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American Insurance NW Inc. Blog

All You Ever Wanted to Know About Insurance

Bashore Chooses American Insurance

Bashore Insurance Transfers Grange Policies to American Insurance Bashore Insurance Agency of Clarkston has announced that American Insurance of Lewiston and Moscow has been selected as service agents for Grange...

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Newsletter - Winter 2014

Featured articles include: Great Service Means...?; Welcome Bashore Policyholders; Meet the "A-Team" - the Personal Lines Service Team; Reviews - make one or read our latest Customer Service comments; Open Enrollment -...

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ACA Health Exchanges - More Savings & Options

New choices and more competition in the Health Insurance Marketplace are giving consumers affordable options during Open Enrollment this year, and the majority of returning consumers who shop can save money on premiums,...

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ACA $840M Initiative Focused on Health Outcomes

A new initiative will change the way your doctor and health care providers delivery their services to you. Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell announced an initiative that will fund successful...

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Safeco Saves Rural Homes With Unique Program

Safeco Insurance introduced an innovative Wildfire Defense Program to help protect policyholder properties threatened by active wildfires. A recent fire in Washington state, called the Carlton Complex fire, and another...

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Action Needed to Renew WA Healthplanfinder

If you are currently enrolled in a health care plan through Washington Healthplanfinder, you will need to renew your coverage for next year. Customers who signed up for a Qualified Health Plan last year will be eligible...

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Hospitals May Recover $5.7B Due To ACA

A report released by the Department of Health and Human Services projects that hospitals will save $5.7 billion this year in uncompensated care costs because of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). States that have expanded...

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"Limited" ACA Special Enrollment for WA Residents

Up to 8% of the 164,000 Health Exchange customers of the Washington HealthPlanFinder experienced on-going billing and administrative problems. This caused some Washington residents to go without insurance, lose their...

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Idaho Health Exchange Getting Ready

The Idaho Health Exchange, Your Health Idaho, is preparing to launch its own state exchange software platform prior to the 2015 Open Enrollment which begins on November 15, 2014. Last year, Idaho was a Federally...

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Oregon's Health Website Woes Spark Lawsuit

ProgramBusiness.com reports that the state of Oregon filed a lawsuit Friday against Oracle Corp. and several of its executives over the technology company's role in creating the troubled website for the state's online...

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2015 Health Care Costs Rising

Large U.S. employers expect a significant increase in 2015 health care costs. If no adjustments are made employers project a 5.2% growth rate, putting absolute cost per person for health care benefits at an all-time...

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7 Ways To Get A Better Night's Sleep

Lack of sleep can wreak havoc with your day-to-day life, causing fatigue and irritability. There are a variety of factors that can contribute to poor sleep, but that doesn't mean you're doomed to toss and turn. What...

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Uninsured Driver Numbers Declining

How many drivers are uninsured? Across the United States, the estimated percentage of uninsured motorists trended down in 2010, 2011 and 2012, according to new estimates from the Insurance Research Council (IRC). In...

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The Safest Small Cars On The Road

Five small cars, all 2014 models, earn an acceptable rating in crash tests by the Insurance Institute For Highway Safety. Two earn marginal and four earn poor ratings for occupant protection in a small overlap crash in...

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Obamacare ACA Federal Subsidies At Risk

A US appeals court ruled against Obamacare subsidies for policies issued through the Federal Health Exchanges. In the case, Halbig v. Sebelius, 14-5018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that...

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Earthquake Risk Increased In US By 1/3rd - USGS

Idaho is one of 16 states now listed with the highest risk for earthquakes. Is your state on the list? The newly updated national seismic hazards maps from the US Geological Survey (USGS) show an increased earthquake...

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Best of the West 3-Peat!

For the third year in a row, AMERICAN INSURANCE, in Lewiston and Moscow, was voted "Best of the West" Insurance Agency for 2014 in a KLEW TV online survey of local resident's preferences. The Sullivans and staff are...

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New Roundabout Danger

Just when you thought you had figured out how to drive in the Roundabout, something new pops up - PEDESTRIANS! With summer weather comes an increase in pedestrian traffic needing to cross the street at the roundabout....

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P/C Insurer's Gains Slip 1Q 2014

Net losses and loss adjustment expenses (LLAE) surged upward in the first quarter of 2014 as compared to the same time period in 2013. Private U.S. property/casualty insurers' net income after taxes, as a group, fell to...

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10 Most-Stolen SUVs

Which models of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and crossover utility vehicles (CUVs) were top theft targets? The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) released a new report that examines thefts of SUVs and CUVs reported...

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The Driving Talk With Aging Seniors

"I want to die peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather did, not kicking and screaming like the passengers in his car." No one wants this old joke to become a tragic reality. Is it time to ask your aging parent to...

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Vehicle Crashes Cost US Society $871Billion

Motor vehicle crashes in the US had an $871 billion economic and societal impact, according to a new study by the US Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The study,...

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COBRA Enrollees Get Limited ACA Access

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid recently announced a new Special Enrollment Period for individuals and families that are currently enrolled in COBRA continuation coverage, known as the federal Consolidated Omnibus...

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Safeco Honors American Insurance

American Insurance of Lewiston and Moscow is one of only 200 independent insurance agencies in the USA that has earned the President's Award from Safeco Insurance® for outstanding performance. The President's Award...

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Buying Individual Medical Plans After Open Enrollment?

When "Open Enrollment" is closed, individuals seeking medical insurance can only do so if they have a "Qualifying Life Event" which opens a "Special Enrollment Period" (SEP). If you qualify for a SEP then you can apply...

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Keeping "Grandmothered" Health Plans Extended

Keeping your current non-grandfathered individual or small group medical plan (also referred to as "grandmothered" plans) has been extended for policies with annual renewals on or before October 1, 2016. This provides...

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Alzheimer's - What is our National Plan?

Nearly all of us know someone that is touched by the ravages of Alzheimer's Disease. You may find some comfort to know that there is a National Plan to Address Alzheimer's Disease with a 2014 update released by the US...

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Agents Credited For Idaho's ACA Success

"Idaho's success in enrolling consumers during the 2014 enrollment period is due, in no small part, to the many Idaho insurance agents and brokers who provided invaluable assistance to Idaho citizens," said William (...

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HIPAA Fines of $2M for Stolen Laptops

Two entities have paid the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) $1,975,220 collectively to resolve potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (...

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Is Hands-Free Cell Use Safer?

Is hands-free cell phone use safer when driving than hand-held? That's the question the National Safety Council asked in a public opinion poil. The new findings indicate 80 percent of drivers across America incorrectly...

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Be Healthy From The Start

"Be Healthy From the Start" is the main theme for National Public Health Week, April 6 - 12. HHS credits the Affordable Care Act's establishment of preventative services and the new National Prevention Council with...

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ObamaCare Open Enrollment Closed! Sort Of?

An extended "Special Enrollment Period" was announced by The White House to allow more time to finish health insurance enrollments with glitches or other special circumstances. The Health Exchange Marketplace was...

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Health Exchange "Open Enrollment" Closing

What happens when the Health Exchange Marketplace "Open Enrollment Period" closes on March 31st? This is the next question as American's struggle to understand and comply with the massive, complicated and ever changing...

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Keep Your Current Health Plan Extended

The "keep your current health insurance plan" promise by President Obama is being extended even further. The Obama administration announced that Americans can keep their health plans that are non-compliant with the...

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2014 Winter – One of the Costliest

Insured losses top $1.5 billion so far. Near-record snowfall and prolonged extreme cold throughout many parts of the United States, have resulted in insured losses from winter storms of more than $1.5 billion thus far,...

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