Cost of Health Care Continues to Rise

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by whell

If we eliminate the anti-trust exemption and reduce or eliminate state regs, and allow insurance to be sold across state lines, it would open up the whole market to significant competition. I'd suggest at that point you might see prices impacted in favor of the consumer, and more freedom to innovate insurance product design.

Sounds good on its face, but states aren't going to give up their rights with regard to regulation of the insurance industry. Constitutionally, insurance is one of those things that has remained outside of the purview of the Constitution's commerce clause (thus far anyway). It seems to be somewhat contradictory that conservatives are championing taking these powers away from the States. This presumes, of course, that they're sincere in this argument to begin with.

I don't buy the argument that competition between private insurance companies more than offsets the administrative costs of 50 sets of regulations, not to mention the differing coverage levels and forms each insurance company offers (not to mention the need for each of these insurance companies to earn a profit). I have a number of friends who are doctors and dentists and the one thing they universally detest about maintaining a practice is the administrative/billing/paperwork burdens imposed by the various insurance companies they deal with.