Health Insurers Say They Want to Cooperate with Reform Law

Published: Mon 07 Jun 2010

Lucas Eichmann

Health Insurers Say They Want to Cooperate with Reform Law

Health insurers have resolved to make health care reform work in spite of their opposition to the new federal law, according to an America's Health Insurance Plans executive speaking to the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers.

The executive VP of AHIP, Mike Tuffin, delivered the keynote address at the CIAB's 9th Annual Employee Benefits Leadership Forum last week. Tuffin expressed his hope that the upcoming midterm elections would change the dynamic of Congress and align the stance of the Obama administration with that of health insurers.

However, at the gathering in Colorado Springs, Tuffin warned that the law, which Congress passed on partisan lines and without the majority support of residents of the United States, is unlikely to be repealed.

"Health care reform is not over. This is only the end of the beginning," Tuffin explained. "Whether we like it or not, the bill was passed. Now we must be reliable and effective implementation partners. We need to stay engaged. The single-payer and public-option supporters have not given up."

The public-option and single-payer stipulations earned support in the House but lost momentum in the Senate.

Opportunities for Change

In identifying portions of the law that health insurers may influence, Tuffin pointed out over 900 uses of the phrase "the secretary shall," which could offer some leeway in the direction the secretary of the Health and Human Services Department will take to execute the provisions of the law.

"We will continue to speak out, but we will also try to minimize the disruption," Tuffin said.

One area in which AHIP promises to encourage regulators to focus is cost containment, which the group and its employer customers feel was not addressed properly in the health insurance reform law.

"The business community pays for health care in this country. We need to work with them to help them explain to lawmakers why it's necessary to focus on costs," Tuffin commented. "If you're not bending the cost curve and you add 30 million new people to the system...we're just shuffling deck chairs on the Titanic."

Insurance Business as the Bad Guy

During the debate on health care reform, health insurers were faulted for the exorbitant cost of health insurance, "but that's not the problem," Tuffin said. "We pay more for health care services than any other nation."

Although the cost of health care in the United States has consistently risen, the total cost of issuing health insurance has dropped, he pointed out.

For instance, the percentage of premiums set aside for administrative costs has dropped from an average of 13.67 percent in 2003 to 11.15 percent in 2009, according to Tuffin's statistics.