Biggest Health Insurer Admits: We Put Profits Before People

Who are they kidding with their new campaign?

Last February, a poll by Lake Research Partners for HealthCare for America Now found 78% of voters believe that health insurance companies "put profits before people." It turns out that a few months later the CEO of WellPoint, the nation's biggest health insurance company, said yes, that's true! In April, WellPoint CEO Angela Braly told investors, "We will not sacrifice profitability for membership." In other words, we won't sell health coverage to more people if it means we will lose money.

We doubt that's what WellPoint will tell the uninsured Ohio residents that they and the health insurance industry lobbying group are gathering tomorrow (Tuesday July 22nd) in Columbus Ohio. That's when AHIP (America's Health Insurance Plans) is holding the kick-off for the health insurance industry's campaign to protect their profits in health care reform.

When Health Care for America Now launched our campaign two weeks ago, it was in 53 cities across the country, including 38 state capitals. We had several thousand people join us. By contrast, AHIP is holding a roundtable with 100 uninsured Ohio residents in one city. What will AHIP say to people who can't afford to pay their premiums? What will they say to those who have a medical condition and are, therefore, unprofitable for the insurers?

We can guess what AHIP won't tell them. They won't let them know that health insurance premiums in Ohio went up 8.4 times faster than wages from 2000 to 2006. Or that WellPoint's Ohio subsidiary's profits more than doubled from 2003 to 2007 to $420 million. And I can't imagine that AHIP will let those uninsured Ohioans know that another thing that WellPoint's Angela Braly won't sacrifice to provide them health coverage is even a tiny portion of the $9,094,000 she made in 2007.

Grassroots? Please. The new AHIP campaign will try sewing its own brand of Astroturf with the goal - according to Politico.com - of recruiting 100,000 activists who like their private health insurance. Now I'm not sure why this is supposed to be an impressive number since there are 158 million people who get private health insurance at work, another 18 million who buy it on their own, and millions more who get it through government programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP. Come to think of it, 100,000 might be a stretch.

But even if they do gin up these pseudo-activists, the Americans they recruit have nothing to fear from Health Care for America Now. Under our principles, people are free to keep their health insurance if they want. They can choose another private plan if they prefer. Or they can decide to join a public plan. If people do stick with private insurance, HCAN would assure they get good benefits and can't be denied coverage or have their premiums go up because they get sick or in an accident. Our rules would, of course, force the insurance industry to "sacrifice profitability for membership."

When AHIP holds its first event in Columbus at noon on Tuesday, they won't be alone. There will be atleast 300 Health Care for America Now activists outside of the AHIP event to give the insurance industry the kick-off it deserves. Feel free to join us. 

(also posted at the NOW! blog)

Comments

[Durango]

The idea for insurance came from ship owners and shippers. They got together and agreed to share the risk. If any particular ship or cargo was destroyed every member would help to make good the lose.

Insurance was not set up to make a profit. It was created to reduce risk.

When you graft profit motive to insurance the whole system goes out of wack.

The idea is to spread the risk among as many individuals as possible. The vast majority of healthy people will support the sick and injured. Because when the time comes, they will need the support.

Insuring only healthy people perverts the whole concept.

The insurance pool should be made up of the entire population of the United States. Including immigrants, legal and other wise.

Every person in the USA should pay into that pool. Every person should be able to draw from that pool when necessary.

Nobody should be getting rich out of the misery of others. The health insurance should be run for the benefit of the INSURED, not corporate CEO's.

The idea is ludicrous. The people paying should be the ONLY beneficiaries.

[joebaggadonuts]

Health Care Insurance = badly treated patients.

[PuppaX]

They're supposed to be interested in profits over people. That's not evil; it's their responsibility.

People who don't like it are responsible to make it more profitable to be more people-friendly (or alternatively, less profitable to be less people-friendly) using the tools available to them: public pressure, the fear of increased regulation or competition, the fear of losing customers, etc.

By all means, pressure the hell out of them; try to get what you want. But please, recognize that their first responsibility is to deliver a profit to their shareholders using the means allowed by law. Unless they are doing something illegal, it is unfair to label them as evil.

If what I've said seems unreasonable, feel free to gather a group of investors and convince them that they should give you money to start a less-profitable insurance company that will have as its primary mission serving the common good. There are plenty of similarly motivated organizations that provide food, shelter, clothing, etc. Why not medical insurance?

Or is it only fair to demonize someone who dared to try to make a profit?

[Marmann]

This argument makes sense in a capitalistic society if you're talking about the cost of bread. When the demand in bread decreases because people simply can't afford to purchase it any longer and make the choice to stop eating bread, eventually the bread prices will come down. These people won't DIE if they don't eat bread.

Similarly, if someone CHOOSES to purchase a car, he/she can visit a Porsche dealer if he/she can afford a new Porsche, or that used car dealer down the street who has a cheap 1985 Chevy Sprint for sale. That is true choice. Regardless of income, they both will drive away in a car.

At the grocery store, people can either purchase lobster and filet mignon or peanut butter and jelly. The choice is likely dependent on their income, but either way, they have access to food.

Supply and demand. At some point, every American will NEED healthcare. There is no choice in the matter, and although you think you're healthy now, in a few years when you're paying triple your current premiums and NEED emergent healthcare and then discover the enormous amount of your bills that your "healthcare" WON'T pay (in the cost of deductibles, copays, etc.), you're in for a very rude awakening.

(CONTINUED)

[Marmann]

ï"¿(CONTINUED)

Healthcare should be like schools. Medicine has been historically a career that promises great wealth, whereas the career of schoolteacher has never fallen into that category, yet people still choose to teach. Those truly interested in healing people will, as well, will continue to practice medicine, and they will probably do a better job, resulting in less lawsuits due to their true motivation when entering the field of medicine in the first place. Every student has a right to an education. The privileged class in this country can pay for private schools if they choose to do so. Healthcare for all should be as much of a right as a K-12 education and not merely a stock market commodity.

[SeriousBlack]

You completely miss the point. The simple truth is that you can't comprehend the delivery of HEALTH CARE to American citizens without the participation of private, for-profit health INSURANCE companies.

THAT is the failure of your intellect. THAT is the failure of your imagination. THAT is why you unfortunately, feel compelled to post such misguided, uninformed, lacking-in-critical-analysis arguments that, like the health care SYSTEM itself in the United States, is built on top of a fundamental flaw. The flaw of private, for-profit health insurance companies having ANY role whatsoever in a health care SYSTEM that is capable of providing good health CARE to the citizens of a country in the most cost-effective way possible.