Michael Rainer

Michael Rainer works in the area of health care reform-- on issues of affordability, access, disparities based on race, gender, and income, but most importantly ones related to conduct by the hatlh insurance indsutry.

Yesterday Reuters had a blockbuster story on WellPoint's practice of canceling policies for breast cancer patients.

"The women all paid their premiums on time. Before they were diagnosed, none had any problems. They had no idea that WellPoint was using a computer algorithm that automatically targeted them and other policyholders whom had been recently diagnosed with breast cancer. The software triggered an immediate fraud investigation, as the company searched for some pretext to drop their policies.," reporter Murray Waas wrote.

The White House responded:

"As you know, the practice described in this article will soon be illegal. The Affordable Care Act specifically prohibits insurance companies from doing thse types of things."