Your medical insurer run terra checks on you

[Atman]

Part of the PA.

CNN just finishes a segment on this. They've learned that the major health insurers are following a Bush order that anyone doing business with terrorists are complicate in their eventual crimes. So, the insurers say that by doing checks on all of their insured parties, they absolve themselves of liability despite the fact that such checks are not specifically mandated by any statute.

This is a classic "slippery slope" case that the republicans never seem to pick up on. I am sure, had this provision been pointed out prior to any abuses being uncovered, the standard response would have applied...something like, "But they'd never run checks on everyone if they didn't have to...it would be too expensive."

The only thing "too expensive" for an insurance company is paying out claims. Anything that might help them NOT pay out claims is an "investment" or a tax-deductible "expense."

Oh, and did I mention that one of the big insurers profiled came up with hundreds of "hits" matching names on the terrorist database? No terrorists, just matching names. I'm sure those people's lives were rosy while there dental and medical bills were being rejected because the might be "enemy combatants."

Remove Bush, and the PA, now.

[UTUSN]

1. Only Their Incompetence and Our Innocence Is Saving Us So Far

A young married couple I know are going through their mortgage application for their first house. It's been going for months. They are both teachers. They had to submit stuff down to the last penny about their income. Relatives offered for them to move in to save the rent in the interim, which then went into savings. They got called in to explain where that money was coming from. They were forced to submit their TRANSCRIPTS. The dude is a coach and got a bonus for something or other. They were forced to submit a letter verifying the bonus.

They were told all of these things were because of the "Patriot" Act.

Not to mention that they have designs on our e-mails, if these are not already in their pockets. The only thing saving us so far is their bureaucratic incompetence. Oh, and our innocence. It is how long our innocence will save us that is at stake.

[ender]

4. thats not the patriot act...

thats a bank doing its own due diligence.

christ, i'm going through it right now.

every account, every income statement, etc etc etc...

banks have been doing this forever - nothing to do with the PA.

[UTUSN]

6. Transcripts?

& according to them, they were told it *was* the PA. I don't remember having to submit a hassle-amount of stuff 15 yrs ago.

[Atman]

9. I just got a credit card app in the mail...

It had "Patriot Act" stuff all over it. It said the info I was supplying would be used to help fight terror in accordance with the Patriot Act.

Banks have NOT been doing this for ages. This is new.

And scary.

[truthspeaker]

5. ?!?!?!

Damn, when I applied for a mortgage all they wanted was three years worth of tax returns and my last three paystubs. I was approved in a few days - for far more than I could afford. That was pre-Patriot act (and pre-economic downturn) when they were giving mortgages out like candy.

[HFishbine]

2. Clark/Acxiom?

Where are those who pooh-pooh privacy rights in order to excuse a certain presidential candidate?

[markus]

3. Ok. so how does "Big Blue" decide I'm a terrarist?

Are they getting a list from the government?

Under HIPPA, am I entitled to know if I'm on that list?

Ah, slippery slopes are such a, well, slippery thing.

[RobinA]

7. I Don't Get This

How does Blue Cross know if I am aiding terrorists? Frequent claims from hospitals in the Middle East?

Say my name is Mohammed and they decide to racially profile. How are they going to determine if I'm a terrorist?

I can't see any way of them doing th is.

[arcane1]

8. wonder if Choice Point (or whatever their new name is)

is involved in this..

frankly this sounds like another case of using terra as an excuse to data-mine. Adding that enormous amount of data to terrorist investigations would be overwhelming, one would think

insurance coverage is going to end up being as fragile as voting rights in Florida :grr:

which, by the way, hey have STILL NOT RESTORED!!!!