(Chicago, Illinois) Secretary Herman. Secretary Shalala. Commissioners. Good afternoon. My name is Michael Cannon and I come before you to represent the 250,000 members of Citizens for a Sound Economy Foundation who believe consumer choice and competition among health care and coverage providers are the keys to consumer protection. These tools enable consumers and health coverage providers to discipline those providers who fail to offer a quality product.

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In 1994, the American people rejected the Clinton health care plan and others like it that would have substituted the judgment of politicians and bureaucrats for that of patients and their doctors. Yet, that victory has proved short-lived. Today, lawmakers who fought government-run health care three years ago, some of whom even rode into office on the issue, are now its biggest supporters.

In 1996, Congress and President Clinton enacted legislation that requires health insurance companies to provide -- and requires consumers to buy -- certain health benefits. These mandated benefits were hailed as a "consensus" approach to health care reform. Today, a number of additional health benefit mandates are being proposed. This paper discusses how mandated benefits do more harm than good.