Indicating that private insurers stand to gain the most from millions of customers driven to them through health care reform legislation, three Democratic senators think its time insurers help foot the bill for an expansive overhaul.

Charles E. Schumer

U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) are urging private health insurers to accept tighter regulation, increased competition and new fees in order to ensure true reform efforts, according to a statement from the three legislators.

Cost has been one of the key issues in several Congressional efforts to overhaul the nation’s health care system, with price tags for change reaching into the trillions of dollars, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The senators said depending on how a fee is established, they see a realistic benefit of $100 billion from the insurance industry.

Schumer said the current health care system is “working all too well for many private health insurers.”

“They need to become a better partner as we work to enact a health care reform bill without adding to the deficit,” he said in a statement. “It only makes sense that the health insurance industry, which stands to gain over 40 million new consumers under a reformed system, should pay its fair share.”

Citing Securities and Exchange Commission filings compiled by advocacy group Health Care For America Now, the trio noted that over the last eight years, profits at the top 10 health insurers rose 428%. Over the same time period, the average premium has doubled to $12,680, so the senators suggested that health insurers “have an interest in preserving the status quo.”

With the hospital and pharmaceutical industries announcing cost-cutting agreements, the senators urged the insurance industry to follow suit, even though they stand to gain 40 million customers under proposed health reform legislation, they said.

Menendez called it “clear, and disturbing, that private insurers have used the market power they have gained to boost their bottom line, regardless of the cost to our families.”

“Meanwhile Americans find themselves with fewer and fewer health insurance options at higher and higher costs,” he said. “The time has come for insurance companies to step up to our health care challenge. It is time for them to be part of the solution.

In addition to a new fee, the senators also are calling for a “community rating,” preventing insurance companies from charging some consumers more based on health status and “guaranteed issue,” meaning no one is denied the offer of insurance.

The group is also backing an insurance exchange that would add competitive pressure on all insurers to attract consumers.

Stabenow added that health care “needs to be for patients, not profits,” and urged private insurers to be a better partner in ongoing reform efforts.