DELETE

[gateley]

[NYC_SKP]

1. I found this:

snip...
Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) is now leading a group including Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W. Va.) and Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) to introduce an amendment that would go further by requiring that 90 percent of the money consumers spend on health insurance premiums go directly to health care costs.

The senators are proposing a reform that strikes at the heart of a health insurance system that puts profits first, and it would have a profound effect. When MLRs increase, that eats into profits, and Wall Street becomes very unhappy. A case in point is Aetna, the nation's third largest publicly-traded health insurance plan. Three years ago, the company reported that its quarterly MLR had inched up from 77.9 percent to 79.4 percent in 12 months. On the day this was disclosed, Aetna's share price plunged 20 percent as investors sold off their shares, reducing the company's market value by billions of dollars.

Wall Street investors expect insurers to pay as little as possible for medical claims. As a result, the nation's health insurance industry has evolved into a cartel of huge for-profit companies that together reap billions of dollars a year at the expense of their policyholders. The seven largest firms -- UnitedHealth Group, WellPoint, Aetna, Humana, CIGNA, Health Net, and Coventry Health Care -- enroll nearly one in three Americans in their health insurance plans. This year the industry will take about $25 billion in profits for getting between American
patients and their doctors, according to the industry's trade group.

snip...

http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/wendell-potter-says-franken-bill-will

there are more Google results here: http://www.google.com/search?q=franken%20public%20option&hl=en&tbo=1&num=100&newwindow=1&output=search&tbs=qdr:h

:patriot:

[Pirate Smile]

2. Good info. Reminds me of the market tanking when good employment #'s come out.

They worry it means interest rates will go up and that is all they care about.

[gateley]

4. Hi -- thanks! I just came back to delete my OP because I found some stuff

felt guilty for being so lazy. :7 Like going to Google is SUCH an EFFORT! :eyes:

Anyway -- this is what I was thinking of:
<snip>

Mr. Coburn is a fierce opponent of the government plan, or public option. And his amendment was intended to take a shot at the Democrats by suggesting that they would offer the public plan to everyday Americans while retaining their own gold-plated coverage through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program in a classic example of “do as I say, not as I do.”

But Senator Sherrod Brown, Democrat of Ohio, who is as passionate a champion of the public plan as Mr. Coburn is an opponent, was more than happy to sign on as a co-sponsor of the amendment. Mr. Brown routinely voices his strong support for a fully government-run health system. Absent that, he views the public plan as the best way to clamp down on private insurers.

<snip>

(This was the part I heard on the radio today and I just recognized Franken's voice, which is why I thought it was something he instigated):

After Mr. Brown joined as a sponsor of Mr. Coburn’s amendment, four other Democrats followed suit: Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut; Barbara A. Mikulski of Maryland; Al Franken of Minnesota; and Russ Feingold of Wisconsin.

I LOVE it! Call them on their bluff. And hats off to Chris Dodd. Hopefully plenty more Dems will be signing on..

http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/public-option-for-senators/

Thanks again!! :hi: :pals:

[NYC_SKP]

6. Al Franken is a Gift to our Cause!

I love that dude.

Thanks for coming back with a reply!

:pals:

[Mind_your_head]

3. Franken is fighting for YOU, gateley, et al......

You won't find that much anywhere else.

Follow your conscience.

Peace,
M_Y_H

[gateley]

5. I know that -- did my OP imply that I didn't realize that? If so, let me set

the record straight. I trust Franken and implicitly. I know from the bottom of my heart that he's there for us all. He's one of the ones I look to for guidance to see how he stands on an issue.

I'm not sure about the "follow your conscience" statement -- what am I missing?