Howard Dean says, "Kill Bill"

You may love that health care reform in any form may be emerging from the Senate.  You may want health care reform, but find so many flaws in this legislation that you hope it doesn't pass.  Why Dr. Dean wants the Bill to die.
It's a Health Insurance Bonanza
It's hard to talk about insurance.  See?  You're already getting bored.  Stick with me.
Not knowing this could cost you.
Health insurers are state regulated.  That means there are 50 hodge-podged different laws.  Insurance companies want it that way.  Why?  Because in a majority of states, two insurers have the majority of business.

Alabama Blue Cross Blue Shield AL 83% Health Choice 5% Total by both insurers 88%
Alaska Premera Blue Cross 60% Aetna Inc. 35% Total by both insurers 95%
Arizona Blue Cross Blue Shield AZ 43% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 22% Total by both insurers 65%
Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield AR 75% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 6% Total by both insurers 81%
California Kaiser Permanente 24% WellPoint Inc. (Blue Cross) 20% Total by both insurers 44%
Colorado WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 29% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 24% Total by both insurers 53%
Connecticut WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 55% Health Net Inc. 11% Total by both insurers 66%
Delaware CareFirst Blue Cross Blue Shield 42% Coventry Health Care 23% Total by both insurers 65%
Florida Blue Cross Blue Shield FL 30% Aetna Inc. 15% Total by both insurers 45%
Georgia WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 61% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 8% Total by both insurers 69%
Hawaii Blue Cross Blue Shield HI 78% Kaiser Permanente 20% Total by both insurers 98%
Idaho Blue Cross of ID 46% Regence BS of Idaho 29% Total by both insurers 75%
Illinois HCSC (Blue Cross Blue Shield) 47% WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 22% Total by both insurers 69%
Indiana WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 60% M*Plan (HealthCare Group) 15% Total by both insurers 75%
Iowa Wellmark BC and BS 71% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 9% Total by both insurers 80%
Kansas WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 59% Health Partners 10% Total by both insurers 69%
Kentucky Data Unavailable
Louisiana Blue Cross Blue Shield LA 61% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 13% Total by both insurers 74%
Maine WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 78% Aetna Inc. 10% Total by both insurers 88%
Maryland CareFirst Blue Cross Blue Shield 52% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 19% Total by both insurers 71%
Massachusetts Blue Cross Blue Shield MA 50% Tufts Health Plan 17% Total by both insurers 67%
Michigan Blue Cross Blue Shield MI 65% Henry Ford Health System 8% Total by both insurers 73%
Minnesota Blue Cross Blue Shield MN 50% Medica 26% Total by both insurers 76%
Mississippi Data Unavailable
Missouri WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 68% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 11% Total by both insurers 79%
Montana Blue Cross Blue Shield MT 75% New West Health Services 10% Total by both insurers 85%
Nebraska Blue Cross Blue Shield NE 44% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 25% Total by both insurers 69%
Nevada Sierra Health 29% WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 28% Total by both insurers 57%
New Hampshire WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 51% CIGNA Corp. 24% Total by both insurers 75%
New Jersey Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield 34% Aetna Inc. 25% Total by both insurers 59%
New Mexico HCSC (Blue Cross Blue Shield) 35% Presbyterian Hlth 30% Total by both insurers 65%
New York GHI 26% WellPoint Inc. (Empire BCBS) 21% Total by both insurers 47%
North Carolina Blue Cross Blue Shield NC 53% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 20% Total by both insurers 73%
North Dakota Data Unavailable
Ohio WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 41% Medical Mutual of Ohio 17% Total by both insurers 58%
Oklahoma BCBS OK 45% CommunityCare 26% Total by both insurers 71%
Oregon Providence Health 25% Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield 23% Total by both insurers 48%
Pennsylvania Data Unavailable
Rhode Island Blue Cross Blue Shield RI 79% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 16% Total by both insurers 95%
South Carolina Blue Cross Blue Shield SC 66% CIGNA Corp. 9% Total by both insurers 75%
South Dakota Data Unavailable
Tennessee Blue Cross Blue Shield TN 50% Total Choice 12% Total by both insurers 62%
Texas HCSC (Blue Cross Blue Shield) 39% Aetna Inc. 20% Total by both insurers 59%
Utah Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield 47% Intermountain Healthcare 21% Total by both insurers 68%
Vermont Blue Cross Blue Shield VT 77% CIGNA Corp. 13% Total by both insurers 90%
Virginia WellPoint Inc. (BCBS) 50% Aetna Inc. 11% Total by both insurers 61%
Washington Premera Blue Cross 38% Regence Blue Shield 23% Total by both insurers 61%
West Virginia Data Unavailable
Wisconsin Data Unavailable
Wyoming Blue Cross Blue Shield WY 70% UnitedHealth Group Inc. 15% Total by both insurers 85%
Source: Health Care for America Now

1.  Insurance companies don't even have to compete with themselves.
Let's pretend that the majority of groceries in your state were sold by Kroger and Piggly Wiggly.  There are a few other grocery stores, but they tend to niche (high end, organic, etc) markets, since the combined pricing power of their competitors doesn't allow them to compete directly with the "big two." 
Now let's pretend you go visit your sister, who lives in another state.  There are twice as many major grocery stores in her state, Kroger and Piggly Wiggly, PLUS Safeway and Super Valu.  You notice that the prices at her Kroger are a lot less than yours.  Why?  More competition for your business.
Insurance companies don't even have to compete with their own company across the state line in our current system.  Just by allowing intra-state competition, the cost of insurance would be drastically reduced.  Who benefits from state regulation?
Insurance companies do.  Not you.
2.  The more complex the regulatory process, the more they can get away with.
Every state is different.  In some, you can do this, but not that.  The next state over, you can do that, but not this.  The state to the south allows this and that, but not the other thing.  You see the problem.  One set of rules gives much more protection to the consumer.  We don't often take "insurance regulatory policy" into account when we move to another state.
Again, good for insurance companies.  Bad for people.
3.  But they can't turn you down for pre-existing conditions. . . .
Right.  But they can charge you more.  And, if the government is going to subsidize your extra payment, we'll all be paying in the form of higher taxes.  And, if the government is not going to subsidize your extra payment, we'll all be paying in the form of higher premiums. 
Good for insurance companies.  Bad for people.
4.  How important is this issue to insurance companies?
Some people, like me, measure how much a company wants something by how much they're willing to pay for it.  Let's see where insurance companies rank in lobbying for what they want.
•$3.8 billion has been spent by the insurance and finance lobbyists and
•$3.69 billion, by health industry lobbyists,
according to Open Secrets, a non-partisan group. That's more than any other industry!
They must want things to stay the same very, very much.
Good for them.  Bad for us.
5.  Is this bill better than nothing?
Only you can answer this question.  I will guarantee that health insurers want two things:
a)  For this legislation to die; and
b)  To convince us that we should keep things just as they are.
Good for them.  Bankrupt nation for us.