance coverage to victims of domestic violence.

As Mississippi commissioner of insurance I have the authority in existing statutes that would allow me to investigate and prohibit health insurance companies from using domestic violence as a pre-existing condition to deny health insurance coverage.

The Unfair Trade Practices Act, codified at Mississippi Code Annotated § 83-5-29 et seq., gives me the tools to address these issues. Any Mississippi residents who feel that they have been denied coverage or benefits due to domestic violence should contact the Insurance Department. The department would move swiftly to prevent any discrimination.

However, to the best of our knowledge and research at the Mississippi Insurance Department, no such discrimination has ever taken place.

While there is no specific state statute relating to denial of coverage, efforts have been made to have specific language addressing domestic violence passed. In the 2001 session of the Mississippi Legislature, the Mississippi Insurance Department worked closely with then House Insurance Committee Chairperson Rep. Mary Ann Stevens to sponsor four bills designed to prohibit unfair discrimination against victims of domestic abuse in the areas of health insurance, life insurance, disability income insurance, and property and casualty insurance. These bills were based upon a model law adopted by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, which urged all states to seek their passage.

As commissioner of insurance and as a former legislator, I have worked closely through the years with advocates for victims of domestic violence and insurance denial has never been an issue. If the Legislature chooses to revisit the bills that were introduced in 2001, the Mississippi Insurance Department will be very supportive of those efforts. I am presently working with legislators and the legislative legal staff to reintroduce these statutory changes. While we currently have effective laws to address discrimination against victims of domestic violence in the business of insurance, the adoption of these more specific bills would help to ensure that this does not become a problem in the future.

I do not believe that I or any lawmakers have or would ever allow health insurance companies to stigmatize domestic violence victims or deny coverage by considering abuse as a pre-existing condition. I want to be very clear that as insurance commissioner I would not tolerate any such denial if such a denial ever occurred.

It has been alluded to, in some places, that campaign contributions from insurance companies have affected the votes of insurance commissioners and legislators in regard to the issue of domestic violence. I assure you, no amount of campaign contributions could affect my decision or that of legislators to allow coverage be denied on the basis of domestic violence. And, as a matter of information, the largest health insurance provider in the state of Mississippi has a policy not to contribute to any legislative or insurance commissioner campaigns. In all my political campaigns, I have never received a contribution from them. It is also noteworthy that the same provider has recently agreed that no pre-existing conditions will be a factor in considering coverage for any member of a small group plan in Mississippi.