If I'm reading United Health Cares last SEC filing correctly they made 1.44 Billion dollars in profit last quarter off 21 Billion dollars in revenue (AKA premiums) that's about a 6.6% return.
What if language is inserted into the health care bill to mandate that;
premiums will be adjusted every 6 months to insure that the government plan makes at least a 3 percent return. This profit will then be placed in a special account earmarked for medical research. Participants in the plan will have the option of selecting on their enrollment form which medical research issues they'd like their profits to go to. The money at the end of the year can be divided up proportionally based on that vote tally.
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What does this do for us?
- Takes away the tilted playing field argument. They can't say "how can a private company compete (price wise) with a not-for-profit government entity?". Disregarding, for the moment, their long standing assertion that the Government can't run anything; surely a company like United Healthcare could "make do" with a half a billion in profit every quarter. Plus, if the government plan were as shoddily run as they suggest, it would need to be priced higher to get that 3% profit than the "lean Mean" free market players. Right?
- Brings all the cancer, diabetes, Aids, etc etc interests behind us with the prospect of billions in research dollars, and the power to direct money to the causes dearest to them.
- Targets money for innovation and research to causes actually effecting people instead of penis drugs
- Their industry argument will shift to; "who would buy a plan that supports wealthy CEOs and share holders over one that saves lives by funding medical research?" That is a debate we want to have!
Just a thought.