Insurance Industry Emerges As White House Public Enemy Number One
The other big health care story right now — in addition to the bill yesterday — is the sudden emergence of the insurance industry as a full-fledged reform opponent and all-around useful foil, and the White House is rapidly turning the battleship in the industry’s direction.
Obama’s political operation, Organizing for America, has blasted an email to its massive list targeting the industry as reform public enemy number one. It seizes on that widely-criticized “report” paid for by America’s Health Care Plans finding that reform would hike premiums, which handed reform proponents a big opening to cast the industry as a bad-faith actor intent on torpedoing reform to protect profits.
“It’s becoming clear that the insurance companies will do whatever it takes to stop progress,” reads the email from OFA chief Mitch Stewart, adding that the industry “even commissioned their own slanted analysis of the Finance Committee’s legislation in an effort to defeat it.”
“Now that all five congressional committees have passed reform legislation, we’re sure to see attacks that are even more extreme,” the email continues.
Meanwhile, the White House is openly casting the industry as reform’s leading foe:
“The insurance industry has decided to lead the charge against health reform, and everyone recognizes their motives: profits,” said White House deputy communications director Dan Pfeiffer. “We are going to make sure they can’t sink this effort at the last minute.”
Pfeiffer castigated the industry for releasing a report Monday that concluded that the finance panel’s bill would increase costs for consumers. “They made themselves a very good foil,” he said.
And Senator Chuck Schumer will call today for Dems to push to revoke the health insurance industry’s antitrust exemption.
The emergence of the industry as full-fledged villain has its useful side: It could rally the Dem base behind the White House and Dem leaders at a time of serious, lingering Dem divisions over various facets of reform, such as the public option. The opening of this new front adds a fascinating new subplot as the health care wars enter the final stretch.
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Definitely NEED to get rid of the antitrust exemption for the health care industry.
You knew the insurance industry couldn’t keep quiet through all of this. But really, did not realize they were this dumb. this isn’t 1993 again. People have more sources of information than TV commercials.
Yeah, there are people who are against reform, but they already were. The insurance industry isn’t going to sway too many people and the White House needed a vocal enemy to point at that wasn’t the GOP. Now they have it. they will hit harder than the industry and those sitting on the fence are not going to listen to the insurance industry right now. Those that really care can check things. The persuadable on reform weren’t waiting around for AHIP to persuade them.
@Greg
“It could rally the Dem base behind the White House and Dem leaders at a time of serious, lingering Dem divisions over various facets of reform, such as the public option.”
Making the Insurance Industry the villian has it’s dangers though, and it could be a serious miscalculation by the WH if this plays out wrong. They can make the industry the villian all they want, but the Democratic base (the activists who get Dems elected) will see the lack of a public option as caving to the insurance industry.
If the WH spends all this effort to say “look how terrible the insurers are!” then caves into them, that will demotivate the base like nothing else.
Insurance companies as our enemies?…in an emotional sense..and a real financial sense..I HATE United Health Care. But in a rational non emotional state I simply realize they are in business to make money. They are not my enemy…they obviously are not my friend…and quite frankly they are a middleman who adds absolutely nothing other than another layer of bureaucracy and expense to our health care system. They are not evils per se…but what service do they really provide? And please Q.B./SBJ don’t come up with any free enterprise mumbo jumbo about competition which is incredibly limited in the health insurance market. Most folks don’t get to choose anyway…their employer makes that decision for them.
As Congressman Anthony Weiner points out, the insurance industry isn’t necessarily venal…it simply means they don’t care about us…except in our role as stockholders of the company. They have very little competition and so they don’t have to worry about us as consumers. It’s rather like the old parable about the scorpion and the frog…Insurance companies try to screw us because that’s what they do…that’s what they’re supposed to do..it’s called free enterprise. Free Enterprise is great in some applications but it pretty much sucks for health care.
Why isn’t Holder prosecuting some of these companies for fraud?
The open/transparent aspect to the industry’s attack suggests that they no longer feel they have the luxury (and time) to move exclusively through front groups. They understand that this point in time is different and that they are in jeopardy.
OT but this will be the next fight against similar opponents and propaganda strategies…
A controversial e-mail message buried by the Bush administration because of its conclusions on global warming surfaced Tuesday, nearly two years after it was first sent to the White House and never opened.
The e-mail and the 28-page document attached to it, released Tuesday by the Environmental Protection Agency, show that back in December of 2007 the agency concluded that six gases linked to global warming pose dangers to public welfare, and wanted to take steps to regulate their release from automobiles and the burning of gasoline.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/13/AR2009101301949.html?hpid=sec-politics
If the White House hates the insurance industry so much why are they making us buy their product? What about the Public Option?
This is all staged for the public consumption so as to distract from the reality that their so-called reform is nothing more than a huge middle class tax increase.
In a political fight its always good to have an enemy, especially in light of Snowe’s vote.
Isn’t this a bi-partisan good faith effort fighting for regular every-day Americans against the evil rich selfish insurance industry?…which side would you choose?
Off topic but lol. Dillan Ratigan is hilarious. He completely tore down the head of the Chamber of Commerce. I don’t know if he’s doing it for ratings or if he’s sincerely pissed off but for whatever reason it is, I like it.
“nothing more than a huge middle class tax increase.”
A Weekly Standard reader tosses in his two cents.
I don’t know how Tom Donahue of the Chamber of Commerce kept his cool in the face of Ratigan’s onslaught–saying that these financial services firms are stealing from taxpayers, and the Chamber is in cahoots.
Ratigan’s point had to do with more than $23 Trillion in tax exempt money being used by companies like AIG to speculate with. This started in 2000, and according to Ratigan has something to do with Barney Frank.
Anyway, AIG just gave $20 MILLION to the Chamber to help fight regulatory reform on this loophole. Now Dylan says that Barney Frank’s committee is starting to work to fix this, but it will be tough.
Ratigan pulls no punches, he’s awesome.
“Insurance Industry Emerges As White House Public Enemy Number One”
This just in, Generalissimo Franco is STILL dead.
Dylan Ratigan is the anti Maria Bartiromo…a former financial reporter who has enough of a brain and compassion for his fellow citizens to tell the truth about the financial wizards of Oz hiding behind the curtain provided by the likes of Phil Gramm and applauded continually by cheerleaders like Bartiromo and that idiot Kudlow.
Ratigan rocks..he is the everyman representative who has covered these devils long enough and close up enough to know of what he speaks.
I think this is very useful indeed and I like it that the industry finally showed its hand and pissed off the White House.
This is good news.
This would all be a lot more believable if the Democrats would stop taking so much evil health insurance PAC money.
http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.php?ind=H03++&goButt2.x=10&goButt2.y=7&goButt2=Submit
@rukidding: Do you have health insurance? If the health insurance companies provide no useful service, then why do you (or anyone else here) buy their products?
If you search for “what is the purpose of health insurance” you are likely to find some information about why people purchase insurance and what services the health insurance companies provide.
@sbj…I have “insurance” if that’s what you wish to call it. I think there is a lot of confusion in this entire debate about that…insurance versus health care. In the present state of affairs…I have to trust that when I get sick the resulting blizzard of EOB’s won’t leave me too high and dry.
As I’ve mentioned previously a simple kidney stone added another 50% to my current premiums in out of pocket expense. A few more moderate illnesses…well you know all of this SBJ…you are bright and you’re for health care reform…I take it your simply not for health insurance reform..other than portability if you lose your job. Perhaps if I had your Gold Plated Kaiser Permanente plan I’d have a different attitude…but again…you tell me what you believe the Health Insurance Companies provide in a positive sense for health care system. We pay twice as much as every other civilized nation for worse outcomes.
Again SBJ in our country…Socialized Medicine= The V.A. I happen to be a Veteran and had one week long stay at a VA hospital. I was certainly satisfied with the treatment and obviously the cost..or lack thereof was wonderful.
Single Payer=Medicare…and Medicare consistently scores 20-30% higher in customer satisfaction than the private market.
I guess I don’t get what to me is the complete inconsistency of fiscal conservatives who scream about the cost of “single payer” and how the government is some evil bogeyman which screws up everything…yet trust the government when it spends 5 billion a month in Afghanistan on what? Toss in the billions from Georgie’s not so excellent adventure in Iraq and I believe you’d have bucks left over for health care.
I guess I’m far more afraid of cancer, a heart attack, stroke..whatever..than I am of the Taliban or the Iraqi invasion of Florida. Again 9/11 was a CRIMINAL enterprise not a MILITARY adventure…it should have been…and continues to be a policing matter..not a military adventure. The last terrorist threat two weeks ago was stopped from solid policing…not the Marine Corps.
@rukidding: Nice tirade!
You asked “but what service do they [health insurers] really provide?” You’ve been answered. Your own response to my question shows the inconsistency in your position.
How in the heck did we get on to 9/11 being a CRIMINAL enterprise? Who was talking about socialized medicine or your experience with the VA? You seem to be storing up a lot of anger and resentment and then letting it all fly out of you in a big confused mess at the strangest of times. Vent away my friend, but do try not to go completely off the rails.
@sbj…not venting…explaining to a liberterian who just doesn’t get it. The HCR debate isn’t in a vacuum. Most accurately it would be described as a huge part of our economy which requires prioritization of expenditures.
It wasn’t a rant..a simple question…what reform do you wish to see? Perhaps I unfairly lump you into the group that goes government= bad, incompetent private business= good effiecient…spend on STUPID inefficent military adventurism=good spend on social programs like health care= bad, waste of money
I would like to see health insurance de-coupled from the employer. That is, I’d like the portion of my premiums that my employer pays to be in my check – and I’d like to purchase my own policy.
As it is now – my company requires that I purchase coverage, if I don’t – then I have to show proof of coverage elsewhere.
@rukidding – yours & my experience with the VA are light yeas apart. 6 months to get an MRI, countless trips & it is still ongoing and not resolved – I am wondering if it ever will be.
@rukidding: You called me out regarding the purpose of health insurance. I answered. Then you went on a tirade about 9/11 and war and the VA and etc etc – all of which had nothing to do with your original point or my response. Then you grouped me in with a bunch of ideas I almost completely disagree with (you now admit – thanks!) Now you shift once again to a question about what reform means to me.
I have been posting here for months now about various reform ideas. I am not in a position right now to succinctly paraphrase all of my opinions in a neat reply to you, particularly when that was not the subject of our discussion. Suffice to say that there’s a lot I agree with in the current bills, and much I disagree with. If I may ask, which of the current (5?) bills do you support? Or will you simply unquestioningly support whatever Pelosi and Reid come up with?