Hi! (Yup, I'm still alive... )
It is a little known fact that health insurance companies are exempt from the antitrust laws. A law passed at the end of World War II, the McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945, exempts health insurance companies from the federal anti-trust legislation that applies to most businesses. Actually, the law gives states the authority to regulate the business of insurance without interference from federal regulation, unless federal law specifically provides otherwise.
It's repeal comes up every once in a while in Congress, but they never seem to get rid of this exemption, even when lopsided numbers in both parties want it repealed.
"Under the exiting exemption, federal authorities can?t investigate or take action against insurers, even for blatant anti-competitive conduct like price-fixing or market allocation," notes Durbin, a member of Leahy?s judiciary panel.
URL:
http://thedemocraticdaily.com/2010/...eal-health-insurers-antitrust-exemption/So until they repeal this 65 year old law, it'll be an insurance abuse free-for-all and there is nothing that we can do about it! <sigh>
Cheers,
Al
