« GAO Cites Deficiencies In NHTSA's Data Collection | Main | Getting It Wrong Again On 3rd Party Diminished Value »
November 17, 2004
Insurance Industry Could Lose Antitrust Exemption
Insurance Journal reported today that Senator Fitzgerald of Illinois made the statement that: "It might be time to use federal antitrust enforcement to ensure that the insurance brokerage industry remain free, competetive, and healthy for consumers."
Fitzgerald suggested Congress might reconsider the McCarren-Ferguson Act which currently exempts the insurance industry from most federal antitrust laws for activities that are regulated as the "business of insurance" at the state level. The Senator said that the present broker fee scandal convinced him that there is a role for the federal government to play by disallowing excessive market concentration.
It would certainly be interesting to see how well the insurancy industry could adapt to playing by antitrust rules. Since the enactment of the McCarren-Ferguson Act in 1945, insurers have enjoyed a privilege of doing business in an environment free from federal oversight. Trying to adapt to the rules of the free market society might be daunting to them.
Sen. Fitzgerald Says Broker Fee Scandal May End Antitrust Exemptions
Posted by E L Eversman at November 17, 2004 02:46 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.vehicleinfo.com/cgi/mt-tb.cgi/13