1. United States
2. S.C.
3. Letter

We must enact a universal, worldwide prohibition on this practice across all healthcare systems without exception. This ban shall apply equally to Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Affairs, private insurance, and every other public and private payer in the United States and globally. The intent is not to punish or defame any company, but to acknowledge past failures, close systemic loopholes, and ensure the practice cannot recur in any form. collaborate with all stakeholders, including the companies with the expertise to deliver care, to rebuild a single, transparent system that serves every taxpayer and patient equitably. SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the MONOPOLISH - Monopolistic SUSTAINABLY ACT FOR VERTICAL INTEGRATION IN HEALTH CARE. SEC. 2. because we the people and Congress finds that-(1)UnitedHealth Group owns UnitedHealthcare, the nation's largest private insurer, and its subsidiary Optum employs or affiliates with roughly 90,000 physicians, about 10 percent of all doctors in the United States;(2)A study published in Health Affairs found UnitedHealthcare pays Optum doctors 17 percent more than unaffiliated physicians, and 61 percent more in markets where UnitedHealthcare holds at least 25 percent market control;(3)The Government Accountability Office in its September 2025 report found all ten of the largest insurers have acquired physician practices, but noted less is known about the effects of insurer ownership specifically;(4)This structure creates a conflict of interest, because Federal law requires insurers to spend 80 to 85 percent of premiums on medical care, and payments to owned physician groups count toward that requirement even when the money never leaves the company. SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON INSURER OWNERSHIP OF PHYSICIAN PRACTICES.(a)IN GENERAL-No health insurer or common corporate parent of a health insurer may directly or indirectly own, or hold a controlling interest in, a physician practice or care delivery network.(b)DIVESTITURE-Any entity in violation of subsection(a)on the date of enactment shall divest such ownership within 2 years. SEC. 4. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE AUDIT. The Comptroller General shall conduct an audit to examine:(1)whether insurer-owned providers receive preferential reimbursement rates;(2)whether prior authorization denial rates are lower for owned providers versus unaffiliated providers;(3)how internal payments affect compliance with the medical loss ratio under section 2718 of the Public Health Service Act;and(4)the total cost impact on premiums and out-of-pocket spending for patients and taxpayers. A report shall be submitted to Congress within 1 year of enactment. SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT. The Department of Justice Antitrust Division shall have authority to enforce Section 3, consistent with its ongoing antitrust investigation into physician acquisitions and contracting practices and its criminal probe into Medicare Advantage billing practices. SEC. 6. PURPOSE. To close the loophole that allows insurer dollars to be counted as medical care when they never leave the company, and to prevent surprise health insurance fee and tax increases driven by vertical integration. One systematic where all benefit from the most important source (which is the healcare of people and not dollars $$$$$$) ❤