The American Pundit

Up until now the private insurance industry has been largely on board with Democratic efforts to reform the health care system. But that gravy train of publicity seems to have reached its final stop.

The industry has released a new report from independent accounting firm PriceWaterhouse Coopers that shows the average premium for American families rising by about $4,000 per year under the Baucus bill. That version of the bill, crafted by the Senate Finance Committee, is the least expensive of all left-wing proposals and is often perceived as having the best chance of passing.

After months of collaboration on President Obama’s attempt to overhaul the nation’s health-care system, the insurance industry plans to strike out against the effort on Monday with a report warning that the typical family premium in 2019 could cost $4,000 more than projected.

The critique, coming one day before a critical Senate committee vote on the legislation, sparked a sharp response from the Obama administration. It also signaled an end to the fragile detente between two central players in this year’s health-care reform drama.

Industry officials said they intend to circulate the report prepared by PricewaterhouseCoopers on Capitol Hill and promote it in new advertisements. That could complicate Democratic hopes for action on the legislation this week.

Democrats have been touting the insurance industry’s support and praising their new partner in reform efforts. Will they actually stoop so low as to now dismiss the insurance industry as a special interest group opposed to change? Don’t be surprised.

Here’s the response from the White House:

“Those guys specialize in tax shelters,” said Nancy-Ann DeParle, director of the White House Office of Health Reform. “Clearly this is not their area of expertise.”

That must be a joke. The White House is now claiming that health insurance premiums aren’t the area of expertise for health insurance companies? And that accounting and finance isn’t the area of expertise for accounting firms? Perhaps the White House could explain how it has more expertise on insurance premiums than either of these former two groups. It doesn’t.