Jay Bradford
Sunstar Adds First Arkansas Insurance to Growing Group
First Arkansas will keep its leadership and employees and operate as a division of Sunstar. read more >
State Insurance Commissioner Allen Kerr Scrutinized Over 2011 Case
The favorable treatment that Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Allen Kerr received from his predecessor, Jay Bradford, in a 2011 dispute with Farmers Insurance Group has been criticized in court documents by another former insurance commissioner, Mike Pickens. read more >
by Mark Friedman -
Fatal Crash Led to Split Between Farmers Insurance, Allen Kerr
For more than 30 years, Allen Kerr was one of Farmers Insurance Group’s most productive agents in Arkansas. That changed on Halloween 2011, when Farmers, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, terminated its relationship with Kerr and his Allen W. Kerr Insurance Agency Inc. of Little Rock. read more >
by Mark Friedman -
Lloyd’s Gets Go-Ahead To Sell Insurance in Arkansas
A Saline County Circuit Court judge agreed last week with former Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Jay Bradford that Lloyd’s of London underwriters are approved to sell insurance in the state. read more >
Jay Bradford Worries Lloyd’s Challenge Could Create Crisis
Insurance Commissioner Jay Bradford says Lloyd’s of London underwriters are approved to sell insurance in Arkansas. But a lawsuit filed last year keeps moving forward, and Bradford says he’s worried that it could create a crisis in the Arkansas insurance market. read more >
by Mark Friedman -
Insurance Department Releases Health Insurance Premiums
Arkansans who buy health insurance through the Health Insurance Marketplace for 2015 should on pay about 2 percent less for premium than they did in 2014. read more >
by Mark Friedman -
Arkansas Insurance Commission Announces Licensing Delays
Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Jay Bradford says the commission's conversion to a new system will mean a delay in issuing appointments, license renewals and the issuing of new licenses. read more >
by Associated Press -
Insurance Moratorium in Arkansas Storm Areas
The Arkansas Insurance Department has issued a 60-day moratorium on the cancellation or non-renewal of insurance policies for residents in areas hit by recent storms. read more >
by Associated Press -
Catholic Health Initiatives Announces Deal to Buy QualChoice Holdings
Catholic Health Initiatives says its subsidiary, Collab Health, has entered a stock-purchase agreement to buy QualChoice Holdings Inc. of Little Rock. read more >
‘Any Willing Provider’ Bill Returns, This Time Without Wilson Off to Races
A bill that has occupied lawyers for a full decade might have been a mere blip in the state’s long legislative history had Nick Wilson, the powerful and ultimately disgraced state senator from Pocahontas, not been so eager to get to the horse races on one particular day in February 1995. read more >
by Mark Friedman -
Arkansas Health Care Exchange Enrollment Falling Below Target
Signups for insurance under the federal health care law are far below the state's targets, with more than 33,500 people enrolled in the marketplace as the deadline nears. read more >
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Catholic Health Initiatives in Talks to Buy QualChoice
Catholic Health Initiatives of Denver, the parent company of St. Vincent Health System of Little Rock, is in talks to buy some or all of QualChoice of Little Rock. read more >
by Mark Friedman -
New Federal Charges Filed Against Steve Standridge
Steve Standridge, who already faces 12 federal felony charges related to alleged bank fraud in the Eastern District of Arkansas, has pleaded not guilty to 23 additional federal felony counts. read more >
by Gwen Moritz -
Arkansas Lawmakers Approve Insurance Exchange Funds
Arkansas lawmakers on Friday narrowly approved a $10.6 million grant to continue operating the insurance marketplace under the federal health overhaul, despite objections from some legislators over the law's rocky start. read more >
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Jay Bradford: Arkansas Made Plans to Allow Carriers to Extend Health Plans
Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Jay Bradford says steps were taken earlier this year to ensure that insurance carriers in the state have the option to extend current health insurance plans through the end of next year. read more >
by Associated Press -
Arkansas Signs 62K People for State Health Insurance
More than 66,000 Arkansans have applied for health insurance under the state's expansion of the Medicaid program as part of the federal health care overhaul. read more >
by Associated Press -
Arkansas Tries to Find Balance on Health Law (AP Analysis)
If anyone was unsure just how difficult of a balance Arkansas faces in trying to implement the federal health care overhaul, the rollout over the past week made it clear. After two elections and two legislative sessions that have been overshadowed by the 2010 law, the state is facing an identity crisis on how to move forward with it. read more >
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Video: An Interview with Jay Bradford & Looking Ahead to the Debt Ceiling on ‘Arkansas Week’
On this week's "Arkansas Week," state Insurance Commissioner Jay Bradford talks to Steve Barnes about Obamacare, Week One. Plus, the Arkansas Times' David Ramsey, independent journalist Rick Fahr and Lance Turner talk about the week that was. Includes video. read more >
by Lance Turner -
Dozens Attend Sign-Up Event on 1st Day of Arkansas Health Insurance Exchange
Arkansas officials on Tuesday called the launch of the state's online marketplace for insurance under the federal health care law historic for the thousands of uninsured residents expected to sign up, though problems with the federal website delayed online enrollment for some. read more >
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Lawmakers Reject Advertising to Promote Health Care Exchange
Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe says he doesn't plan on moving forward with a $4.5 million advertising contract for the state's insurance exchange that's been rejected by a legislative panel. read more >
by Associated Press -