"Insurance companies are not money trees. They (go) out into the market and buy health care services and resell those services at some markup at health care consumers. I would argue that markup is not that much," one analyst said. ABC reports, "the profit margins the health insurance companies report — often below 5 percent — pace some industries and lag behind many others" (Gomstyn, 11/10).
Health Insurance Industry Profits Examined
The characterization of the health insurance industry as high-profit is "a little mystifying" and "rather silly" given that their profit margins are thin compared to other industries, according to analysts interviewed by ABC News. 