The National Conference of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) has warned Democratic leaders that any health care legislation with language eliminating antitrust exemptions for health and medical malpractice insurers will hurt consumers. The NCOIL letter was a counterpoint to another written by 18 Democratic senators to President Obama urging an end to the exemption.

NCOIL officers wrote that they “strongly caution against” repealing the exemption in any bill.  Rolling back the antitrust exemptions for health and medical malpractice insurers, as the House legislation proposes, “would increase costs while reducing competition; harm consumers by creating confusing, conflicting regulation; and ignore already existing state antitrust protections.”

The group told the leaders that states already enforce the limited antitrust exemption granted under the McCarran-Ferguson Act and attorneys general can prosecute abuses under existing state antitrust laws.

PIA National is participating in an industry coalition which is working to defeat the effort to repeal the McCarran-Ferguson Act antitrust exemption for health and medical malpractice insurers.

Keep Exemption in Health Bill, NCOIL Urges Dems (National Underwriter 1/15/10)

PIA Assists Industry Coalition Working to Oppose Antitrust Repeal Effort

January 20, 2010