"Lori Wing-Heier"

The Alaska Division of Insurance is barring the companies it regulates from charging people for COVID-19-related testing, as long as it’s medically necessary. It’s also asked that companies waive any payments for the office visit associated with testing.

Alaska is taking a step back from regulating the membership plans marketed by air ambulance providers. State regulators say it’ll cut unnecessary red tape. But consumer advocates aren’t thrilled.

Homeowners’ insurance doesn’t usually cover earthquake damage, but standard policies often extend to events that immediately follow an earthquake, like if a water pipe broke and flooded your home.

“There was a great deal of confusion amongst consumers,” said Alaska Division of Insurance Director Lori Wing-Heier. “So to come out of it with that capture? We’re thrilled.”

Friday is the deadline to apply for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act. Premiums are down this year and that’s in part due to the Alaska Reinsurance Program.

The payment will offset nearly half the $55 million cost of the Alaska Reinsurance Program.

Just last month Premera announced it would drop its health insurance rates on Alaska’s individual market by more than 26 percent. But the drop may not be quite that steep after all, at least for one type of plan.

A U.S. Senate committee met Wednesday to figure out what to do about health care. The hearing was open and bipartisan, just the process U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski was calling for when she cast a key vote against the repeal-and-replace plan Republican leaders drafted behind closed doors. But time is short.

The U.S. Health & Human Services Department has given the green light to the State of Alaska’s reinsurance program, which lowers costs for people who buy their own health insurance.