Venture Capitalists to CNBC: Obamacare is a Godsend

Lost in the funhouse rhetoric of anti-ACA fanatics is an irrefutable fact; lots of aggressive capitalists, hardly the sort to embrace socialism, are going to make a mint from the law’s proliferation.

Over at CNBC, Cadie Thompson corrals a sampling of mercenary sugar-daddies (and mommies), and discovers that the venture community can’t believe its good luck. Because Obamacare is going to be an historic boon for them, if they pick the right horses.

“This is the greatest opportunity I’ve seen in my lifetime. It’s the first time we are seeing really fundamental changes happen. And there’s a lot of money that can be made as this chaos is sorted out,” said Lisa Suennen, the co-founder and managing member of Psilos Group, a health-care-focused venture capital firm.

Ms. Suennen shows her math:

“Just like when the Internet first came about, it was the guys who built routers and servers that made all the money it will be the guys building the backbones and enterprise software systems for these exchanges that will make a lot of money,” said Suennen.

But it’s not just enterprising startups; Comcast, hardly a spring chicken, has a venture arm that stands to profit immensely when the ACA gains steam:

Data companies also will be key in helping companies decide whether or not they should adopt a private exchange or keep their health plans, said Michael Yang, managing director of Comcast Ventures.

Basically, employers will need to figure out which health-care option is more affordable for them to provide and that creates demand for companies that can analyze data about their current and past employees, Yang said.

The next time you’re advised that the ACA is communism in socialist clothing, kindly direct the interlocutor to the business press — or better yet, to one of the slew of ACA-related companies positioned to make out like greased bandits, all thanks to old-fashioned capitalism.

By: rhb

Rob is a NYC-based Internet entrepreneur. He's also a businessman and job creator (wait: doesn't demand create jobs?) who understands the sense, and the eventual predominance, of the progressive agenda.