Don't be Fooled by Rhetoric

Choice and Competition. The new tag line from Washington. As I was doing some research on the Texas Department of Insurance web-site I learned something very interesting. We have a lot of choice when it comes to group health insurance providers. I have been involved in the insurance industry for almost twenty years. What I have learned over that time is that most people have never heard of most insurance companies. When I would be making a presentation on a policy the prospect might say "I have never heard of this company." Well, they probably have never heard of over 95% of the insurance carriers out there. I knew there were a vast number of insurance companies doing business in Texas. The Texas Department of Insurance has 1960,THATS one-thousand nine hundred and 60 insurance companies authorized to do business in Texas. Over 600 of those are listed as life and health companies. Do we really need more choice? Listen to the supporters of government run health care and you would be led to believe that there are only a few providers available to buy insurance from. Would it really be more competition? I believe it would be unfair competition at best. Just like the Post Office is advertising to carry your packages for one price, if it fits in the box. That is one government subsidized price that the competition, UPS, FedEx etc, cannot offer. IS that fair competition Is it smart competition? The Post Office is predicting it will lose eight billion dollars this year. Can we believe that ANY further involvement in our health care situation will make it better?

Don't be fooled by rhetoric. There is a solution out there to help insure Americans without insurance. One thing is certain. It won't be done for less. It won't increase the number of providers of the quality of care. We all just need to take a step back and come up with some real solutions that aim at solving the actual problem.