The health insurance industry has been making a lot of promises lately. They promise not to deny anyone coverage, if the government requires everyone buy insurance from them. They promise to end their discriminatory practice of charging women higher premiums than men, or charging sick people more than healthy folks. And now their latest promise – not to hike costs on customers quite as much as they have in the past.

It's possible the industry’s proposals could mean real savings for consumers struggling to pay for health care, and help slow the upward spiral of health costs. But while promises are nice, they only work if they’re kept. And in Washington, they’re usually only kept if there’s a law on the books to enforce them.

The insurance industry is smart enough to know Americans want a real solution to this health-care crisis. But a big part of that solution includes giving us a new choice that wouldn’t come from the insurance industry -- a publicly run insurance plan that would compete with their plans, help bring down costs and get everyone covered. It’s no wonder industry is doing its best to draw support and attention away from a public plan option by promising to do better.

Our own polling recently found that a strong majority of people – 66 percent – support having a new choice in insurance coverage. People we polled across the spectrum support a public plan option whether they make a little or a lot, whether they have insurance through their job or no coverage at all. They’re legitimately worried that they won’t be able to afford doctor visits, that a medical catastrophe could put them in bankruptcy, and that more employers are dropping health coverage as a benefit.

Which is no doubt why the insurance industry – which strongly opposes giving you another insurance option not offered by them – is pulling out all the stops, or promises, to head it off.

As Paul Krugman of the New York Times writes in his cautiously optimistic column on the industry’s latest promise: “In particular, (the industry’s trade group) will surely try to use the good will created by its stance on cost control to kill an important part of health reform: giving Americans the choice of buying into a public insurance plan as an alternative to private insurers. The administration should not give in on this point.”

Or as David Sirota over at the Campaign for America’s Future more bluntly wrote: “Look, I have no problem with the industry making voluntary commitments about lowering costs - and if it follows through, then that's great. But I also have no illusion about industries making voluntary commitments to reduce their profits - those commitments usually aren't worth the paper they're written on. And so I worry that promoting such commitments as "major" can be politically dangerous and, frankly, counterproductive.

It’s great that the insurance industry wants to change its bad practices and try to curb costs. But Congress shouldn’t let those promises distract it from giving us a real, meaningful solution to this health care crisis.

comments (4)

When pushing for healthcare reform, please take the employer out of the mix, there is no essential requirement for employer sponsored healthcare. This was only due to the historical tax break for employee benefits. It encourages age discrimination, and put employers at a competitive disadvantage internationally, since almost no other countries do it this way.

1) Make all healthcare non-deductible for employers. 2) Ban discrimination based on pre-existing conditions and risk categories. 3) Let an individual select the health insurance plan that best fits their perceived needs. 4) If any individual does not join a qualified plan, the government then should make the choice for them, and deduct the cost via taxes. Indigents should have the cost covered via welfare payments.

4) If any individual does not join a qualified plan, the government then should make the choice for them, and deduct the cost via taxes.
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You have gotten to the very crux of this issue. This is about force.

Why is it the Left believes it has the right to use government to force people to do things it has no right to force them to do? In case those of you on the Left have forgotten, we, the people control the government. The government does not control us. If you need health care, get off your lazy duff and get it.

What happened to the concept of LIBERTY this nation was founded on? The government has no legitimate power to force me to get insurance and then steal my money to pay for it.

Socialist Health Care is unAmerican. It forces those that are productive to pay the way for those that are not. It is in fact Socialism. (From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.) What is the incentive to remain productive if the government will provide you with all that you need? Who will pay for all these plans when most people become less productive?

Do you even know why drugs are so expensive in the US? Because of Socialist Health Care in other countries that place caps on the cost of drugs. Every time you buy a prescription you are subsidizing health care in foreign nations. What incentive do drug makers have to develop new drugs when there is no profit and perhaps losses for doing so? And before you poo-poo all over profits as you Socialists like to do, don't forget that if businesses didn't make profit they would not be able to expand and create new jobs. Or would you have government force businesses to create jobs even if they couldn't afford to do so? You already approve of government forcing me to have health care. Why should I think you wouldn't have government force others to do anything else?

There is nothing in the Constitution that authorizes the Federal government to involve itself in this. It is a State issue.

I for one will not be bullied by the lazy Socialists in this country trying to force me to buy a product I neither need nor want. Nor will I be forced to help pay their bills. It isn't charity if I am being forced at gunpoint to give.

If you need health coverage and you can't afford it get a second job or what ever it takes to be responsible for yourself and quit demanding someone else pay your way. If that fails, turn to private charities for help where the money comes from people who want to help, not people being forced against their will.

Socialism is just a way for the lazy in society to excuse their laziness and force others to take care of them.

Insurance companies use actuarial table to determine the price to charge a person. This is based on sex, age, weight, and health habits such as exercise,smoking, and lifestyse choices. There absolutely should be different rates charged to different people based on these sets of facts. There is nothing discriminatory about that. Its called being fair. Healthcare is not a right anymore than having food is not a right. Get a grip CU and get off the Socialist train.

We can not trust health insurance companies. How many times do we need to get ripped off before we learn that they can not be trusted? Health insurance companies will constantly try to lower costs by reducing benefits. We need a single payer healthcare system to lower costs without reducing benefits. Speak to Canadians if you need proof about their satisfaction of their single payer healthcare system.

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