The group says premiums could nearly double for those who buy their own insurance. Experts we consulted disagree.
August 3, 2009
Summary
The latest ad from the group Conservatives for Patients’ Rights claims that "new rules could hike your health insurance premiums 95 percent." That’s misleading.
* The claim in the ad refers to only 5 percent of Americans who have health insurance – those who buy it on their own.
* The claim comes from an analysis by a group that advocates for insurance carriers that sell policies in the individual market, among other areas.
* That analysis also doesn’t take into consideration several elements of leading congressional legislation that other experts say will keep premium costs down – and in fact, lower premiums for some. Other independent studies show premium costs decreasing on average for Americans that currently have health coverage.
* It’s not true that any of the health care overhaul measures that have been approved by committees in Congress would add "a trillion to the federal deficit," as the ad says. The Senate bill would add roughly $597 billion over 10 years, and the House bill that was approved by the Ways and Means Committee in mid-July would add a much smaller $239 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
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