"Health Insurers Have Already Won": Business Week

Business Week has an excellent story (read it all) on the insurance industry juggernaut and its influence on the coming health care reform measures. Just when the town hall meeting goers were shedding crocodile tears over the demise of the revered health insurance industry, it turns out there was nothing of concern after all.

United Health and other companies have been waging this war for a generation and have been waiting for this battle for a long time. Limbaugh comparing Pelosi to Hitler and Sarah Palin's laughable fearmongering about "death panels" are really just the sideshow. The real war has been over for quite a while, and the insurers won.

The mainstream media has been quoting the latest Quinnipiac poll that shows Obama's approval rating on health care is only 39% and the disapproval rate is 52%. The conclusion that they allow to be held is that people do not want aggressive health care reform--- and they discount the possibility that a lot of those 52% disapprove the rolling over that the Obama administration has done on this issue. For example, according to the poll by a ratio of 62% to 32%, a majority favor a public option.

United Health (UNH) trades at a mere 8X next year's predicted earnings, and has trailed the overall market for several years, presumably due in part to the perceived risk of government control of the health care industry. This may be the most under priced sector on the NYSE. (No recommendation; I have no holding at this time.)