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On June 20, 2023, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court approving SHIP’s Rehabilitation Plan. Accordingly, the Rehabilitator is now proceeding with implementing premium and benefit modifications of SHIP’s long-term care insurance policies in accordance with individual policyholder elections. For policyholders who have already made elections and who have not undergone changes in status requiring new elections, the Effective Date for policy modifications under the Rehabilitation Plan will be in September 2023. On policyholders’ individual September Effective Dates, premiums and benefits were adjusted to reflect their election under the Rehabilitation Plan. More detailed information was included in a notice that was mailed to impacted policyholders in July and August 2023.
Other policyholders will be asked to make elections at later dates, and corresponding policy modifications will be implemented after those later elections. The need for later elections for these policyholders is largely the result of a change in a policyholder's status since their initial options were communicated to them or decisions made by state regulators in the states in which these policies were issued.
Additional information about SHIP's rehabilitation can be found on the Court Documents page.
About Rehabilitation
On January 29, 2020, Senior Health Insurance Company of Pennsylvania ("SHIP") was placed in rehabilitation by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania (the "Court") with the consent of SHIP’s board of directors and of the trustees of the Senior Health Care Oversight Trust, which owns SHIP. The Court appointed Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Jessica K. Altman (the "Commissioner") as Rehabilitator, and she has appointed Patrick H. Cantilo as Special Deputy Rehabilitator ("SDR").
Rehabilitation is a court supervised process intended to remedy the company’s financial deterioration for the benefit of policyholders and creditors.
On April 22, 2020, the Commissioner, as statutory Rehabilitator of SHIP, filed a proposed Plan of Rehabilitation ("Proposed Plan"), along with an application seeking Approval of the Proposed Plan and an application for the Approval of Form and Distribution of Notice. On June 12, 2020, the Court issued a Case Management Order establishing deadlines and procedures for Comments and a Hearing on the Proposed Plan of Rehabilitation and approved a form of notice of the filing of the application seeking Approval of the Proposed Plan. On October 21, 2020, the Commissioner, as statutory Rehabilitator of SHIP, filed a proposed Amended Rehabilitation Plan (“Amended Plan”) and on May 3, 2021, a proposed Second Amended Rehabilitation Plan (the “Second Amended Plan”) was filed.
A hearing on the Second Amended Plan was held the week of May 17, 2021 in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. On August 25, 2021, the Court entered a Memorandum Opinion and Order approving the Second Amended Plan, and, on September 13, 2021, the Court entered a Memorandum Opinion and Order approving a Settlement Agreement related to the Second Amended Plan.
As requested by the Court, the Rehabilitator then filed her Approved Rehabilitation Plan (the "Approved Plan" or "Plan"). The final Approved Rehabilitation Plan was filed on September 30, 2021; redlines showing the differences between the Approved Rehabilitation Plan and the Second Amended Plan were filed on September 24, 2021 and September 30, 2021.
On September 21, 2021, the Regulator Intervenors appealed the Approved Rehabilitation Plan to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and asked that the Commonwealth Court suspend implementation of the Plan pending that appeal. The Court rejected that request ruling that delay would hurt the Plan and the policyholders. The Regulator Intervenors then made a similar “stay” request to the Supreme Court, which also concluded it should be rejected.
On December 21, 2021, Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner, Jessica Altman, prepared a statement for policyholders and other interested parties to address questions about the Approved Rehabilitation Plan for SHIP.
On February 25, 2022, Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Jessica K. Altman officially resigned her position with the Commonwealth. Michael Humphreys was appointed Acting Insurance Commissioner effective February 28, 2022. Prior to being appointed, Humphreys served as the Chief of Staff for the Insurance Department since September 2019.
On March 8, 2022, Acting Commissioner Humphreys informed fellow regulators that he had directed the Rehabilitation Team to delay implementation of Plan modifications until the earlier of October 1, 2022, or the date of the final order of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. This delay applies to all states and provides a uniform, national implementation date. In the meantime, the Rehabilitation Team continues to prepare for Plan modifications, including the collection of policyholder election information. Policyholders and agents will receive letters via the U.S. mail regarding the delay in implementation in the near future.
On March 24, 2022, Acting Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Humphreys prepared a statement to assist policyholders and other interested parties in understanding the complexities of long-term care insurance and the Approved Rehabilitation Plan.
On September 15, 2022, the Regulator Intervenors appeal was heard before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
During the week of September 19, 2022, a notice was mailed to SHIP’s policyholders who received Election Packages earlier this year. This notice was sent to inform policyholders that the Rehabilitation Plan Policy Modification Effective Date will be delayed due to the continued developments in the rehabilitation process, including court proceedings.
On June 20, 2023, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court approving SHIP's Rehabilitation Plan.
On June 27, 2023, Michael Humphreys was confirmed unanimously as the Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner.
Please continue to visit the Court Documents page to obtain further updates as they arise.
Rehabilitation General Questions
Rehabilitation Plan Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
SHIP reinsured and administered certain Transamerica Life Insurance Company (“Transamerica”) long-term care insurance policies. Transamerica recaptured their long-term care policies effective October 1, 2020. SHIP also reinsured and administered certain Primerica Life Insurance Company (“Primerica”) and American Health & Life Insurance Company (“American Health & Life”) long-term care insurance policies. The proposed Rehabilitation Plan filed in April 2020 contains language that indicates that reinsured policies were going to be treated the same as policies issued by SHIP. The Commissioner and SDR have since determined that the Plan should provide that all reinsured policies will be excluded from the provisions of the Plan dealing with SHIP’s policies. Fuzion Analytics, Inc., a subsidiary of SHIP, continues administering those policies under agreements with Transamerica, Primerica, and American Health & Life, which does not have a material effect on policyholders’ rights under the policies. In addition to the expansive treatment in the first Amended Plan, the Second Amended Plan approved on August 25, 2021 further provides clarity on the treatment of reinsured policies. The Approved Plan did not make any changes to the reinsured policies material set forth in the Second Amended Plan.
The details and consequences of this change are more fully described in the Changes to the Proposed Rehabilitation Plan for Reinsured Policies section of the Other Information page.
Portions of this website (the "Website") are provided as required by Rule 3779 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure and the June 12, 2020, Case Management Order of the Court in the SHIP Rehabilitation Proceeding, Docket No. 1 SHP 2020 (the "Rehabilitation Proceeding"). Absent further Order of the Court, updates to this Website shall serve as official notice of filings, orders, deadlines, and hearings.