Conyers, Leahy Introduce Bill To End Anti-Trust Exemption For Health Insurers

John Conyers and some allies on the House Judiciary Committee have come up with a fabulous way to get the insurance industry in line - by threatening to remove their anti-trust exemption.

Many people don't know that the insurance industry, under the McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945, has a broad anti-trust exemption that facilitates regional monopolies. The Act allows states to regulate the insurance business instead of the federal government, but also allows that, as long as the state regulates the industry, federal anti-trust laws would not apply.

The point is that the concentration of the health insurance market among regional monopolies leads to higher costs for consumers, almost by definition. What the legislation by Conyers (D-MI), Hank Johnson (D-GA) and Diana DeGette (D-CO) would do is end that anti-trust exemption for health insurers, allowing for enforcement in all of these highly concentrated markets. The Senate has companion legislation from Sen. Patrick Leahy

Read it all at Daily Kos

Health-Care Market Characterized By Consolidation, Not Competition

94% of the health care insurance market is now under monopoly or near-monopoly conditions -- the official term of art is 'highly concentrated'. In other words, there's no mystery why insurance costs keep going up even as the suck quotient rises precipitously. Because in most areas there's little or no actual competition.
Read it all at TPMMuckraker

Washington Post Makes Up Competition In the Insurance Market

In an editorial, the Washington Post claimed a public plan is not necessary to maintain competition in health insurance. Yet the Washington Post published an AP story that said the DoJ is concerned that insurers are becoming monopolies because in most states are dominated by one or two companies.

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DOJ Insurers Probe Sought By Health Care Reform Advocates

"Activists backing President Barack Obama's health care overhaul are asking the Justice Department to open a wide-ranging investigation of what they say is monopoly-like power in the hands of major insurers."

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