R Street Institute releases annual insurance regulation report card.
Missouri earned a “B” grade and 15th nationwide ranking for insurance regulation, according to the 2015 report card released by the R Street Institute.
R Street, a nonprofit dedicated to free market solutions, seeks to answer three fundamental questions with this annual report:
1) How free are consumers to choose the insurance products they want?
2) How free are insurers to provide the insurance products consumers want?
3) How effectively are states discharging their duties to monitor insurer solvency, police fraud and consumer abuse and foster competitive, private insurance markets?
One key factor for Missouri’s strong rating was the low politicization involved in the insurance regulatory process. “Insurance regulation is a technical matter and, by and large, should be insulated from the political process and prevailing political concerns…the introduction of political pressure to the process of insurance regulation inevitably leads to negative consequences,” the report said.
Missouri’s others strengths included free market rates and underwriting freedom.
The full report can be found here.
