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LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/health/la-fi-...,7950538.story

Health insurers will have to start publicly justifying big rate hikes, according to a new requirement of the federal healthcare law that is meant to put pressure on insurance companies to hold down skyrocketing premiums.

The new rule, which went into effect Thursday, will mandate that insurers post on their websites explanations of premium increases exceeding 10% and submit the hikes to state and federal regulators, who also will post them starting this year.

"For far too long, families and small employers have been at the mercy of insurance rate increases that often put coverage out of their reach," Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement. "Rate review will shed a bright light on the industry's behavior and drive market competition to lower costs."

The rule does not give state and federal regulators new authority to block rate hikes, however, even if government officials find the increases to beunjustified.

Some states already have such power, and several particularly aggressive states, such as Oregon and Rhode Island, routinely make insurers lower their rate increases after determining that proposed hikes are unjustified.