Similar to microchipping your pets, you may have heard that a company in Wisconsin is offering microchip implants to their employees. The majority of their employees have already agreed to inject the implant into their finger, exchanging convenience for privacy.
The implants are programmed to allow accesses to certain company functions, like entrance into secure company offices and IT networks. The RFID microchips communicate using electromagnetic fields and can be read at a distance of six inches.
Privacy advocates are concerned that this procedure is yet another way to intrude on our privacy. Smart phones have already stripped us of some privacies, apps can now collect data from your phone and broadcast your information. Do you find it unsettling when your phone knows exactly where you are, or Google knows your interest based on your search history?
Arguments against microchipping humans, are vast. What may originate as a matter of convenience can turn into monitoring a person’s habits on an entirely different level. They may even evolve to monitor productivity or lifestyle habits.
What say you?
/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/ark-logo@2x.png00Rebecca Yates/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/ark-logo@2x.pngRebecca Yates2017-09-05 09:00:122018-07-11 16:13:18Employee microchipping, invasion of privacy or just efficient?
According to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation, health insurers who participated in the Affordable Care Act marketplace earned an average of $300 per member in the first part of 2017.
This figure is more than double than this time period for the previous three years.
The figures presented to do not account for administrative costs, however, the increases still show that the marketplaces are becoming more profitable for private companies selling plans on the exchanges.
According to Cynthia Cox, a researcher at the Kaiser Family Foundation who worked on the analysis, the current profitability seems to come from increased premiums and steady cost which also suggests the markets are becoming more stable.
These increases were partially due to insurance companies underestimating the cost to cover people in the marketplace, many were sicker than expected and seeking insurance. Additionally, costs have been stable over the past few years, indicating that healthy people were not driven out of the marketplace. Insurers have set premiums high enough for them to profit but not so high that healthier customers left the market, allowing the market to achieve stability.
Source: Kaiser Family Foundation
/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/ark-logo@2x.png00Rebecca Yates/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/ark-logo@2x.pngRebecca Yates2017-07-25 08:30:382018-07-12 07:39:35Report shows ACA marketplaces experienced most profitable first quarter yet
Recently, Aetna notified our brokerage of some important changes that will be taking place this year. Essentially, if you are currently covered individually by Aetna or CoventryOne, your coverage ends December 31, 2017.
“As a result of financial risk and an uncertain outlook for the Individual marketplace, Aetna (including Coventry) has decided that we will no longer offer individual health products in the following states AR, AZ, CT, FL, GA, IL, KS, KY, LA, ME, MI, MO, NC, OH, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, and WV for 2018.
Your clients’ existing coverage in these states will continue until their policy period ends onDecember 31, 2017. They will not be able to renew their plan when their policy term ends.
The 2018 Open Enrollment Period runs from November 1 through December 15, 2017; however your clients will have a Special Enrollment Period. They must select a plan from another carrier no later than December 31, 2017 to ensure there is no gap in coverage on January 1, 2018.”
Source: Aetna and CoventryOne individual and families
/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/ark-logo@2x.png00Rebecca Yates/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/ark-logo@2x.pngRebecca Yates2017-07-11 09:00:152017-07-11 09:00:15Important information if you have Aetna or CoventryOne insurance.
Employee microchipping, invasion of privacy or just efficient?
/by Rebecca YatesSimilar to microchipping your pets, you may have heard that a company in Wisconsin is offering microchip implants to their employees. The majority of their employees have already agreed to inject the implant into their finger, exchanging convenience for privacy.
The implants are programmed to allow accesses to certain company functions, like entrance into secure company offices and IT networks. The RFID microchips communicate using electromagnetic fields and can be read at a distance of six inches.
Privacy advocates are concerned that this procedure is yet another way to intrude on our privacy. Smart phones have already stripped us of some privacies, apps can now collect data from your phone and broadcast your information. Do you find it unsettling when your phone knows exactly where you are, or Google knows your interest based on your search history?
Arguments against microchipping humans, are vast. What may originate as a matter of convenience can turn into monitoring a person’s habits on an entirely different level. They may even evolve to monitor productivity or lifestyle habits.
What say you?
Report shows ACA marketplaces experienced most profitable first quarter yet
/by Rebecca YatesAccording to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation, health insurers who participated in the Affordable Care Act marketplace earned an average of $300 per member in the first part of 2017.
This figure is more than double than this time period for the previous three years.
The figures presented to do not account for administrative costs, however, the increases still show that the marketplaces are becoming more profitable for private companies selling plans on the exchanges.
According to Cynthia Cox, a researcher at the Kaiser Family Foundation who worked on the analysis, the current profitability seems to come from increased premiums and steady cost which also suggests the markets are becoming more stable.
These increases were partially due to insurance companies underestimating the cost to cover people in the marketplace, many were sicker than expected and seeking insurance. Additionally, costs have been stable over the past few years, indicating that healthy people were not driven out of the marketplace. Insurers have set premiums high enough for them to profit but not so high that healthier customers left the market, allowing the market to achieve stability.
Source: Kaiser Family Foundation
Important information if you have Aetna or CoventryOne insurance.
/by Rebecca YatesRecently, Aetna notified our brokerage of some important changes that will be taking place this year. Essentially, if you are currently covered individually by Aetna or CoventryOne, your coverage ends December 31, 2017.
“As a result of financial risk and an uncertain outlook for the Individual marketplace, Aetna (including Coventry) has decided that we will no longer offer individual health products in the following states AR, AZ, CT, FL, GA, IL, KS, KY, LA, ME, MI, MO, NC, OH, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, and WV for 2018.
Your clients’ existing coverage in these states will continue until their policy period ends onDecember 31, 2017. They will not be able to renew their plan when their policy term ends.
The 2018 Open Enrollment Period runs from November 1 through December 15, 2017; however your clients will have a Special Enrollment Period. They must select a plan from another carrier no later than December 31, 2017 to ensure there is no gap in coverage on January 1, 2018.”
Source: Aetna and CoventryOne individual and families