Washington insurance chief says won't extend plans despite Obama proposal

(Reuters) - The state of Washington will not allow insurance companies to extend individual plans for an additional year as President Barack Obama suggested because it is concerned about how such a move would be implemented and affect costs, the state's insurance commissioner said on Thursday. Obama said on Thursday that the healthcare reform law will now allow insurers to renew policies by an additional year, extending the deadline for renewals from 2013 until 2014. "I do not believe his proposal is a good deal for the state of Washington. In the interest of keeping the consumer protections we have enacted and ensuring that we keep health insurance costs down for all consumers, we are staying the course," insurance commissioner Mike Kreidler said in a statement. (Reporting by Caroline Humer and Lewis Krauskopf; Editing by Gary Hill)