David Loebsack: “I am submitting the following statement for the record in support of the Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act…”

“I am submitting the following statement for the record in support of the Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act, which would end the anti-trust exemption that currently gives special privileges to health insurance companies. If we do not pass this legislation, American consumers will continue to pay more for health insurance, if they can afford it at all, because of a lack of competition in the insurance market. According to the AFL-CIO, profits at 10 of the country's largest publicly traded health insurance companies rose 428 percent from 2000 to 2007. At the same time, consumers paid more for less coverage. At the root of this problem is the growing lack of competition in the private health insurance industry that has led to near monopoly conditions in many markets. There is no reason why health insurance companies should continue to receive this favored treatment from the federal government while millions of Americans pay the price.”