Rep. Stupak Questions Insurance CEOs On Rescission Triggers-10M Viewers Needed

[babylonsister]

Run time: 06:11 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_29CCVI1ao4   Posted on YouTube: June 17, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: June 20, 2009 By DU Member: babylonsister Views on DU: 837

 
Today, the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing entitled "Terminations of Individual Health Policies by Insurance Companies." The hearing examined the practice of "post-claims underwriting," which occurs when insurance companies cancel individual health insurance policies after providers submit claims for medical services rendered.

The Committee conducted an investigation into the practice of health insurance rescission, and the results were alarming. Over the past five years, almost 20,000 individual insurance policyholders have had their policies rescinded by the three insurance companies who testified today: Assurant, UnitedHealth Group, and WellPoint.

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Hullabaloo


Friday, June 19, 2009

We Need 10 Million Views Of This Video By Next Week

by dday

Health care reform is certainly in a fair bit of trouble. But the three committees working on this in the House have stepped up. They released a discussion draft based on the work of all of the relevant Chairmen, which includes a robust public option to keep insurers honest and allow for experimentation in the marketplace. Initially, the plan utilizes Medicare bargaining rates to ramp up, and then will use cost control plans to provide better coverage and more effective care.

snip//

Now check out what these insurance CEOs said after being confronted with all of these examples of them denying coverage to sick people.

An investigation by the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations showed that health insurers WellPoint Inc., UnitedHealth Group and Assurant Inc. canceled the coverage of more than 20,000 people, allowing the companies to avoid paying more than $300 million in medical claims over a five-year period <...>

Late in the hearing, Stupak, the committee chairman, put the executives on the spot. Stupak asked each of them whether he would at least commit his company to immediately stop rescissions except where they could show "intentional fraud."

The answer from all three executives:

"No."

Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) said that a public insurance plan should be a part of any overhaul because it would force private companies to treat consumers fairly or risk losing them.

"This is precisely why we need a public option," Dingell said.

more...

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/we-need-10-million-views-of-this-video.html

[pleah]

1. K&R Once again the insurance companies decide who lives and dies.

Outlaw insurance companies or at least enforce strict codes that they have to follow.

What a bunch of ratbastards.

[imdjh]

2. So 2000 conditions trigger an "investigation" which cancels your private insurance.

Lovely. You buy a policy for your family, thinking you have been responsible, and when you get diagnosed with kidney problems then the computer identifies you as having an illness that you should have been aware of a year ago when you bought the policy, so they exclude that as a pre-existing condition.

This is the moral equivalent, of your homeowners insurance company denying your hurricane claim because you should have known that the builder only used 3 inch nails instead of 4 inch nails.

[PDJane]

3. These men are the best reason for single-payer

insurance that I can possibly think of. It may be legal to deny coverage, but it is immoral and it is depraved, corrupt and dishonest.

[Joanne98]

4. kick