Grassley wants explanation from LTCI companies about sharp rise in complaints and claim denials

Major U.S. long-term careinsurers, including Genworth Financial Inc., and ManulifeFinancial Corp are being asked about “troubling data”showing a sharp jump for the industry in claims-relatedcomplaints, a senior Republican lawmaker said on Monday.  Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley sent letters on Thursday to U.S.insurance providers “to learn more about how effectively thesector is meeting the needs of Americans who have purchasedsuch policies,” he said in a statement.  Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate FinanceCommittee, said he made the request after learning aboutindustry trends from the National Association of InsuranceCommissioners (NAIC).  The group reported a 92 percent jump in long-term carecomplaints nationally from 2001 to 2006 and “a steady increasein the number of complaints regarding claim denials,” he said.It also identified a 74 percent increase in claim denialrelated complaints between 2003 and 2006.  “While this may be explained by the increasing number ofpeople purchasing LTCI (long-term care insurance), therelationship remains unclear,” Grassley said in the letter,which also went to Conseco Inc  MetLife Inc Penn Treaty American Corp., Unum Group, Prudential Financial Inc ,and others.  The Senate Finance Committee oversees the federalgovernment’s Medicare and Medicaid health care programs.Grassley said in his letter that any increase in rejectedlong-term care insurance claims could place “a substantial andperhaps unnecessary financial burden … on Medicaid.”

Source/more: Reuters UK, http://uk.reuters.com/article/governmentFilingsNews/idUKN0134070220071001