Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act

Bill: 115-hr-617
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. DeFazio, Peter A. [D-OR-4]
Introduced: 2017-01-24
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Competition and antitrust

Health care costs and insurance

Insurance industry and regulation
Latest action: action_date: 2017-01-24
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial And Antitrust Law.

Summaries:
action_date: 2017-01-24
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act</b></p> <p>This bill amends the McCarran-Ferguson Act to declare that nothing in that Act modifies, impairs, or supersedes the operation of antitrust laws with respect to the business of health insurance. This declaration does not apply to a contract, combination, or conspiracy to: (1) collect, compile, or disseminate historical loss data; (2) determine a loss development factor for historical loss data; or (3) perform actuarial services if the collaboration does not involve a restraint of trade.</p> <p>Prohibitions against unfair methods of competition apply to the business of health insurance without regard to whether the business is for profit.</p>

tv_txt: I 115th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 617 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 24, 2017 Mr. DeFazio (for himself, Ms. Slaughter , Mr. Garamendi , Mr. Meeks , Mr. Conyers , Mr. Grijalva , and Ms. Shea-Porter ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To restore the application of the Federal antitrust laws to the business of health insurance to protect competition and consumers.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act . 2. Restoring the application of antitrust laws to health sector insurers (a) Amendment to McCarran-Ferguson Act Section 3 of the Act of March 9, 1945 ( 15 U.S.C. 1013 ), commonly known as the McCarran-Ferguson Act, is amended by adding at the end the following: (c) (1) Nothing contained in this Act shall modify, impair, or supersede the operation of any of the antitrust laws with respect to the business of health insurance. (2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect to making a contract, or engaging in a combination or conspiracy— (A) to collect, compile, or disseminate historical loss data; (B) to determine a loss development factor applicable to historical loss data; or (C) to perform actuarial services if such contract, combination, or conspiracy does not involve a restraint of trade. (3) For purposes of this subsection— (A) the term antitrust laws has the meaning given it in subsection (a) of the 1st section of the Clayton Act, except that such term includes section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act to the extent that such section 5 applies to unfair methods of competition; (B) the term historical loss data means information respecting claims paid, or reserves held for claims reported, by any person engaged in the business of insurance; and (C) the term loss development factor means an adjustment to be made to reserves held for losses incurred for claims reported by any person engaged in the business of insurance, for the purpose of bringing such reserves to an ultimate paid basis. . (b) Related Provision For purposes of section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act ( 15 U.S.C. 45 ) to the extent such section applies to unfair methods of competition, section 3(c) of the McCarran-Ferguson Act shall apply with respect to the business of health insurance without regard to whether such business is carried on for profit, notwithstanding the definition of Corporation contained in section 4 of the Federal Trade Commission Act.