Gibbs slams insurers for discontinuing child-only policies

[Enrique]

edit to put the full exchange...

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2010/09/john-brennan-to-yemen-insurers-drop-child-only-plans-todays-qs-for-os-wh-9212010.html

TAPPER: On health care, WellPoint, CIGNA, Coventry run -- CoventryOne, rather -- have all said they're going to drop children-only health-insurance plans because of these new consumer protections
that the administration is heralding. I'm wondering what your response is.

GIBBS: Well, I think it's, obviously, very unfortunate that insurance companies continue to make decisions on the backs of children and families that need their help. First and foremost, the Affordable Care Act provides a host of protections that many of these families could only dream of. The child-only policies represent a very, very small part of the individual market. Nonetheless, the insurance protection lobby, AHIP, had previously stated their willingness to abide by the law and not make the decision that we see several of these insurers made.

Obviously, we're very disappointed at the decision they've made. But in the end, the protections that we have are greater than, as I said, most of these families could ever have hoped for, in terms of
protecting their children from -- or insuring that their children had access to the type of health care they could only dream of.

TAPPER: Did you call them the “insurance protection lobby”?

GIBBS: I don’t, know what AHIP stands for, but for some reason, "p" in my mind popped into "protection." But it seems to fit, doesn't it?

TAPPER: I just wondered if this was new. Okay.

-Jake Tapper

[global1]

1. It's One Thing To 'Slam' Them - But What Are You Going To Do About It?........

This is probably a big hole in the HCR law for the insurance companies. How was this not anticipated? What are they going to do to plug it?

This is really unconscionable on the part of the insurance companies. How can the people in these insurance companies that make these decisions live with themselves and face their family and friends?

[glitch]

16. At some point the anti-regulators should get that allowing industry to regulate itself

is dumb.

edit: and personally profitable.

[bushisanidiot]

2. This is exactly why we needed the HCR law passed!

bunch of greedy bastards!

[CurtEastPoint]

3. Wellpoint's Braly: The ICON of greed in the HI industry...

This, I think, bears reposting. FOR PROFIT H/C is NOT the way to go as it is all about greed and shareholders and profits and NOTHING ABOUT HEALTH CARE.

The president and CEO of health insurer WellPoint Inc. received a 51 percent boost in compensation in 2009, mainly on larger grants of stock options and a performance bonus as profit and shares gained ground.

Angela Braly's overall compensation rose to $13.1 million from $8.7 million in 2008, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday. Her salary rose less than 1 percent to just over $1.1 million. She received a performance bonus of $1.5 million, a sharp jump from $73,810 a year prior.

The bulk of her compensation came from a 40 percent boost in restricted stock and stock options, totaling just under $10.2 million. The boost came as the company's stock price steadily gained ground over the year, closing 38 percent higher at $58.29.

Profit also surged in 2009 to $4.75 billion, or $9.88 per share, from $2.49 billion, or $4.76 per share, because of the sale of its NextRx subsidiary to Express Scripts. Even without the sale, the company said it would have earned $6.09 per share.

[young but wise]

4. It's great that they have spoken up about it, but what are

they going to do about it. They need to stop these fuckers from doing this.

[Name removed]

5. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[golddigger]

6. A strongly worded statement replaces

strongly worded letter.

[CoffeeCat]

7. Pardon me for being bitchy...

...but when you allow the insurance companies to write the "healthcare legislation" is it
any wonder that these things happen?

When those healthcare and insurance lobbyists descended on DC--weeks before the legislation
was even discussed--everyone knew damn well what they were doing. Those lobbyists met with
our politicians and with the WH before one word was penned. You could hear the arm twisting
and the cocktail glasses clinking from Oregon.

They demanded those loopholes. They knew how they would get around the "good parts" of
this legislation--before the vote happened.

No one in DC is shocked about this. Please. Stop insulting us.

When you allow the health-insurance industry to dictate policy--and when you STILL allow them
to be at the epicenter of our healthcare system--it is a NO WIN for the people.

Health insurance companies are about profits. That will always conflict with what is
best for patients.

I am sick and tired of the gaped mouths--wondering how it all went wrong as they wag a finger
toward these health-insurance companies. They knew. They knew what they were dealing with.

It's only going to get worse as new health-insurance company injustices are revealed. They
will shred any reform to bits--as they figure out numerous other fiendish ways to get
around any "reform" that is in the bill.

[Enrique]

8. you must be thinking of Liz Fowler

former VP of Wellpoint, who as Max Baucus wrote the version of HCR reform which actually became law. Now she's in the Obama administration in an oversight role.

[Supersedeas]

18. ya have to wonder whether Liz Fowler and Max Baucus and their crew knew ahead of time that this

would happen and that it would happen RIGHT BEFORE THE ELECTION.

[alsame]

10. You are exactly right. nt

[Nite Owl]

15. +++++++1,000,000,000,000

It is terribly insulting that they act all shocked. They let this happen!
This bill was a gift to the insurance companies.

[JustAnotherGen]

9. Dear Mr. Gibbs:

Medicare For All Now.

With Not So Warm Regards,

The person in NJ that wrote her Republican Congressman 138 times during the health insurance debate.

[democrank]

11. Gee whiz.........

another thing we`re not supposed to "whine" about.

[DrToast]

12. "I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!"*

*

[ProSense]

13. Good for Gibbs

Insurance companies last gasp and an opportunity to expose their greed.

For Many, Health Care Relief Begins Today

[Enrique]

14. last gasp

I have the feeling the insurance companies are going to let out a lot of last gasps in the coming years, and that their greed will continue to be exposed over and over again.

[MikeW]

20. I have a feeling .... they wont care

[Cha]

22. It's not pretty.nt

[eridani]

17. Note to Gibbs

What in fucking HELL did you THINK they were going to do?

[depakid]

19. Same thing people with any experience with health policy matters told them

repeatedly would happen.

[ibegurpard]

21. what the fuck did you think they were going to do???

you gave away the fucking farm and now they have their mandates and no competition and they can spend money to elect people who will simply repeal what good there WAS in the bill.
THAT IS WHY WE NEEDED A STRONG PUBLIC OPTION!

[smalll]

23. Well, he can slam them, but they can still do it.

The absolue BEST-case scenario with this dog of a healthcare bill we got is this: it just re-jiggers our contemporary baroque healthcare nonsense just that much that, after a few years, it will crash-and-burn so bad that we will have no choice but to finally bring single-payer to these fruited plains.

Of course, for the next few years, all anyone will know is that 1) health care continues to get more ridiculous, more exlusionary, and more expensive and 2) that the Democrats were the last ones to rejigger the system.

Waiting for Gotterdammerung.

Perhaps a good long-term strategy, but it won't help us over the next few election cycles. :shrug: