McDonald’s Corp. says the health care overhaul may force many of its franchises to close. According to a report by the Kansas City Star, The Department of Health and Human Services is having some serious discussions with the fast food giant over impending changes in health insurance. New regulations force health plans to spend at least 80 percent of premium dollars on medical costs, which is what McDonald’s has an issue with. According to reports, the company worries that forcing these ratios will force franchises out of business. McDonald’s says it may have to change its current insurance plan.

Government officials say they’re working closely with business like McDonald’s to work through issues with the insurance ratios. “Medical-loss ratios are important because they demonstrate to the employer or family that premium dollars are being used on health care,” Illinois Department of Insurance Director Michael McRaith told the Kansas City Star. McRaith and other insuranc commissioners are developing guidelines on medical-loss ratios for the Obama administration. The government plans to issue guidance about the ratios by the end of the year so that companies have a better idea as to what is considered a medical expense and what isn’t.

A study by the American Journal of Public Health found that larger health, disability and long term care insurance providers are investing big bucks into fast food chains including McDonald’s and Pizza Hut. The investments reached nearly $2 billion dollars according to Dr. Wesley Boyd, an author of the study and clinical professor at Harvard Medical School. According to the study:

• Northwestern Mutual owns $422.2 million in fast food stocks, with most invested in McDonald’s.
• Massachusetts Mutual owns $366.5 million worth of fast food stock with all but $100 million in McDonald’s.
• ING holds $406.1 million in fast food stocks, more than 75 percent of which is in McDonald’s.
• Life and long-term disability insurance company Prudential Financial has $355.5 million in fast food holdings including large portions of Burger King, Jack-in-the-Box and McDonald’s.

Boyd feels that the study shows a need for insurance companies to be held to a higher standard. “The insurance industry, so far as it seeks to make a profit, it does so in an amoral way,” Boyd said in a CBS News report. “In order to generate profits, they will invest in any area they need to … to make money, even if what they invest in, in this case fast food, is an industry that is known to cause people to get sick and to die early.” According to CNN, the authors of the report feel that perhaps the insurance company should use their power to force fast food companies into creating more healthy options.

CNN contacted several of the insurance companies about the study’s findings. One email response from Massachusetts Mutual spokesperson Mark Cybulski called the findings “absolutely incorrect.” Cybulski told CNN that as of the end of 2009 the company held less than $1.4 million in fast food stock which equals less than one-hundredth of a percent of the company’s cash and assets.

Another source told CNN that if the study is true, the insurance company may profit from investing in companies like fast food and tobacco which contribute greatly to mortality rates. “They are essentially killing off their consumer base, so it’s not a sustainable model in the long-term,” Sara N. Bleich, Ph.D., an assistant professor of health policy and management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health told CNN. “Long-term goals should be consistent with health, because that ensures a large population from which to draw consumers.”