Texas Insurer Ordered To Cease Sales In Florida

The Associated Press
Published: Apr 30, 2002
Tampa Tribune

TALLAHASSEE - A Texas- based company believed to have sold some 13,000 unlicensed health plans to Floridians must stop peddling those products in the state, Insurance Commissioner Tom Gallagher said Monday.

American Benefit Plans, which has operated in Florida under more than a dozen names, improperly claimed a federal exemption from state licensure by operating ``under the ruse'' of various interest, trade and occupational associations, Gallagher said.

``These cases point to a need for consumers and agents to be on the lookout for bogus companies offering health coverage that is really just an illusion,'' Gallagher said.

American Benefit already has been put into receivership in Texas. The attorney for the Fort Worth, Texas-based insurer, William A. Bratton III of Dallas, did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

Earlier this month, Florida began a media campaign warning employers and individuals to stay away from buying insurance from unlicensed companies. Some of those who bought unlicensed health plans have claimed difficulty in getting new coverage because of pre-existing conditions and subsequent lapses in coverage.

The department issued an order that requires American Benefit and its affiliates to give notice in writing to every policyholder and beneficiary that they should