JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A company that administers insurance benefits for at least two Mississippi employers has been ordered to stop doing business in the state.
Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney issued a cease and desist order to WH Administrators of Bethesda, Maryland. Mississippi regulators say they’ve been getting complaints that WH Administrators isn’t paying claims from employees of two different companies and some health care providers.
Officials decline to name the companies, but say each is located in central Mississippi. Both are self-insured, meaning WH Administrators pays claims for them, but doesn’t actually provide insurance. Typically, a company pays a set amount of money into a trust account each month, and then the administrator uses that money to cover the health care claims of a company’s employees. It’s unclear whether money is missing from those trust accounts.
Chaney says his department can’t reach WH Administrators to find out what’s going on, a lack of communication he describes as a “grave concern.”
The company has 20 days to request a hearing, or otherwise the order becomes final. If the Insurance Department finds evidence of wrongdoing, it could refer the case for criminal prosecution.
Regulators aren’t aware of problems in any other states.
Anyone doing business with WH Administrators who has questions about coverage or claims may contact the Consumer Services Division at the Mississippi Insurance Department by calling 1-800-562-2957.
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