> Aetna Inc. has made significant investments in health information technology to boost its consumer-driven product membership by giving consumers more access to information on price and quality of healthcare, as it aggressively pursues individual and small-group markets, according to HealthLeaders-InterStudy, a leading provider of managed care market intelligence. Press release
> Preliminary results from Milliman's 2010 Group Health Insurance Survey suggest premium rate increases will be higher than premium increases in recent years. The estimated January 2011 renewal increases are about 9 percent for health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and 11 percent for preferred provider organizations (PPOs). Press release
> Health insurer WellPoint Inc. has named Aetna executive Pam Kehaly to lead its beleaguered Anthem Blue Cross subsidiary in Calfornia. Her main focus will be group health insurance. Article
> In order to promote competition between plans based on quality and price, New Mexico may exclude some health plans from the state health insurance exchange if they exceed specified premium growth levels. The state may also require cost containment initiatives of plans that are a part of the exchange. Article
> The American Medical Association and state medical societies say that physician rating programs used to set up tiered or limited networks to steer patients to clinicians who are believed to provide less-expensive care are flawed. Article
And finally ... Talk about a sense of entitlement. Article