McConnell: ObamaCare to blame for health care consolidation

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is blaming ObamaCare for the consolidation of insurers after health insurance giant Aetna announced the purchase of a Louisville-based health insurance company on Friday.

“For more than 30 years, Humana has been a cornerstone of economic growth and a great philanthropic partner in our community,” he said Friday in a statement.

“This morning’s announcement, as I predicted during the debate five years ago, is the inevitable result of Obamacare’s push toward consolidation as doctors, hospitals, and insurers merge in response to an ever-growing government.”

Aetna announced the $37 billion purchase in a statement Friday morning that says the move will help the company become the “second-largest managed care company” in America. 

It also adds that it will headquarter its Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE military health care businesses in Louisville. McConnell’s statement urged Aetna to keep its commitment to Humana’s Kentucky ties.

McConnell and other conservatives have warned that the Affordable Care Act could lead to massive consolidation bolstered by last week’s court decision upholding an expansion of federal subsidies. A white paper from the conservative Heritage Foundation from 2014 argued that the law “accelerates the pernicious growth of market consolidation in American health care.”