Dateline Story Fuels Nat'l Investigation

The NBC television news program Dateline recently conducted two investigations into State Farm Insurance‘s use of independent medical exams during the processing of injury claims, alleging that some medical decisions were made by non-medical or unqualified personnel. The nationally televised segments, which aired on June 23 and July 25, have also triggered inquiries by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and several state insurance departments about the purported misuse of utilization reviews. "Dateline provided a valuable public service in its 15-month investigation," said George Nichols, President of the NAIC and insurance commissioner for Kentucky. "After viewing the broadcast, regulators from a number of the states convened a conference call to express their concern on behalf of consumers and to call for an expanded market conduct exam of State Farm."