Goldman Sachs - No Reform Is Best

No surprise here.
At least their consistent.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/12/goldman-to-private-insure_n_355998.html

"A Goldman Sachs analysis of health care legislation has concluded that, as far as the bottom line for insurance companies is concerned, the best thing to do is nothing. A close second would be passing a watered-down version of the Senate Finance Committee's bill."


This is what I want to hear. Bottom line is profits and medical loss ratios. Ratios that are calculated by Wall Street and then filtered to the insurance companies so that they have something to shoot for.

Bull Case For Insurance Companies.

"The Senate Finance Committee bill, which Goldman's analysts conclude is the version most likely to survive the legislative process, is described as the "base" scenario. Under that legislation (which did not include a public plan) the earnings per share for the top five insurers would grow an estimated five percent from 2010 through 2019. And yet, the "variance with current valuation" -- essentially, what the value of the stock is on the market -- is projected to drop four percent."

Bear Case For Insurance Companies

"Things are much worse, Goldman estimates, for legislation that resembles what was considered and (to a certain extent) passed by the House of Representatives. This is, the firm deems, the "bear case" scenario -- in which earnings per share for the top five insurers would decline an estimated one percent from 2010 through 2019 and the variance with current valuation is projected to be negative 36 percent."

What do you think is good for America?
What do you think Goldman thinks is right for America?

"What the firm sees as the best path forward for the private insurance industry's bottom line is, to be blunt, inaction."

"The study's authors advise that if no reform is passed, earnings per share would grow an estimated ten percent from 2010 through 2019, and the value of the stock would rise an estimated 59 percent during that time period."

The article goes on to state that a bill that is best for the insurance companies is the one that is most watered down. Of course Goldman states this is just an analytical report not to be taken seriously accept by the lobbyists. That their job was to provide a sober assessment of the market realities facing private insurers under various versions of health care reform.

One only needs to read the report to realize how scared sh^&^tless the insurance companies are over the public option. Health care reform is going to hurt their bottom line. Its so nice that Goldman Sachs is telling them so. Right in time for Goldman to reap more fees.

Thanks for letting us in on how the system really works.