The Antitrust Exemption for Health Insurers: Meaningful or Not?
Source:
Kaiser Health News (by Jenny Gold)
- The House is turning to a narrower piece of health reform legislation—repealing the antitrust exemption for insurers— that they hope has widespread support.
- Proponents of the legislation say it would spur competition among insurers and bring down costs for consumers. Reps. Tom Perriello (D-VA) and Betsy Markey (D-CO), sponsors of the bill, say it would “end special treatment for the insurance industry that allows them to fix prices, collude with each other, and set their own markets without fear of being investigated.”
- The McCarran-Ferguson Act, the law to be repealed, gives states the power to regulate the "business of insurance," giving insurers a limited exemption. Under the federal antitrust exemption, insurers may be able to meet, share information and agree on pricing for premiums.
- A Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis estimates that repealing the antitrust exemption for health insurers "would have no significant effects on either the federal budget or the premiums that private insurers charged for health insurance."
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