Anyone who is talking about healthcare reform and is not familiar with and quoting the opinions of Wendell Potter is blowing smoke up your … And to put it bluntly, Wendell Potter is not at all happy with the current state of the ACA, the one that Hillary Clinton is “fighting so hard for.” In a previous diary, Wendell Potter: "Elimination of ‘Public Option’ Threw Consumers to the Insurance Wolves", I shared a quote:
Knowing the industry as I did, I told the committee that if Congress failed to create a public option to compete with private insurers, “the bill it sends to the President might as well be called “The Insurance Industry Profit Protection and Enhancement Act.”— Wendell Potter
Health insurance companies have actually managed to have laws enacted that make it a crime to not buy their product. They can still overcharge — but the good folks at healthcare.gov (and their bosses) say don’t worry about list price → if you cannot afford to pay, Uncle Sam will pick up the tab. Health insurance companies now make large profits, courtesy of the taxpayers. Hence Potter’s awesome name: “The Insurance Industry Profit Protection and Enhancement Act.”
This is the current state of the ACA, friends. Whether or not we are willing to admit it, this is the current state of Obamacare. This fact may be upsetting to some here on Daily Kos, but in a “reality-based community” the truth is supposed to matter.
If you don’t know who Wendell Potter is, you need to fix that. The best place to start is with a Bill Moyer’s interview conducted in 2009 called “Wendell Potter on Profits Before Patients.”
WENDELL POTTER With almost 20 years inside the health insurance industry, Wendell Potter saw for-profit insurers hijack our health care system and put profits before patients. Now, he speaks with Bill Moyers about how those companies are standing in the way of health care reform.
The man is a god to me, an absolute god. He walked away from Big Money because he could not live with himself anymore. On the home page of Potter’s personal website, he writes:
During a weekend trip to visit family in Tennessee I woke up to the fact that I had somehow come to believe that it was OK to mislead people if that’s what you had to do to “protect and enhance” profits.I came to realize that I was at least partly responsible for America’s health care crisis. When I saw people getting care in barns and animal stalls, it became clear to me that what I was being paid to do was contributing to the growing number of Americans who couldn’t afford health insurance or medical care.
Now I’m trying to make amends—through my books and commentaries, media interviews, public speaking, consulting work and volunteer activities. Through everything I do, quite frankly. That’s the way it has to be.
And God willing (as they say back home), I’ll be doing it for the rest of my life.
Wendell Potter (born July 16, 1951) is an American whistleblower, author, and former health insurance industry executive. A critic of HMOs, and of the sometimes-hidden tactics insurers can use to increase their profits by creatively denying policyholders their healthcare benefits when needed, Potter is also an advocate for major reforms of the industry, including universal health care. Prior to his resignation in 2008, Potter was vice president of corporate communications for CIGNA,[1] one of the United States' largest health insurance companies. In June 2009, he testified against the HMO industry in the U.S. Senate as a whistleblower.[1][2][3][4]
"Senate Panel Hears of ‘‘Raw Deal' Consumers Get From Health Insurers". “Health insurers have forced consumers to pay billions of dollars in medical bills that the insurers themselves should have paid, according to a report released yesterday by the staff of the Senate Commerce Committee.” ""They Dump the Sick to Satisfy Investors": Insurance Exec Turned Whistleblower Wendell Potter Speaks Out Against Healthcare Industry". “As the debate over healthcare reform intensifies on Capitol Hill, we spend the hour with a former top insurance executive who’s now exposing the industry’s dirty secrets.” "Whistleblower tells of America's hidden nightmare for its sick poor | US news". “When an insurance firm boss saw a field hospital for the poor in Virginia, he knew he had to speak out. Here, he tells Paul Harris of his fears for Obama's bid to bring about radical change” "Testimony of Wendell Potter" (PDF).“Testimony of Wendell Potter, Philadelphia, PA,Before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, June 24, 2009 My name is Wendell Potter and for 20 years, I worked as a senior executive at health insurance companies, and I saw how they confuse their customers and dump the sick – all so they can satisfy their Wall Street investors. I know from personal experience that members of Congress and the public have good reason to question the honesty and trustworthiness of the insurance industry. Insurers make promises they have no intention of keeping, they flout regulations designed to protect consumers, and they make it nearly impossible to understand—or even to obtain—information we need.”One of Mr. Potter’s current gigs is as a senior analyst at the Center for Public Integrity, where he published a piece in April 2015 called
”Insurers backed Obamacare, then undermined it. Now they're profiting from it.”
In this article, Potter spends much time reflecting on certain news that had been published by Investor’s Business Daily: UnitedHealth Profit Soars On Obamacare, Optum. Note that Potter describes IBD as a “Wall Street publication whose editorial writers have rarely missed an opportunity to bash the health care reform law.” Potter writes,
It wouldn’t surprise me if UnitedHealth Group executives helped shape the opinions of those editorial writers during the reform debate. One of the things I did in my old job as head of PR for one of the country’s other big for profit-insurers was arranging for my CEO to have “desk side chats” with bigwigs at important publications like Investor’s Business Daily. We would often leave those meetings with an invitation to submit an op-ed, as was the case several years ago when Ed Hanway, Cigna’s CEO at the time, and I visited with then Dow Jones CEO Peter Kann and Daniel Henninger, deputy editor of The Wall Street Journal editorial page [...]
But despite the worry, it turns out that the law the insurance industry’s shills demonized has been awfully good to insurance company investors. One reasons for the glowing results was the fact that UnitedHealth added 570,000 new customers during the first quarter of 2015 from the Obamacare exchanges. And contrary to conventional wisdom, that the formerly uninsured Obamacare customers would overuse medical services, UnitedHealth executives said that wasn’t the case.
In fact, the company’s CEO, Stephen J. Hemsley, said that even with the new Obamacare enrollees, the company “improved” its medical loss ratio, which measures the percent of revenues spent on medical care, from 82.5 to 81.1 percent. He used the word “improved” because, as I noted, Wall Street loves it when insurers spend less on medical care.
That decrease was viewed as a very positive development by investors. By the end of Thursday, they had bid up the company’s share price by 3.6 percent, to $121.60, just shy of the all-time high of $123.76 set on March 30.
In other words, even after the ACA was implemented, insurers have been able to spend less on medical care and increase their profits. There is much more in the article itself, I encourage you to read it all.
Potter also shares a few other items published on IBD’s editorial page to show that the current state of the ACA is not at all sugar and spice and everything nice:
Shock Poll: Half The Uninsured Want Obamacare Repealed—March 3, 2015 Refers to an Economist/YouGov poll which asked the public a series of questions about ObamaCare, and then broke down the findings based on their insurance status. While the “reporting” on the poll results is written for an audience that skews conservative, the poll itself is not similarly biased. The YouGov folks moved the location of the results (which is why the link below is dead), but archived poll results are here: TopLines, TabReport, TrackingReport. One question was, Do you think the health care reform law should be expanded, kept the same, or repealed?Whether or not Democrats are willing to admit it, the public at large is not a huge fan of the ACA: 41% want it to be repealed. Drilling down into the details reveals some intriguing results related to the opinions of independents on this topic.
| Expanded | 31% | 51% | 32% | 5% |
| Kept the same | 18% | 25% | 14% | 13% |
| Repealed | 41% | 9% | 45% | 75% |
| Not sure | 11% | 14% | 9% | 7 |
When it comes to repealing the ACA, Independents side with Republicans, not Democrats — they want, fairly strongly, TO REPEAL the current version of the ACA. |
Democrats generally don’t want repeal (9%), Republicans do (75%), no surprise there. Notice that 9% is less than average (41%) and that 75% is greater than average. The value for Independents, 45%, is also greater than average.
When it comes to keeping the ACA the same, Independents side with Republicans — they DON’T WANT TO KEEP the current version of the ACA |
Democrats are more in favor of keeping the ACA the same than Republicans (25% vs 13). Notice that 25% is greater than average (18%) and that 14% is less than average. The value for Independents, 13%, is also less than average.
When it comes to expanding the ACA, Independents side with Democrats — they want the ACA to be expanded. |
Democrats are more in favor of expanding the ACA than Republicans (51% vs 5%). Notice that 51% is greater than average (31%) and that 5% is less than average. The value for Independents, 32%, is also greater than average.
Re “Not Sure” — This one is fascinating to me. Republicans and Independents are more sure of their feelings about the ACA than Democrats are. What’s up with that? Is it possible that this answer reveals an inner understanding that there is something not quite right about the current version of Obamacare?
Here is commentary from IBD:
The findings get really interesting, though, when they’re broken down by whether the respondents have always had insurance, gained coverage after 2013, lost coverage after 2013, or never had coverage.
It’s not surprising that those who had continuous coverage over these years aren’t terribly enthusiastic about the law … But ObamaCare isn’t even terribly popular among those who gained coverage after 2013 — those who should be singing its praises.
The poll found [dead link] that an almost equal share say it’s been a failure as rate it a success (29% vs. 30%). A quarter actually want it repealed, while just over half want it kept the same or expanded.
More remarkable still is the fact that the uninsured are the most hostile to ObamaCare. The poll found that 50% of this group wants ObamaCare repealed (compared with 42% overall).
CBO Now Says 10 Mil Will Lose Employer Health Plans Under ObamaCare—Jan 27, 2015The latest [Congressional Budget Office] report is supposed to be a big win for the Obama administration because the projected costs are 20% below what the CBO first projected in 2010. [...]
Thanks to ObamaCare, the CBO now expects that 10 million workers will lose their employer-based coverage by 2021. [...]
Put another way, the CBO promised that ObamaCare would cover 60% of the uninsured. Now it says the program will cover less than half, despite spending $2 trillion to subsidize premiums and expand Medicaid.
Wendell Potter is not at all happy with the current state of the ACA. He considers it to be “The Insurance Industry Profit Protection and Enhancement Act”. Close to half of the public at large and perhaps most critically, independent voters, want the ACA to be repealed. They do not like it, Sam I am. They do not like it.
But contrary to misleading propaganda put out by several members of the Clinton family, Bernie Sanders is not eager to dismantle the ACA anytime soon. He recognizes it for what it is: an amazing accomplishment that was an awesome first step of a much longer journey, but not anywhere close the endpoint on that journey. Sanders understands that significant health care reform is still needed, and he is fighting on the side of the 99% to obtain it.
Here is misinformation that Chelsea Clinton spread (and which Politico rated “Mostly False”) about Sanders plan:
"Senator Sanders wants to dismantle Obamacare, dismantle the CHIP program, dismantle Medicare, and dismantle private insurance," Chelsea Clinton told a New Hampshire audience on Tuesday. "I don't want to empower Republican governors to take away Medicaid, to take away health insurance for low-income and middle-income working Americans. And I think very much that's what Senator Sanders' plan would do."
Here is similar misinformation that Chelsea’s mother, the candidate herself, spread about Sanders plan: Clinton: Sanders' health care plan 'will never, ever come to pass'
"I want you to understand why I am fighting so hard for the Affordable Care Act. I don't want it repealed. I don't want us to be thrown back into a terrible, terrible national debate," Clinton said as Hanna took the stage. "I don't want us to end up in gridlock. People can't wait. People who have health emergencies can't wait for us to have a theoretical debate about some better idea that will never, ever come to pass."
The awful, scary implications of both Chelsea and her mother is that Bernie Sanders wants to take everyone’s healthcare away!, which is misleading at best, and at worst is a complete and bald-faced lie. This is fear-mongering of absolutely the worst kind.
Hillary Clinton’s words are even scarier then Chelsea’s: Hillary is saying that Sanders advocating for “some better idea” is both harmful to the country and a complete waste of time.
When Chelsea told her fibs, the Sanders campaign quickly put out a statement:
WASHINGTON – Arianna Jones, a spokeswoman for Bernie Sanders, issued the following statement on Tuesday in response to Chelsea Clinton’s attack on Sanders’ health care plan:
“It is time for the United States to join the rest of the industrialized world and provide health care as a right to every man, woman and child. A Medicare-for-all plan will save the average middle-class family $5,000 a year. Further, the Clinton campaign is wrong. Our plan will be implemented in every state in the Union regardless of who is governor.”
Click here for the truth about Bernie Sanders’ plan to create universal health care.
The link in the statement gives you a fact sheet, which says only POSITIVE things about the ACA, and also implies that the ACA itself could be the very mechanism by which the first steps on the road to universal health care are taken.
Bernie Sanders’ innovative plan to provide universal, single-payer health care to every American puts into action his belief that health care is a universal right. Contrary to claims, the American Health Security Act of 2013 — the most recent bill introduced by Sen. Sanders to implement his health plan — does not leave health care programs up to the whims of Republican governors. The bill lays out a very comprehensive system of benefits, coverage, and delivery reforms to which the states would have to adhere [Sec. 404]. Each state must submit a health care plan for a review and approval process to an American Health Standards Board, which would “determine whether such plans meet the requirements for approval.”
If a state submits a plan that does not meet requirements, or if it refuses to participate in the program, then the bill allows the federal government to step in and do it for them, preventing Republican governors from offering subpar programs or refusing to provide health coverage for their residents. [...]
Ultimately, this bill mirrors the legislative methodology of the health exchanges set up by the Affordable Care Act, as opposed to the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion provisions, which were invalidated by the Supreme Court. While GOP governors were able to refuse the Medicaid expansion, if they refused to implement a state health exchange, their citizens would merely be able to enroll in health care through the federal exchange. Through the Affordable Care Act, 13 states implemented state-based marketplaces; four others implemented state-based marketplaces, yet let the federal government do the IT-work by having their citizens use the federal healthcare.gov; 7 instituted state-partnership marketplaces that administer consumer assistance on the state level while allowing the federal government to handle the rest; and the remaining 27 states yielded all marketplace functions to the federal government. As a result, as of June 30, 2015, 7.2 million Americans in 37 states had enrolled in health coverage through the federal exchange, despite their states not implementing a state-based exchange.
Conclusion — Wendell Potter, whose assistance and expert testimony enabled the ACA to be passed in the first place, considers the current version of the ACA to be “The Insurance Industry Profit Protection and Enhancement Act”. "Elimination of ‘Public Option’ Threw Consumers to the Insurance Wolves"”Insurers backed Obamacare, then undermined it. Now they're profiting from it.” Shock Poll: Half The Uninsured Want Obamacare RepealedCBO Now Says 10 Mil Will Lose Employer Health Plans Under ObamaCare Close to half of the public at large and perhaps most critically, independent voters, want the ACA to be repealed. Independents side with Republicans, not Democrats — they don’t want to keep the current version of the ACA Independents side with Republicans, not Democrats — they want, fairly strongly, to repeal the current version of the ACA Over half of Democrats want the ACA to be expanded! and Independents agree! Do you think the health care reform law should be expanded, kept the same, or repealed?| Expanded | 31% | 51% | 32% | 5% |
| Kept the same | 18% | 25% | 14% | 13% |
| Repealed | 41% | 9% | 45% | 75% |
| Not sure | 11% | 14% | 9% | 7 |
The only candidate in the 2016 election who is continuing the fight for major reforms to the ACA is Bernie Sanders. The only candidate who wants to take strong action to rein in the abuses of insurance companies who “make promises they have no intention of keeping” and ”flout regulations designed to protect consumers” is Bernie Sanders. The only candidate in the 2016 election who has presented plans instead of snake oil for universal health care is Bernie Sanders. Here are actual links to actual information about actual plans for universal health care on Bernie’s website:
Medicare for All — OverviewMedicare for All — Full PlanSanders Response to Clinton Health Care Attacks — OverviewSanders Response to Clinton Health Care Attacks — Fact SheetBernie is not out to take anyone’s health care away, he wants to expand and improve on the ACA:
The Affordable Care Act was a critically important step towards the goal of universal health care. Thanks to the ACA, more than 17 million Americans have gained health insurance. Millions of low-income Americans have coverage through expanded eligibility for Medicaid that now exists in 31 states. Young adults can stay on their parents’ health plans until they’re 26. All Americans can benefit from increased protections against lifetime coverage limits and exclusion from coverage because of pre-existing conditions. Bernie was on the U.S. Senate committee that helped write the ACA.
But as we move forward, we must build upon the success of the ACA to achieve the goal of universal health care. Twenty-nine million Americans today still do not have health insurance and millions more are underinsured and cannot afford the high copayments and deductibles charged by private health insurance companies that put profits before people.
Hillary Clinton is not fighting for universal health care, she is fighting for the ACA, whatever the heck that means, and falsely implying that Bernie wants to repeal it: "I want you to understand why I am fighting so hard for the Affordable Care Act. I don't want it repealed. I don't want us to be thrown back into a terrible, terrible national debate.” Those are the words of an expert politician who knows how to use language in misleading ways. She implies, but doesn’t actually say, that Bernie wants to repeal the ACA. She built a strawman argument and knocked it down, implying that she is superior to Sanders. But Bernie never, ever said he wants to repeal the ACA. He wants to address the significant issues with the ACA, the ones that Wendell Potter and close to half of America are very much aware of. He wants to improve on it. Please don’t fall for the semantic games that an expert politician knows how to play. How does one address the significant flaws with the ACA without “criticizing” it in even a small way?
Check out Clinton’s /issues/health-care/ page and count the number of times she uses the phrase “universal health care” or “public option”. If you get a number greater than zero, please let me know immediately.
Show me where on Clinton’s website she has ANYTHING SIMILAR TO Bernie’s universal health care plan documented at
Medicare for All — OverviewMedicare for All — Full PlanYou won’t find it, because it doesn’t exist. Hillary Clinton is not fighting for universal health care, at all, she is fighting for the ACA, whatever the heck that means. Not only does Clinton not provide plans for universal health care, she actually criticizes Sanders efforts to provide it when she says “People who have health emergencies can't wait for us to have a theoretical debate about some better idea that will never, ever come to pass."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyT44Vmb0Io
x YouTube VideoAnd what is especially shocking about her pot shots at Bernie is that she seems to have forgotten what she herself said about Obama in 2008.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFOujExdPpw
x YouTube VideoHillary Clinton’s campaign has been excoriating fast-rising rival Bernie Sanders for his proposal to adopt a single-payer universal health care plan. But in 2008, she decried the notion that a fellow Democrat would attack another for proposing universal coverage.
While Clinton was campaigning against then-Senator Barack Obama, his campaign sent out a mailer criticizing her plan to mandate health insurance coverage. In response, Clinton called a press conference.
“Since when do Democrats attack one another on universal health care?” Clinton asked. “I thought we were trying to realize Harry Truman’s dream.”
Actually, Truman’s dream was not to establish a private health insurance mandate. Instead, he called for a single-payer health care system where all Americans contributed taxes and then were covered by federal health insurance when they fell ill.
Sanders is fighting for universal health care, and Clinton is fighting for a plan that close to half of the public at large and perhaps most critically, independent voters, wants repealed.
Please don’t reward Sen. Clinton for spreading misinformation about Bernie Sanders plans for reform. Please don’t fall for the lies that Politico has rated “Mostly False”.
Women for Bernie, Fight for $15, Medicare for ALL
“Health care must be recognized as a right, not a privilege. Every man, woman and child in our country should be able to access the health care they need regardless of their income.” — Bernie Sanders