The Senate bill contains a provision long sought by the health insurance industry lobby AHIP. It would allow for the sale of “nationwide plans.” Theses plan would not be required to follow the state laws regarding what medical treatments must be covered. It is described as: Allows insurers in the individual and small group markets [...]

There is a new “study” [PDF] out today, this time paid for by the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. It comes only days after the much talked about “study” from AHIP, and (surprise!) comes to very similar conclusions. The Blue Cross Blue Shield conclusion is that premiums would increase even faster with reform, unless we [...]

Olympia Snowe and Rahm Emanuel are both pushing hard for their “trigger” idea recently. The idea is the public option would only go into effect if the health insurance industry kept raising people’s rates at a rapid pace. (I believe, after studying the trigger created by Snowe, that it was designed to never be pulled. [...]

The individual mandate (without the public option) has been a top priority of the health insurance industry. Who would not want millions of new customers to be forced to buy their very expensive product? Sen. Chuck Schumer has been working to actively cripple or destroy the individual mandate. An amendment offered in the Senate Finance [...]

The health insurance “Democratic” think tank Third Way just put out a memo parroting AHIP’s demand for a stronger individual mandate and other changes. The memo proposes: Four ideas for how progressives can defend a strong individual mandate while also minimizing its burden on the middle class. What could these four great ideas be. Increasing [...]

For a very long time the health insurance industry has been working hard to avoid state benefit mandates. Insurance companies hate that states make them cover conditions that actual Americans suffer from. Paying for medicine treatment when someone gets sicks does terrible things to their insurance profits margins.

Well AHIP asked and Baucus delivered.

Karen Ignagni the CEO of AHIP, held a conference call with members of the press this morning. I am persona non grata with AHIP, but perhaps Jane got by the AHIP screeners (remind you of the George Bush towh hall meetings?), and will be able to give us her impressions of what transpired. Before the call, AHIP [...]