The Maine Bureau of Insurance will allow insurers to extend health plans that do not comply with the Affordable Care Act for one more year, following an announcement by President Obama that the federal government would allow the extensions.
In light of the decision, The Associated Press reported that Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield will be allowed to extend plans that did not comply with the federal health care reform law. The company previously told 8,500 of its individual policyholders that their policies would be cancelled next year. MEGA Life and Health Insurance Co. has another 3,850 policyholders with plans out of step with the health reform law and many business owners also carry small group plans that could be extended for another year. Those non-compliant plans were set to come off the market starting Jan. 1, 2014.