Sample Submission: Let Insurance Exchanges Compete Across State Lines to Drive Prices Down

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Although Obamacare reformed many parts of the insurance industry in a good way, it failed to address the biggest impediment to open competition: the prohibition on insurance companies competing across state lines. 

The administration should promote opening the state borders to allow health exchanges to compete across state lines, thereby expanding their risk pools and dropping the overall cost of securing coverage for all people, especially millennials. The minimum standards enforced by Obamacare for what insurance companies are allowed to offer as minimal effective coverage address the primary concern of starting a “race to the bottom” by allowing states to offer cheaper (and worse) coverage. By setting a mandated floor of coverage, the ACA negates that issue, making insurance companies compete over offering more affordable versions of the same benefits.

This would help promote greater access to health care by making it more affordable and promoting free market principles.