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 As the debate over health care continues in the U.S. Senate, Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill is watching costs.
The U.S. Senator says there are several things that have to come together in order for costs to eventually come down.
First, McCaskill says pre-existing conditions have to be covered. She believes that those will not cause a jump in rates.
"The reason that the pre-existing condition is not going to cause the jump is because we are going to get more people into the insurance market," McCaskill said. "If we didn't require anybody to buy insurance then the pre-existing condition would break the bank, because no one would buy insurance until they were sick. Why would you get insurance until you were sick, if you could wait until you were sick."
"So that's why it's important that we get the mandate part of this right."
McCaskill says affordable rates for the mandate are next.
"And obviously we can't mandate anybody to get insurance if it's not affordable. So these are all inter-related and that's what makes this legislation so tricky and complicated and why I think it's important we take our time."
"Because for every action we do in this area there's a reaction."
The Missouri Senator says the attitude of health insurance companies has put us where we are.
"There are ten major health insurance companies in this country and none of them have really come to the table with good ideas on how we can drive down costs. And they've done a terrible job of keeping costs in control and they've had free reign to do so over the last decade. All they have done is stand by and watch and just pass on more and more and more premium costs."
McCaskill continues to push for a public option to increase competition. |
