Bipartisan Legislation to Repeal Health Insurance Antitrust Exemption Passes Senate, Expected to be Signed into Law

Strategic Insights -

The Competitive Health Insurance Reform Act, a bipartisan bill introduced by Reps. Peter DeFazio, Paul Gosar, and Jerrold Nadler, aims to combat health insurance price-gouging and promote fair competition by repealing an outdated exemption that allows health insurance companies to operate beyond federal antitrust laws. The bill, which has already passed unanimously in the House, is expected to be signed into law after being passed by the Senate. This legislation seeks to address the issue of skyrocketing healthcare costs and ensure consumer protections against abuses by the health insurance industry.

Key Takeaways:

  • The McCarran-Ferguson Act, passed in 1945, exempts the business of insurance from federal antitrust laws, allowing health insurance companies to collude and price-gouge consumers.
  • The Competitive Health Insurance Reform Act would repeal this antiquated exemption, giving the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission the authority to apply federal antitrust laws to anticompetitive behavior by health insurance companies.
  • The bill aims to rein in skyrocketing health care costs, ensure consumer protections are in place, and prevent abuses and greed by the health insurance industry without affecting or interfering with state authority to regulate the business of insurance.
  • Over 1 in 4 Americans, including insured individuals, skip medical care and prescription drug doses due to high costs, which is more prevalent than ever amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Several major U.S. health insurers have reported increased profits totaling billions of dollars in the midst of the pandemic, while the number of uninsured Americans continues to rise.

Statistics:

  • 1 in 4 Americans (including insured individuals) skip medical care and prescription drug doses due to high costs.
  • Health insurance companies have reported increased profits totaling billions of dollars in the midst of the pandemic.
  • The number of uninsured Americans continues to rise.

Sources:

  • Congressman Peter DeFazio (4th District of Oregon)
  • House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (NY-10)
  • MIL OSI USA News (http://milnz.co.nz/mil-osi-aggregation/)
  • Contify.com