> Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is endorsing the state's efforts to gain increased oversight and regulation of health insurers' rate increases, according to the Los Angeles Times. She signed onto an initiative hoping to get enough signatures to put the proposed measure, the Insurance Rate Public justification and Accountability Act, on the November ballot for public vote. Article
> Membership for the UPMC Health Plan has been increasing the last six months and its gains have come at the expense of Highmark, the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center (UPMC) said Wednesday. Total UPMC membership grew 14.5 percent to 1.78 million during the last six months of 2011, and it gained an additional 11.1 percent, or 373,621 members, in its commercial health plan, reported the Pittsburgh Business Times. Article
> Harvard Pilgrim resubmitted its request for a premium increase to a lower rate hike. It previously received approval from the Massachusetts insurance department to increase individual and small group rates by 3.8 percent, but it now is asking for only a 1.9 percent increase after it renegotiated contracts with major hospitals, reported The Boston Globe. Article
> And Finally... Have an itch? Scratch your ankle, not your arm. Article