Top U.S. Health Official Highlights Need for Insurer Competition
- Burwell travels to Iowa to promote the benefits of Obamacare
- Seeks ‘even playing field’ for doctors, hospitals, insurers
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The Obama administration’s top health official highlighted the importance of competition to insurance markets, as the Justice Department is poised to decide on two massive deals among four of the health-plan industry’s biggest players.
Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell said competition among insurers can reduce costs that consumers face and improve the quality of their health coverage. She declined to comment on her department’s view of Aetna Inc.’s proposed purchase of Humana Inc. or Anthem Inc.’s deal for Cigna Corp. If both mergers are completed, the industry’s five largest companies would be reduced to three.