Bill Would Punish Insurers for Wrongly Denying Tests

Seaford Republican Rep. Daniel B. Short has re-introduced a bill that would punish insurance companies if they wrongly deny payment for medical procedures ordered by a patient's doctor.

At the same time, Short criticized Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart for dragging her feet by failing to impose any penalties on Blue Cross Blue Shield of Delaware -- three months after she concluded that the insurer had broken the law with a contract giving a subcontractor an incentive to deny requests for high-tech tests used to diagnose heart blockages and brain tumors.

Stewart conducted a 13-month review of Blue Cross' records and issued a report this spring that accused the company of breaking the law, but has yet to take any action against Blue Cross.

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