Most insurers met spending limits under law: GAO

Most U.S. health insurers last year would have satisfied the much-disputed spending rules under President Barack Obama’s healthcare reform, according to a new report by a congressional watchdog agency.

The rules require insurers such as Aetna and UnitedHealth to spend most of customers’ premium payments on medical care, not administrative costs or profit, or risk paying patients a rebate.

Since the requirement went into effect in January, a number of states have sought waivers to get leeway in how fast the rules go into effect, which they say would keep insurers from abandoning the individual insurance market.

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