A story in The Hill reports that, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office, one of ObamaCare’s insurance regulations is already leading to “lower healthcare premiums.” How’s that ? The regulation in question requires health insurers to maintina what’s known as a minimum loss ratio (MLR). That means insurers must devote a minimum of either 80 or 85 percent of their premium revenue, minus taxes, to paying for health care or activities that improve health care quality, as defined by federal regulators. The remaining 15 or 20 percent is left for administrative expenses, marketing, and profits. Obama administration health officials insist that this will help ensure that consumers get better “value” from their health insurance. But value, in this case, appears to mean that insurers are cutting back on insurance broker commissions, which don’t count as health expenditures, in order to reduce premium growth.
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