The Fight for Common Sense in Our Insurance Crisis

Here in Louisiana, insurance rates, like everything else is skyrocketing, and folks are struggling. Under the Biden-Harris administration, Louisiana families have faced unprecedented inflation.

I am no stranger to experiencing problems with insurance costs. When Sharon and I lived in New Iberia we were forced to purchase a home policy from Citizens Insurance because we had no other choice. And, the cost was through the roof. As a family with a teenage child today, we know the high cost of auto insurance as well.

As Attorney General I took action to fight high property insurance costs by suing the federal government on our Federal Flood Control program. Now, as Governor, I am working again to fight these high costs.

However, as we work for lower insurance costs and to implement reform, it’s important we do so with the facts and ensure the people of Louisiana receive the benefits, not Wall Street.

According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), the property casualty insurance industry earned $88 billion in profits in 2023—its most profitable year of all time. In Louisiana alone, insurance companies collected over $100 million dollars in auto premiums while paying out only $55 million in losses. 

 These facts seem lost when listening to some of our well-intentioned elected officials.

During the recent legislative session, I worked with our legislature and signed 26 bills designed to improve the business climate for insurance carriers all in an effort to help lower rates.

These reforms give insurance companies additional time to adjust claims following a natural disaster. We extended the period for filing a lawsuit and settling claims to help reduce the number of lawsuits.?With this legislation insurance companies gained greater flexibility around cancellations, updates to prior approval rating methods, and a more efficient process for loss adjustments was created. The changes were recommendations of the Insurance Commissioner and insurance companies with whom he works. They promised these bills would create more flexibility in the market and help lower rates.

Other bills I signed support measures to help lower auto insurance rates in Louisiana while also being mindful of those who are injured in accidents by no fault of their own.

I signed 26 insurance reform bills into law and vetoed 1, because it was harmful to the average working family. The legislation I vetoed would steal the premiums paid by everyday working families for their health insurance while improving the insurance company’s stock price. I am not interested in fattening profits on Wall Street, I am interested in lowering insurance costs while protecting our people.

On this topic the rhetoric has been hot and the facts few and far between. The legislation I vetoed was an attempt to abolish the “collateral source” rule. This legislation was little more than insurance companies looking to reduce their responsibility and increase their profits. We already tried this as a state before, adjusting the collateral source rule by 60% and instead of the rate cuts they promised we got rate increases. Further, a review of states that have abolished or restricted this collateral source rule found that their rates are even higher than ours are today.

The collateral source rule is about fairness. The rule says that when someone injures you in an accident, and they’re in the wrong, they cannot use any other insurance you’ve paid for on your own behalf to reduce what they owe. Someone who injured you should not benefit from your health insurance or any other insurance for which you paid.

We are making Louisiana a great place to live and work by returning common sense to the capitol. Rewarding hard work, living within our means, working to improve our economy,  investing in our children, and making our communities safe has been, and continues to be, my agenda. We have made progress, but there is more work to be done.

When it’s a fight between doing what’s best for working families or special interests, I’ll pick Louisiana families every time.