Health insurers mobilize 50,000 employees to lobby Congress

[Why Syzygy]

Health insurers mobilize 50,000 employees to lobby Congress, defeat the public option.

The LA Times reports that health insurance companies, on the cusp of defeating the threat of a public option and after winning a set of important legislative health reform battles, is “poised to reap a financial windfall” for their efforts. Big insurance companies have outflanked proponents of reform with a flood of lobbyists, advertising, campaign donations, and, it appears, a well-organized strategy of coordinating their employees to contact lawmakers:

– AHIP, the lobbying juggernaut representing the industry, says 50,000 employees have been engaged in writing letters and making phone calls to politicians or attending town hall meetings.

– UnitedHealth, one of the largest insurers, organized a hot-line for employees to be directed to protests and town hall meetings. In Ohio, the number directed people to attend a radical tea party protest, sponsored by religious fundamentalist Dave Daubenmire, outside the office of Rep. Zach Space (D-OH).

Earlier this month, AHIP President Karen Ignagni threatened Democrats by declaring that if lawmakers vilify her industry, “members of Congress will come back to Washington without a strong sense that health care reform is doable.” Investors and analysts now seem confident that health reform won’t cut into the high profits of the insurers, but instead, will actually be a billion dollar “bonzana” for the industry.

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/08/24/ahip-townhall-lobby/

[Sebastian Doyle]

1. Looks like they succeeded in their mission

God damn the DLC :grr:

[FrenchieCat]

3. Yeah, cause we are helpless and now how to lose a fight without even trying!

Cause it's all too late now!

We fail, because of those always ready to raise the white flag,
even before we try and start to fight.

If I needed someone in a fox hole with me, you would not be the one I would choose.
I can tell now, you would be captured and spilling everything you know to the enemy,
without them even asking.

[Sebastian Doyle]

7. I didn't raise the white flag. Jellyfish Pelosi did.

She allowed these CORPORATIST NAZI SCUM to remove a REAL public option (which was the LEAST we should have accepted) and replace it with FORCED payments (and taxpayer subsidies) to corporate criminals.

That's a bigger white flag than the one Bono planted on top of the stage at the 83 US Festival.

[ipaint]

9. Only in bizarro world would leaving single payer off the table

as a negotiating tool send a message of confidence, strength and determination.

Funny how the "we can't get that" wailers are once again pointing fingers at anything but themselves when it was their assumed position of weakness from the beginning that opened the door to the insurance parasites.

[Why Syzygy]

4. We need a season

of installing regulations for the biggest industries. Only with them restrained should we then go in and rebuild the American wellbeing.

[KansDem]

2. UnitedHealth's CEO Stephen Hemsley makes $3,241,042...

Feirce Health Care

AHIP President Karen Ignagni's compensation is $1,391,383.
National Journal

Getting rich off other people's pain and suffering...

[DJ13]

5. What, millions of dollars in bribes wasnt enough?

[BrklynLiberal]

6. This will defintely be an uphill fight....

[earth mom]

8. So employees are being FORCED to write letters to save their fucking jobs?

:puke:

And people still refuse to see that this is so fucking corrupt it ain't funny?

[wroberts189]

10. knr .. plus check this out as well....

http://mediamatters.org/research/200911060021

[Why Syzygy]

11. Hi!

:hi: Great find, wroberts189