FREE HEALTH INSURANCE QUOTES Start here...

Select Insurance Type:

Individual Health Family Health Group Health Small Business Health Short Term Health Medicare Supplemental Travel Insurance

Zip code:

The prospect of a government-run individual health insurance plan seems to be making health insurance companies very uncomfortable, particularly when it may disrupt what appears to be a near monopoly on the market.

At Businessweek, a report released by the American Medical Association claims to have found that "out of 314 metropolitan areas across the nation, 94% can be defined as highly concentrated, with two companies or even a single provider dominating the market. In 15 states, one insurer has half or more of the entire market, and in seven states, a single insurer has 75% or more."

In other words, for those searching for a good individual health insurance plan, there aren't a whole lot of options, and that lack of options might explain why health insurance premiums have gone up 9% annually over the last 7 years, while health care spending has only gone up 6.7%.

This kind of data is popular with Democrats, and President Barack Obama, who use it as evidence to support the notion of a government-run health insurance plan. Such a plan would offer basic care at a fraction of the cost.

However, opponents argue that the plan would drive the individual health insurance market under, and leave Americans to deal with a federal health insurance giant like Medicare, complete with the many flaws and substandard coverage that Medicare is reported to provide.

No one has mentioned quality of coverage either, leaving consumers to wonder exactly what kind of care, and at what cost, would be available to them should the health care plan pass.

Of course, to the 47 million uninsured Americans out there right now, minimal coverage is still better than none.