Sen. Talent's View - Blue Cross Blue Shield's Monopoly Game

By U.S. Sen. Jim Talent
 
 I've talked to hundreds of small business people around Missouri and their No. 1 concern is the rising cost of health care.  Of the 41 million people who are uninsured in the country, 60 percent either own a small business, work for a small business or are dependent on someone who does.  And for the small business employees who have health insurance, costs are rising on average more than 20 percent per year.
 
 A group of us in the U.S. Senate have introduced a small business health care bill that will help solve this problem.  The legislation would create Association Health Plans (AHPs) that would allow national trade associations such as the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the National Restaurant Association, the American Farm Bureau, and the like, to sponsor national health insurance plans for their members.  
 
 AHPs would allow small business people to offer the same kind of health insurance that Fortune 500 companies, labor unions and the federal government currently offer their employees.  These plans would cover large groups and enjoy large economies of scale.  They would also give small firms administrative savings, more purchasing power and new, more affordable options.  
 
 The best part about our bill is it will provide millions of people with access to quality, affordable health insurance at no cost to the taxpayer.  
 
 Unfortunately, there is one big insurance company that is not as enthusiastic as we are about AHPs.  The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association has spent millions of dollars hiring lobbyists and sponsoring efforts in an attempt to kill our bill.  The Blues have a monopoly of the current small group market, and they know they would lose a lot of business if their customers could escape that market and join an AHP.
 
 As our bill continues to build momentum in the Congress, the Blues have become more desperate in their attempts to stop the legislation.  Their most recent gimmick is 
 something I have never seen before in all my years in public life.  The Blue Cross people have written a letter opposing AHPs and they are offering to pay individuals to send it to their senator. 
 
 The Blues have launched what they are calling the  "America Speaks Sweepstakes."   It's an online contest that gives people a chance to win $300 cash and a vacation for four to Washington, D.C. - a prize package worth at least $4000 - if they send a Blue Cross form letter to their senator opposing AHPs.  However, there's a catch. There isn't an option on the website to send a letter to your senator in support of AHPs.  So if you support the proposal, you are not eligible to enter the contest by sending a pro-AHP letter to your senator.
 
 In a recent news item, The Washington Times called the sweepstakes  " unique "  if not downright dishonest.  I have warned other senators that they might be receiving letters against AHPs, perhaps not because the people writing are against the proposal, but because they wanted to win some money and get a free vacation.  
 
 It's out of bounds to pay people to send letters to senators because its impossible to determine whether a person has a specific view on an issue or whether they were persuaded to write because of a financial incentive. 
 
 Health insurance for small business people is not a sweepstakes.  This is a serious issue and there are simply too many people who are uninsured or who are paying too much for health insurance.  We need to help these people and Association Health Plans are the answer.
 
 In June, the House passed Association Health Plans with a strong bipartisan vote of 262-162.  President Bush also strongly supports AHPs.  The bill now goes to the U.S. Senate where Senator Kit Bond and I are working to pass the measure.  If AHPs are signed into law, the real winners will be the millions of people who get health insurance who currently don't have it.
 	
 Senator Jim Talent (R-Mo.) was elected to serve Missouri in the U.S. Senate in November 2002.  Previously he served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1993-2001) and the Missouri House (1985-1992).