Who, Not What, Is Behind GOP Medicare Plan? Private Insurance Industry

[defendandprotect]

Published on Thursday, April 7, 2011 by Center for Public Integrity

Who, Not What, Is Behind GOP Medicare Plan?

The Private Insurance Industry

EXCERPT ONLY --

Perhaps. But know this: Ryan et al would never propose such a fundamental reshaping of those programs unless they were confident that corporate America stands ready to help them sell their ideas to the public. Like big business CEOs, Congressional Republicans wouldn’t think of rolling out Ryan’s budget plan without a carefully crafted political and communications strategy and the assurance that adequate funding would be available to carry it out.

Republicans know they can rely on health insurance companies—which would attract trillions of taxpayer dollars if Ryan’s dream comes true — to help bankroll a massive campaign to sell the privatization of Medicare to the public.

Four years ago, in a secret insurance industry meeting in Philadelphia, I saw numbers that were similar to those in the NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. The industry’s pollster, Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies, told insurance company executives, who had assembled to begin planning a campaign to shape the health care reform debate, that Americans were rapidly losing confidence in the private health insurance market.

For the first time ever, he said, more than 50 percent of Americans believed that the government should do more to solve the many problems that plagued the U.S. health care system. In fact, he said, a fast-growing percentage of Americans were embracing the idea of a government run “Medicare-for-All” type program to replace private insurers.

http://www.publicintegrity.org/articles/entry/3127/




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Re the "secret meeting" -- actual figures suggest it was even more dire for the insurance

industry -- 74% -- and more of Americans supported single payer -- and

rather than relying on a campaign to change the public's attitudes toward private

insurers, Obama made a back room deal to 'PRESERVE THE PRIVATE HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY"


Though again, the "campaign" used FRONT GROUPS rather than letting the public see that this

was the work of the insurance industry.

Main FRONG GROUP -- "HEALTH CARE AMERICA" -- operated in DC by APCO Worldwide/PR firm

And guess what was their first and primary goal -- !!

TO ATTACK MICHAEL MOORE and his documentary film -- "SICKO" -- !!


We might recall that the RCC was also very interested in the health care proceedings --

contacting Pelosi who I believe held two meetings with the US Catholic Bishops --

and we also had the hold up by Rep. STUPAK who held everything hostage for a while over

abortion -- therefore want to mention that Catholics supported government run health care

by 73% -- and when Catholic Latino/Latinas were added it went up to 83% --

and they all wanted reproductive health care included in any government run or private

system -- inluding simple right to abortion/CHOICE --

Catholic women have just as many abortions as any other women.




The Rightwing Koch Bros. Funded the DLC --

http://www.democrats.com/node/7789

http://upload.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x498414

[dkf]

1. That makes no sense whatsoever.

Why would private industry want to insure the sickest among us? Half of all medical expenses are incurred in the last 2 months of life. Having the Feds on the hook for that amount is a godsend.

[defendandprotect]

2. You think insurance companies plan to provide actual care to seniors -- ??

:rofl: