End ObamaCare’s Health Insurance Monopoly

Fact is, “ObamaCare” – which is properly known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or ACA for short – though it’s monikered with POTUS Obama’s name, was largely a Republican brainchild from the über-conservative Heritage Institution.

The cornerstone of the act is predicated upon two items which are the very heart of the act: 1.) Guaranteed Coverage, and; 2.) Community Rating.

In was, in essence, a GIANT SLOPPY WET KISS to the for-profit Big Insurance Companies. And regardless of what anyone asserts otherwise, the Big Insurance Companies are raking in profits hand over fist. It should be plainly evident why. Require personal responsibility by mandating individuals purchase from Wall Street-traded, for-profit companies.

The law did something that had never been done before, which was to regulate (an evil word in some circles) Health Insurance companies, and make illegal many of the most well-known, and highly-documented abusive practices by Big Insurance Companies, such as:
• Denying claims for picayune reasons;
• “Cherry-picking” clientele;
• Charging women more than men;
• Mandating 80% of premiums be used for healthcare, instead of overhead expenses, or executive compensation;
• Allowing children to remain on parents’ policy until age 26, and;
• Denying coverage based upon “pre-existing” conditions, among others.

There are other aspects of the law which requires improved quality of care for in hospital-based care, from physicians, other healthcare providers, and medical product companies, punishes fraud, waste, and abuse, and requires annual reporting of conflicts of interest from those who receive payments from Big Pharma or medical product companies. There are many good parts to the law.

Now, to be certain, the premise is good, but there are aspects in which the execution is flawed.

Good news is, it’s “fixable.”

Part of the reason why it’s flawed is that other important competitive options are completely overlooked, such as selling across state lines, and Single Payer, vis-à-vis, Medicare for All.

Frankly, it’s easily understood that Investors demand a Return On Investment, which means that Wall Street-traded Big Insurance Companies MUST pay shareholders (most often which are corporate entities, and BIG MONEY interests), and when they don’t get paid, they get mad.

Because ObamaCare essentially establishes a monopoly market – yes, you read that correctly, ObamaCare establishes a monopoly market in Health Insurance – the Big Insurance Companies can do what they want, and raise rates at will, even though the law says they must provide advance notice, and their request be approved for the same.

How to eliminate that monopoly market, and provide genuine competition?

Allow the government to compete, because in a TRULY Free Market, ALL can compete.

Thus, the availability of a Single Payer, Medicare for All option would provide serious competition to the monopoly, Wall Street-traded, for-profit Big Insurance Companies.