Chances are if you missed dday's important diary 10 days ago your finger is not entirely on the pulse of health care reform. There's a brand new front in the battle, and it's worth getting excited about.
If you don't have time to read dday's piece, that's okay! I'll summarize below the fold, add some analysis of my own, and then tell you what you can do to really piss off your unfriendly neighborhood health insurance company.
Here's the deal:
WASHINGTON (Thursday, September 17, 2009) – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Thursday introduced legislation to eliminate a federal antitrust exemption for health insurance and medical malpractice insurance companies.
As the Senate prepares to consider comprehensive health care reform legislation, Leahy introduced the Health Insurance Industry Antitrust Enforcement Act to repeal the antitrust exemption that was established in the 1945 McCarran-Ferguson Act.
"A few industries have used their influence to obtain a special, statutory exemption from the antitrust laws, and the insurance industry is one of them," said Leahy. "In the markets for health insurance and medical malpractice insurance, patients and doctors are paying the price, as costs continue to increase at an alarming rate. Insurers should not object to being subject to the same antitrust laws as everyone else."
The two key provisions of the Health Insurance Industry Antitrust Enforcement Act will repeal the federal antitrust exemption for health insurance and medical malpractice insurance companies for flagrant antitrust violations, including price-fixing, bid rigging, and market allocations, and subject health insurers and medical malpractice insurers to the same good-competition laws that apply to virtually every other company doing business in the United States.
** DIARIST'S NOTE: Conyers is this bill's co-sponsor.
Hey, Termite, how about in English?
Sorry.
Basically it goes like this. A big reason health care costs have spiraled out of control is because health insurance providers don't have to compete with each other. You've heard this refrain before, but you really need to ask yourself "why?" There are certainly enough of them to constitute what you might call a "market." So how do health insurance companies "defy gravity" by doubling what they charge you in less than a decade and at the same time quadrupling profits? Seems impossible, doesn't it?
Damn good question.
Thanks.
The short answer is that they rig the game, and are protected by the law to do so under the McCarran-Ferguson Act. In fact, they make enough money by rigging the game to quietly settle countless lawsuits, including a class action suit by AMA docs. They settle the cases because while they have bad law on their side and would probably prevail in court, they know the ensuing publicity would undermine their assertion that no reform is needed.
Wow, that is fucked.
You think?
And while there's been little fuss in the media over the new bill designed to repeal the health insurance industry's immunity to anti-trust and price fixing controls, this might be the most important and positive HCR development you've never heard of.
You can bet the insurance companies, their lobbyists, and their stable of whores on the Hill hate this with a white-hot passion, but they want this battle to be fought quietly because they can't drag this bill into the public square and shoot it in the head. There is simply no well of support for a legal loophole whose only purpose is to allow corporations to gouge the sick.
That's why we need to make sure this story gets out there.
So what's going on with the bill?
Right now, nothing. I called Leahy's office, who transferred me to the Senate Judiciary Committee's press office, where a nice young lady informed me that the bill wasn't even on the agenda for markup.
This week the SJC is considering such important topics as "Body Building Products and Hidden Steroids: Enforcement Barriers" so, y'know, busy busy busy.
What can I do?
I'm glad you asked.
First, you can call the Senate Judiciary Committee at 202-224-7703 right now, and tell them that you expect to see this bill on the agenda as soon as humanly possible if not sooner. Be polite but firm, blah blah blah, you know the drill.
Secondly, you can contact the members of the Senate Judiciary individually and send them the same message. If your Senator is on the Judiciary, all the better. He/she works for you.
Thirdly, you can track the bill's progress here.
Finally, you can contact major media outlets and say "wakey fucking wakey!" A little note to Keith, Rachel and Ed would certainly not hurt.
Hey, Termite, thanks.
Shucks. You're the best.
NOTE: Title changed to accomodate several requests.