Buying insurance across state lines - how could it POSSIBLY help?

[blueworld]

I have yet again witnessed a ridiculous GOP Congress Critter (who happens to be a doctor) smarming on TV about how allowing us to purchase health insurance from other states will result in "free market" competition. How?

With every mega-corp they have a Home Office located in one state. They offer products in many states, but it's only 1 freakin' company. Anthem Blue Cross in NJ is the same bloody company as Anthem Blue Cross in VA.

The only differences are: the price for services, which are cheaper in VA and
the STATE laws which may limit provisions or exclusions from state to state.

So unless we make the laws in all states the same (i.e. throw the Republic out the window), how will costs be reduced? Are they going to pay only 1 price for an office visit regardless of where we live? Ridiculous. When I file a claim in VA the paperwork goes to the home office. Same in NJ. Where's the cost reduction?

Insurance companies are middle-men; they offer no direct services themselves, but increase costs & reduce benefits both to policyholders AND doctors in order to maintain a profit margin.

I am writing (again) to Keith & Rachel & my Congress critters to see who will debate these points which seem to make it obvious that we need a public option...please let me know if I'm off the beam & thanks.

[W_HAMILTON]

1. Why is it done this way to begin with?

I admit, I'm unfamiliar with why they are not allowed to compete on a national level to begin with; however, seeing as how the Republicans support the idea of letting them compete on a national level, I'm sure there is more than meets the eye.

So, what is it?

[redqueen]

2. Some states have very lax regulations on insurance companies.

Can't help but wonder if that's somehow involved... helping those companies get more access to the market.

[WyLoochka]

15. Because insurance is so full

of corruption. Just the nature of it is almost an open invitation to the corrupt to take advantage. It's far better to have 50 regulators than just one in DC that can be easily steamrolled.

In the case of health insurers "selling across state lines" - all of the companies would headquarter in the one state with lowest regulations and stipulations as to what goes into a policy.

You think we've been raped by the insurers to date? Just let this Republican backed plan to "sell across state lines" go through and we'll all be hit with gang rape.

[dflprincess]

3. The same way deregulating the airlines and banks helped us all so much.

:sarcasm:

[ItNerd4life]

4. It's actually pretty simple, you started down the path

to understanding.

Let's say you like the policy of the health insurance plan from Lloyds of London, you could purchase that plan. This means that state mandates are no longer inhibiting choice.

Did you know that some states require insurance companies to cover hair transplants? Alcohol abuse? Pregnancy? Sorry, but if your a female, why should you have to buy insurance that covers hair transplants? Why do men have to have pregnancy coverage? It means letting people choose what types of insurance they have.

You have these choices in life insurance, car insurance, house insurance, but not in health insurance.

Now, understand I also support some type of plan to help people who don't have insurance. Just like we have food stamps so people can buy food, why not have health insurance stamps?

[Oregone]

5. "Did you know that some states require insurance companies to cover hair transplants"...

Shit...

You mean those insurance companies can move out of the states, get rid of those services, and STILL keep the same customer base?!?

Isn't that a massive loophole? If the companies can now service out of state customers, what stops them from moving to states with the least amount of regulations? What would stop all companies from doing so, just as a lot of credit card companies move to Deleware? This is actually a major concern.

This almost strips the ability of individual states to regulate the insurers themselves, because they can move outside of state lines.

Are we opening Pandora's Box here?

Think....credit card companies. Think about it

[OHdem10]

6. Is this an opportunity for Business to get out from under the thumb

of State Insurance Regulators and form more monopolies--
under the guise of helping the little guy??

It is more a red herring than practical.

Leave it to the GOP to think of another way to help
Big Business.

[Oregone]

7. Exactly. This just occurred to me

Expect to see a mass migration (or dissolution of state-based subsidiaries) of insurance companies when this happens. Why isn't there more outrage about this?

[tosh]

12. Exactly again. Why isn't the media quizzing these pukes

about this very question?

So, we remove the state lines and then I have a problem with a claim (as a consumer or as a provider). Whose jurisdiction will my policy be under? The state where I live or practice? Or the state where the policy was sold? Whichever, is that a state where the Ins commish is a pocket-puppet of the Inscos?

If I must continue to hear this absurd proposal thrown about, I'd like some answers.

[Oregone]

14. This is just a Repub gambit, eh? Its not actually on the drawing board, right?

[tosh]

17. As far as I know, they haven't actually put ANYTHING on the

drawing board. This is one of their favorite "other ways we can make healthcare affordable" things that they spew in townhalls and on "news" shows.

I haven't heard anyone press them for details.

[SharonAnn]

21. Some states require that insurance companies be well capitalized and

provide real coverage and meet other requirements.

Others don't.

So, unless you have all the information about an insurance company and its product (and you won't) you'll be comparing high quality apples to cheap, poor quality oranges. You'll think the policies are equivalent, but they're not. So, you'll buy the cheaper one and then when you need it you'll find out that it doesn't cover what you expect. Then it'll be too late.

Some states have strong regulations of insurance companies, others don't.

Why would the GOP all of a sudden want to "buy insurance across state lines"? Easy. They want to sell fraudulent products. Like usual. And they're upset that some states won't let them do that.

[Zenlitened]

27. Ding.

:(

[WeDidIt]

8. IIRC, there is no law stopping insurance companies from selling across state lines

The insurance companies are the ones who choose not to sell across state lines because each state has different regluations regarding insurance. But there is nothing to stop the companies in one state from serving people in another state other than the choices of the insurance comanies themselves.

This is a red herring.

[robcon]

9. No. Insurance companies are regulated by state agencies.

They have to keep their insurance pools separate - whether auto, health or life.

[WeDidIt]

19. Right

but an insruance company in ORegon can still sell insurance in California so long as they do so under the laws of California and keep the pools separate.

[WyLoochka]

18. They do sell across state lines

But in each state they have to file rates and forms, be scrutinized and adhere to the individual state regulations. They can't just sell any old junk policy and call it "insurance."

This state system of regulation puts a check on, somewhat - the deleterious effects of the insuerers rapaciousness and corruption. We definitely need to keep the system of 50 separate and distinct Insurance Regulators.

You wouldn't want a policy from the lowest regulation state. It would be a total rip off. But that's what you'd get with the Repub plan, after all the health insurers headquartered in that state.

[WeDidIt]

20. Oddly enough, it's the tenthers who are wanting the states to give up their rights

to regulate insurance.

[Critters2]

22. That's what gets me. Now they're against state's rights?!

My whole denomination uses one of the Blue Cross Blue Shield orgs based in Pennsylvania. It's a different ocompany than local BCBS. But I have no trouble using it.

[jwirr]

10. Years ago when I lived in Iowa we had some insurance company

located in Omaha. Very cheap compare to others and very popular. Until their corruption was exposed. They had been selling us insurance that did not work and there were no laws to prevent it. Nebraska did not make laws so finally Iowa banned them from the state. I do not remember much about it because it was a long time ago.

Maybe someone should look into why we have laws banning interstate insurance trade. When were they regulated and why. After we know that we will be along way in understanding if it is a good or bad practice.

[ejpoeta]

11. yeah, what could go wrong. i mean, say you are in a state like NY

where they have certain rules placed on insurance companies of what they must cover and all that jazz... so if you could go across state lines, then what.... then the insurance companies could go to another state where they don't have such restrictions and gee, what could go wrong with that!! like, say, someone has asthma.... or some other thing.... in this state maybe they can't discriminate against that person... but now that they are free to court us from another state, they don't HAVE to cover that person. yeah, what could go wrong with that!!

i know I have family that probably thinks this would be a good idea. I can hear them now. they bitch about the state and everything, but i bet they don't even realize how much the state is helping protect us from the tactics of the insurance companies. I mean, they have to charge the same copay for mental health visits that they do for specialists now thanks to a law that came into effect a couple of years ago. So instead of making me pay half of the cost to visit my counselor, my copay was $10.... And I think part of the reason bob wants to switch us back to independent health is because i haven't been able to see my counselor since april because we switched insurance and the mental health clinic wanted to make me pay $50 a visit... which i cannot afford. I have already discussed this particular subject previously, so i won't go into it again.

I always wonder what my family would say if i asked them if they would rather buy something from the factory vs a store if given the opportunity.... considering the cost would be a lot less. I am going to say I bet they'd rather go through the factory then a store if given the opportunity if it saves them money.

[SoCalDem]

13. It helps blur the issue.. that's why they use it. They want people to believe

that if you are in ...say...Missouri, you could buy insurance cheaper ..if ONLY, you lived in Arkansas.

There's a REASON why "some states" have "cheaper" insurance.. They may have a younger population, they may have a higher income level with more people participatiing, or they may have a lot of large companies who prop up the "insured base".. who knows.. It's a strawman argument anyway, since most people don;t have the TIME to spend days on the phone pressing buttons for the phone robot, to "shop-around" for health care. They take what theor boss offers, if they are lucky, or they do without.

Pitting one state against another is an idiotic response to the real problem..

[Romulox]

16. It will end up just like Credit Cards--South Dakota's consumer protections will become the US'

This is the same way they destroyed anti-usury laws and many other consumer protections.

[Critters2]

23. Insurance is already sold across state lines.

My insurance is based in PA. They just have to play by Illinois rules here. This is a red herring.

[Romulox]

24. It is HEAVILY regulated at the state level. That is not compatible

with interstate "competition".

My state had usury laws, once upon a time, too. South Dakota didn't, so their rules trumped ours when the Court held that enforcing our rules was "unfair" and "anti-competitive". The same will happen here.

[FarCenter]

25. Anthem Blue Cross doesn't offere individual plans in New Jersey

Horizon Blue Cross offers individual plans in New Jersey. It is unrelated to Anthem.

Anthem Blue Cross is owned by WellPoint, one of the major health insurance companies. Anthem appears to have been a mutual insurance company prior to its acquisition by WellPoint.

Anthem Blue Cross does provide health insurance to New Jersey employees of employers who purchase Anthem plans.

So it appears that larger employers with multi-state operations can shop around among the states that they operate in for an optimal plan.

[FarCenter]

26. State regulation of insurance in general is a stupid idea

There are 13 states within 250 miles of Times Square. Why should eash of them have unique regulations for large insurance companies?

Like banking, small insurance companies should be able to get a state charter, and large companies should be able to get a national charter.