Is the Senate’s “health care reform” bill really a victory?

David Sirota makes the argument that the Senate’s health care “reform” bill is a win for insurance and drug companies:

The Lieberman-gutted Senate health care legislation is a major win for the insurance and drug companies. That’s not to say there aren’t some good things in the bill, but even bill proponents who are honest about things will acknowledge this bill is great for the health industry. Indeed, this is why the insurance industry is now screaming “We win!”

This might explain why AHIP, the chief lobbying apparatus for the insurance industry, doesn’t appear to be against this bill. It explains why the drug industry isn’t airing ads against this bill. It explains why the Chicago Tribune reports that other health industry lobbyists havebeen writing this kind of bill and advocating for it from the beginning. In short, the drug/insurance industry does not seem to be “furiously lobbying” against this bill – they seem to be doing the opposite.

The fact that insurance and drug companies and their lobbyists aren’t lobbying against the Senate’s health care reform bill speaks volumes about who really benefits the most from the bill, and here’s a hint: it’s not folks who don’t have health insurance. Since October 27, when Sen. Joe Lieberman first threatened to filibuster any health care legislation that contained a public option, stock prices for health insurance companies have soared:

• Coventry Health Care, Inc. is up 31.6 percent;
• CIGNA Corp. is up 29.1 percent;
• Aetna Inc. is up 27.1 percent;
• WellPoint, Inc. is up 26.6 percent;
• UnitedHealth Group Inc. is up 20.5 percent;
• And Humana Inc. is up 13.6 percent.

Clearly, health insurance companies are the big winners in the Senate’s health care “reform” legislation.