Did Health Insurance Execs Have Their Seven Dwarfs' Moment?

On April 14, 1994, the executives of America's seven largest tobacco companies came before Congress and each testified that tobacco was not addictive. The gaffe by the so-called seven dwarfs, which contradicted evidence in the companies' own records, became a turning point in the battle to reign in tobacco companies in the courts.

Yesterday, executives from three of America's largest health insurers defiantly told Congress they would continue to cancel policies for sick patients who did not lie on their enrollment applications, over simple errors on the forms. That inflamed Republicans and Democrats alike, making the best case yet for creating a public alternative to the for profit companies and new legal controls on insurers as a condition of health care reform.

This could be the health insurer industry's "seven dwarfs' moment" if Congress continues to call executives back and face them off against patients injured by their practices. All the back door meetings on health care reform in Congress have failed to get to the single fundamental truth yesterday's hearing did -- insurance industry tricks devastate the lives of insured patients and there needs to be a public alternative to these companies.

The practice of canceling coverage after a patient becomes sick and refusing to pay big medical bills has come under scrutiny in the courts and legislature in California. The issue made its DC debut yesterday with new evidence. The company documents released by the House subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations shows that WellPoint, the nation's largest health insurer, rewarded employees for canceling coverage of sick patients. Employees earned high points on "performance reviews" for retroactively canceling policies -- a practice known as "rescission."

According to documents obtained by the subcommittee, one employee of Blue Cross, a subsidiary of Wellpoint, received a perfect score of "5" in a company performance review after saving the company nearly $10 million through policy rescissions. Three insurance companies--WellPoint, Golden Rule (owned by United Health) and Assurant--rescinded more than 20,000 policies over five years and refused to pay for more than $300 million in medical expenses.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jamie-court/did-health-insurance-exes_b_216613.html

I'd like to have the names and addresses of some of these clerks who deny people.

during sicko?? people pay their premiums and then get screwed when they get sick. this is the reason why we can't let the insurance companies make the rules anymore. at the very least, if we don't have single payer, we need a viable competitive public option. not small co ops, not some bs 'public option' that isn't actually anything... but areal public option. it will do one of two things... either force the insurance companies to play fair and bring down their costs or it will put them out of business, which isn't to say out of business really but make them change who they are into more of a supporting role. It's competition. I thought that was what we liked in this country.

but i remember watching an anchor on msnbc, can't remember who... a woman i just can't think of her name right now.... who said... we have so many insurance companies right now... isn't that competition enough. seriously!! there are several gas companies and thousands of gas stations all over the country... i wouldn't equate that with competition.

You need single payer so that prior conditions become completely irrelevant as is the case with our NHS here in the UK.
Used to be refered to as "from cradle to grave but" but its actually pre-conception in some cases given that in some cases it covers IVF too.

but i remember watching an anchor on msnbc, can't remember who... a woman i just can't think of her name right now.... who said... we have so many insurance companies right now... isn't that competition enough. seriously!! there are several gas companies and thousands of gas stations all over the country... i wouldn't equate that with competition.

In their dumbing down of America, the Big Corporations and their bought out Political Party Politicians all rely on the principle that if they say something often enough, while acting like they are all convinced themselves, then we will accept it as being true.

This concept has worked a whole lot of times so far.
"Weapons of Mass Destruction," got the military industrial complex their two nice wars, both of which are still going on and on.
"Too Big To Fail" got Wall Street three to ten trillion bucks.

:bounce: Show us what you're made of, crooks!

They are all responsible. They are the ones who should be entertaining Bubba in prison cells for twenty to life, not pot smokers. Get cracking on it.

I very much appreciate having this be a wider use forum than arguing over vaccines and "natural vs pharmaceutical" things.

Working together and exposing true insurance bs is a great use for this forum. Thank you.