Mary Jo Kilroy: “I have been listening to this debate this afternoon, and it is very surprising--and actually highly ironic--to hear the…”

“I have been listening to this debate this afternoon, and it is very surprising--and actually highly ironic--to hear the opposition from the Republican side of the aisle to a bill that would simply make the health insurance industry operate fairly in a competitive marketplace. After all, it was a great Republican President, Teddy Roosevelt, who was the great trust buster, the one who brought antitrust principles into American jurisprudence and legislation. And as we have heard this afternoon from others, versions of this bill have had bipartisan support over the course of the years when there have been attempts to introduce antitrust legislation addressing this issue with respect to the health insurance industry. After all, competition is the engine that drives our economy, spurs innovation, and ensures that the American consumer would receive a fair deal. But for far too long the insurance industry has been able to avoid accountability by dividing up the territories among themselves like the robber barons once did on the backs of ordinary Americans.”