The argument in favor of treating health insurance as a public good or public utility (like fire protection or electric service) is extraordinarily strong.  That's why this, reported by Economic Fairness Oregon, is such a good idea:
Seeing double

     If you told your boss you wanted to make twice as much money, would you need to justify why you deserved it? What if prices at your local grocery store doubled? You’d probably want an explanation, unless you’re the CEO of a major insurance corporation. The average monthly health insurance premium in Oregon has skyrocketed from $184 for a single person in 1998 to $365 for a single person in 2008. Has coverage gotten better? Are companies handing out gold-plated health cards?

      We don’t have the answers, because insurers don’t have to give them. A package of insurance rate review bills making its way through the Oregon legislature aims to change that. Senator Chip Shields introduced Senate Bills 717, 718 and 719 to bring some long-lacking accountability to the insurance industry. Here are some of the important changes that this package of bills would provide:

• Create a public hearings process on requests by insurance companies to increase premiums on individual and small group policyholders.
• Allow small businesses to intervene in the rate review process.
• Bring insurance companies under the Unlawful Trade Practices Act.

     If you’d like even more proof that the free rein afforded insurers is hurting Oregonians, read this Oregonian article about Representative Brian Clem’s mother-in-law losing insurance because of her provider’s repeated mistakes. While the CEOs of Providence and Regence each made more than half a million dollars last year, Oregon’s small business owners and consumers struggled to afford the cost of protecting themselves and their families with basic medical coverage. Hearings on these bills will be taking place soon in Salem. Please urge your local senators to support this crucial legislation today.

Economic Fairness Oregon is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to consumer protection and fair lending laws. Our goal is to restore a financial system built to work for the people, not against them.