Nebraska Insurance Commissioner Ann Frohman said Monday that the state plans to use part of a $1 million federal grant to make more information available to consumers.

The department also plans to use the money to beef up oversight of proposed premium increases.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced premium review grants Monday to 45 states and the District of Columbia.

The money is part of a five-year effort to boost state health insurance regulation in preparation for federal health insurance reform.

"Between now and then, we will continue to work with states to ensure consumers are receiving value for their premium dollars and to avoid the kind of double-digit premium increases seen recently," HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said.

Five states, including Iowa, did not apply for the money. Susan Voss, the Iowa insurance commissioner, said the money was not needed because of strong rate review legislation passed this year.

Iowa now requires that both a state and an independent actuary review every rate increase that exceeds medical inflation.

Voss said Iowa can - and does - deny proposed increases that cannot be justified.

Nebraska insurance officials review all premium rate increases and can disapprove rate increases judged to be unreasonable.

In many cases, however, the department encourages a firm to withdraw a proposed increase rather than have it disapproved.

In the year ending July 7, 59 proposed rate increases were withdrawn in Nebraska. The state gets an average of 1,500 health insurance rate proposals each year.

Not all states have such authority.

About half of the states can approve or deny rates before they take effect, and about a dozen others can act after the premiums kick in, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Frohman said Nebraska plans to use most of its grant to have an outside actuary do an additional, more detailed review of rate proposals.

The actuary also would look at ways to improve the current review process and help the department decide what additional information should be required from insurance companies.

That could include information to verify whether companies are using at least 80 percent of premium dollars for medical care, as required under the health reform law next year.

Pat Bourne, a vice president with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska, said the company "wholeheartedly supports" the goals of the state grant.

More education and information would benefit consumers, he said.