Former Wellpoint VP is lead author of Senate healthcare bill

[rollingrock]

doesn't it give you a warm fuzzing feeling to see who the author of this thing is?



---------------
Former Insurance VP wrote Baucus Healthcare Bill

This is from Wellpoint: "Elizabeth J. Fowler serves as Vice President of Public Policy and External Affairs for WellPoint, Inc. Liz has more than 15 years experience in health services research and health policy. Prior to current job, she served as the Chief Health and Entitlements Counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance. In this capacity, she was responsible for overseeing health policy issues within the Committee's jurisdiction, including Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP, health tax issues and initiatives to provide health coverage for the uninsured. She played a key role in the 2003 Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act (MMA).

Liz was an attorney with the Washington law firm Hogan & Hartson, and she spent nearly five years as a health services researcher with HealthSystem Minnesota." view link

It looks like Wellpoint hired her from her job as Chief Health and Entitlements Counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance. They trained and indoctrinated her and now she is back in government capacity.

What kind of a company is Wellpoint? Wikipedia informs us: view link

..."In August 2009, WellPoint’s Anthem Blue Cross unit, the largest for-profit insurer in California, contacted its employees and urged them to get involved to oppose the Democratic Party-led Congress' plan for health care reform. "Regrettably, the congressional legislation, as currently passed by four of the five key committees in Congress, does not meet our definition of responsible and sustainable reform..."

...."Consumer Watchdog, a nonprofit watchdog organization in Santa Monica has asked California Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown to investigate its claim that WellPoint Inc. pushed workers to write their elected officials, attend town hall meetings and enlist family and friends to ensure an overhaul that matches the firm’s interests. According to Consumer Watchdog, California's labor code directly prohibits coercive communications, including forbidding employers from "tending to control or direct" or "coercing or influencing" employees' political activities or affiliations."

Elizabeth J. Fowler is now the Senior Counsel to Max Baucus, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and leading opponent of the "public option" in healthcare reform. “People know when Liz is speaking, she is speaking for Baucus,” said Dean Rosen, the health policy adviser to former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.). (if you open the bill and look under document properties, it lists her as author).

With Fowler as author one might say that Wellpoint and Anthem BC wrote the bill.


www.eons.com/groups/topic/1843878-Former-Insurance-VP-wrote-Baucus-Healthcare-Bill?page=2#replies

[ixion]

1. and people wonder why I'm not supporting it

well, it's for reasons just like this.

[FreakinDJ]

2. Just gives you Warm Fuzzys all over

like an electric chair

[rockymountaindem]

3. BUT THE INSURERS ARE AGAINST THIS!!!111!

HOW CAN YOU SAY THIS IS A BAD BILL?????

:sarcasm:

[xchrom]

4. Quelle surprize! Nt

[timeforpeace]

5. Well who the hell did people think has the insurance knowledge to write it? Senators? Get real.

For all the political acumen folks here claim to have, naivete abounds.

[xchrom]

6. Naivette -- another word for corrupt

In moderate speak.

[ljm2002]

16. Well, if the goal is to produce a bill...

...that insurance companies like and can live with, then yes, one would expect and even want experts from the insurance companies themselves involved in legislation.

But that is assuming that government's job is constrained by the internal, detailed knowledge of "how things work" in the holy private sector.

If, on the other hand, the goal is to produce a bill that serves the people -- including cutting costs and giving universal coverage with a minimum of complexities and exclusions and the current rigaramole -- well, then, you might prefer that a government expert (many of whom do have quite a bit of knowledge about insurance ins and outs, thankyewverymuch) do the heavy lifting. Someone who is not beholden to the monied interests.

Time was, when corporations big and small were expected to adapt themselves to policies set forth by the government. Nowadays, it's the other way around, to all of our detriment except for the greedheads who dominate the business and political class.

[JDPriestly]

17. Blue Cross Blue Shield was being threatened with a lawsuit by the Attorney General of California

regarding violations of California's insurance laws. This is Wellpoint's response to California's insurance regulations.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of California Investigated for Illegally Canceling Policies

The office of the California State Insurance Commissioner, John Garamendi, announced on March 29, 2006 that it would investigate claims that Blue Cross has illegally cancelled policies and refused to pay medical benefits to Blue Cross members who made large claims.
Garamendi imposed an $8 million fine in 2005 on another insurer, UnumProvident Corp., for illegally refusing benefits to Californians. California’s Department of Managed Care has announced that it will investigate a related company, Blue Cross of California. Both Blue Cross and Blue Cross of California are owned by WellPoint Inc, which owns many other insurance units around the United States.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=california+attorney+general+blue+cross+lawsuit&aq=f&oq=&aqi=

This is how mega-corporations operate. When faced with lawsuits they cannot win, they buy legislators.

http://www.law360.com/company_articles/4341

And here is another of many lawsuits against Blue Cross:

Calif. Appeals Court Nixes Blue Cross Demurrer Bid

Law360, New York (December 16, 2009) -- A California state appeals court has affirmed a lower court's dismissal of a demurrer by a group of insurers that said the Los Angeles city attorney's office lacks the authority to bring unfair competition and false advertising claims against it.

http://www.law360.com/registrations/user_registration?article_id=139616&concurrency_check=false

And here is a lawsuit against Wellpoint itself:

The class action lawsuit alleges a conspiracy among health insurers Wellpoint and Blue Cross of California to reduce reimbursements for out-of-network services.

Some health insurance plans permit members to seek medical care from out-of-network providers. For consumers who have contracted to obtain out-of-network benefits and agreed to pay the higher premiums, health insurers generally reimburse members for out-of-network services either at the actual amount of their medical bills or the “usual and customary rate” of doctors in the same or similar geographic area for substantially the same service.

The class action alleges health insurers used an electronic database owned and controlled by the health insurance companies to artificially set and cap the “usual and customary rate” of doctors in order to lower their reimbursement costs to members.

http://www.classactionfaq.com/class-action-faq/wellpoint/

This is how big corporations circumvent justice: money in politics. It should be illegal. It isn't.

[truedelphi]

40. In a decent and honest world, John Garamendi might have been given a go

He was the best insurance overseer the state of California has ever had.

[bvar22]

46. Nonsense.

This is the same old rationalization that was used to
justify Obama's selection of the crooks who caused the Meltdown of the Economy for his cabinet.


Here is a bullet proof Heath Care Reform Bill that was written by those who actually represent Americans and NOT the Health Insurance Cartel.

Can YOU see the difference?

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c109:H.R.676:

[OregonBlue]

7. This article is 3 months old. It's been posted many times.

[Fumesucker]

10. I haven't seen it before..

Redundancy is a feature on DU, not a bug.

[liberal_at_heart]

21. I haven't seen it before either

[laughingliberal]

15. My first time to see it. Of course we knew the industry wrote it but nice to see a name

And the company Evan Bayh's wife works for, no less.

[Fumesucker]

8. What is Wellpoint's stock doing in the market?

I thought you'd never ask.

It has roughly doubled since March of this year.

[rollingrock]

14. I can see why

the stock market shot up 2,000 points since Obama took office...his 'too big to fail' industry bailouts are behind it.

[FollowTheCash]

23. Not Persuasive

Indeed, Wellpoint's stock has doubled since March. However, this does not buttress the argument that the "fix is in", to wit:


- The S&P entire 500 is up 70% since March. Dozens of stocks have also roughly doubled since then, e.g. Apple, Microsoft, GE, Advanced Micro Devices, Alcoa, etc. Are they in on the fix too?

- Insiders at Wellpoint have been doing nothing but selling for over a year. If they knew something you didn't know then wouldn't we see at least one insider purchase?

- The P/E ratio for Wellpoint is about 12 versus an historical average of about 18. This reflects the uncertainty of the political outcome. In other words, $30 per share is being left on the table.

If you are so certain that the fix is in then you should be buying Wellpoint stock. If it simply returns to its historical P/E level then you will make 50% on your money. If their earnings also rise as result of the fix then you will be more than doubling your money. Use the profits to donate to candidates who are true believers in single payer. Can't beat 'em, join 'em.

Just sayin'............

[Fumesucker]

24. I made no argument at all..

Just posted the chart of Wellpoint for the last year and the observation that the price has basically doubled since March.

I think it's arguable though that if HCR was going to be *bad* for Wellpoint then the market would not have done them quite so proud.

Edited to add: Welcome to DU.. :hi:

[liberal_at_heart]

26. Remember when stocks went down because the president even suggested bank regulations?

He sure caved fast when the market went down. No bank regulations. Now the market is doing great. If the president was really talking serious government public option on the Healthcare bill the market would be going down again. The market isn't even scared of the House's version of the bill. That says something right there.

[Fumesucker]

27. That's my take on things too..

If HCR seriously threatened the insurance companies their stocks would be dropping like stones.

Clearly that isn't happening.

[FollowTheCash]

28. More on WLP

Thanks for the welcome.

The current market capitalization of Wellpoint is about $27 billion (number of shares outstanding multiplied by the price per share). Of course there is also United Health, Aetna, etc. which accounts for billions more.

If a magic "single payer" wand could be waved then what happens to the $27 billion? Poof.... the shareholders get wiped out. Before we rub our hands in glee consider the fact that the brunt of this wealth destruction would be borne by John Q. Public either as small shareholders themselves or via their mutual funds, 401(k) accounts, union retirement plans, etc. HCR is not a simple matter, lots of collateral issues to be teased apart.

In the interest of full disclosure, I just sold my Wellpoint stock for fear that it will be hammered. I am a long term investor, not a trader. Ten years from now there may be no health insurance companies at all ( God willing and the creek don't rise ). By definition I sold it to someone who thinks it is going up. Differences of opinion make horse races, no?

[Fumesucker]

29. Even in the UK with its NHS it is indeed possible to purchase private health insurance

So any worries of Wellpoint just vanishing into thin air are a bit on the hysterical side I think.

And $27 billion is almost lost in rounding errors in a $14 trillion economy.

Clearly there are a lot of investors who disagree with your analysis of the situation with regards to HC stocks, but as you say, that makes a horse race..

[inna]

9. it's been known for many months, but thanks for giving it more publicity.

kr.

[Thickasabrick]

11. Too disgusting for words. nt

[notesdev]

12. I TOLD YOU SO

And I told you I was going to tell you I told you so

Consider yourself told!

[Raine]

13. Yup the fix is in

always has been. x(

[liberal_at_heart]

18. disgusting

:puke:

[Nikki Stone1]

19. HO--LY--SHIT!

:grr:

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

20. Complete and Unadulterated Bullshit

The bill is 2072 pages long. It was the result of, among other things, lengthy negotiations between the Senate Majority Leader and recalcitrant members of the Senate (like Ben Nelson). The idea the one Senate staff member alone is responsible for writing an entire Senate Bill shows an utter lack of understanding as to how legislation is written.

[liberal_at_heart]

25. There are six healthcare lobbyists for every member of Congress

This is not a small problem.

[sabrina 1]

49. And don't forget, the money that pays for those lobbbyists

and the bribes they pay to Congress, comes directly from Insurance Premiums paid by people who assume they are paying for health care.

That is why we need to remove these parasites from our Health Care system completely. That move alone, would save one third fo the total cost of Health Care. We simply cannot afford them.

[rollingrock]

32. Have I got a bridge for you

'Lengthy negotiations?' did you forget the sarcasm tag?

:rofl:


anyway, what I said was, Fowler is the principle author of the bill, not the only one.
...she probably had some assistance from Baucus, Nelson, Snowe, Lieberman, etc.
there, feel better now?

[Name removed]

43. Deleted message

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

[girl gone mad]

22. k & r

[BrklynLiberal]

30. SUHPRAHZ!!! SUHPRAHZ!!!! SUHPRAHZ!!!!!

[Kansas Wyatt]

31. Ya, but he should know the best way to help us all shouldn't he?

:shrug:

Surely, the Pom Pom Squad for this HCR Bill know this guy can be trusted to do the very best for us, don't they?

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[AllentownJake]

33. I'm sure in 4 years she will be a Sr. VP

Mission accomplished.

[dmr]

42. Lovely how they slide in and out between big business & 'civic duty'

There should be a waiting period between the two.

[Hello_Kitty]

34. IT'S A MOMENTOUS AND HISTORIC LANDMARK OF PROGRESSIVE LEGISLATION!!1!

Just ask the cheerleaders.

[nightrain]

35. very old news...

[rollingrock]

37. Speak for yourself please

for most of us, this isn't old news at all.

for one, it hasn't been widely reported in the corporate media so few people know about it. and news is considered 'old' when it is no longer relevant....but this kind of information is extremely relevant to the current healthcare debate. which is why the corporate media whores and the congress prefers the public be kept in the dark about their shady backdoor dealings.

[nightrain]

39. sure, and I speak only for myself. many of us who paid rapt

attention to Baucus this summer knew who was standing behind him, and who was responsible for the writing.

I didn't say it didn't deserve to be posted, I said it's "very old news", which it is.

[amborin]

36. thanks for reminding people of this travesty! KNR

[2 Much Tribulation]

38. if you open the bill and look under document properties, it lists her as author). nt

[JoeyT]

41. It doesn't matter now.

Didn't you get the Talking Points memo?
Insurers are our friends now. They're the very heart of America. The best thing since sliced bread. They've never done a harmful thing in the history of their existence.

You know, from the same people that talked about how insurance companies were murdering people for money, right up until it became obvious honesty might be a roadblock to passing this bill.

[maryf]

44. Thanks

K&R

[ProSense]

45. The Finance Committee bill is not the Senate bill. and this is nothing that hasn't been said.

Gibbs said it is "not surprising" that K Street lobbyists have the proposal, which does not include the controversial public-option plan, before the president does.

link

This is part of what is so disingenuous about this debate. People post old crap and pretend they're uncovering something new. Everyone followed the drama of the Finance Committee bill being amended. The amendments that Kerry, Rockefeller and others were able to add to the bill. It still didn't come out of committee in an acceptable form, but then it was merged with the HELP bill. When Reid produced the merged version, it included a public option and was significantly different from the original Finance bill.

[Faryn Balyncd]

47. K and R. Thanks for great post.

[JVS]

48. This is the kind of stuff the republicans are going to ream us with in 2010 and 2012