Health Insurance Exec Admits Her Industry Rations Care: "We Believe In Controlling Utilization"

America is the only industrialized nation with no uniform / universal health care.

Why?

Because the majority of people have swallowed the "Corporate Fear Mongering" that Socialized Medical Care for everyone is "communistic".

Right, keep gulping down that corporate bs.

Who benefits if things continue the way they have been?

Below quote taken from this excellent site: www.huffingtonpost.com...

In a New York Times story today about health insurance executives and their employees complaining about criticism of the health insurance industry, one executive acknowledges that the industry is all about rationing care:

"I believe we're getting the pushback because we are standing up for what we believe in," said Cheryl Tidwell, 45, Humana's director of commercial sales training. "We believe there's a better way to control costs by controlling utilization and getting people involved in their health care."

Now, I know we're supposed to think that private for-profit health care companies don't ration care, while government-run programs like Medicare do - but as the insurance industry admits right here for all to see, that's just not the case. The obvious truth is that the health insurance industry works hard to "control utilization" - that is, it works hard to make sure that when you need a costly medical service, you are "controlled" (read: prevented) from getting it.

Sure, we're all against excessive testing - and there are good ways to deal with those inefficiencies. But that's not what the insurance industry is talking about. It is talking about its practice of rationing care - and now that reality is right there in black and white for all to see.

Health Care

Barack Obama

In a New York Times story today about health insurance executives and their employees complaining about criticism of the health insurance industry, one executive acknowledges that the industry is all ...
In a New York Times story today about health insurance executives and their employees complaining about criticism of the health insurance industry, one executive acknowledges that the industry is all ...

Written by David Sirota autor of Hostile Takeover and Uprising.

and how many of us American's have no health insurance? 50 million.

www.americanprogress.org...

The fear of losing your job is a familiar feeling to many Americans today. And for the nearly six-in-ten Americans—59.3 percent—receiving health care through their employer, that fear is often exacerbated by the anxiety that losing a job also means loss of health care coverage—not just for the worker, but often for their family as well.

While the share of workers relying on employment-based health care coverage has declined from its peak of 64.2 percent in 2000, access to adequate affordable health care for a majority of Americans is still contingent on their employment status.

Employers are shedding hundreds of thousands of jobs every month—just last month employment declined by 663,000—and the number of uninsured Americans continues to rise.

Sixty-two percent of the American public believes that the current economic turmoil makes it more important than ever to take on health care reform, and the need for comprehensive reform becomes all the more evident as conditions in the economy continue to deteriorate and more Americans become uninsured.

Estimating the rise in the number of uninsured - Forty-six million Americans lacked health care coverage in 2007, when the national employment level peaked and before the current economic recession officially began. Today, that number is markedly higher as many workers who have lost their jobs have also lost their employer-provided health insurance.

Employers have shed 5.1 million jobs in the last 15 months. Three industries alone—manufacturing, construction, and professional and business services—account for nearly three-quarters of total jobs lost. Manufacturing has shed 1.5 million jobs—1.1 million in durable goods, 367,000 in nondurable goods manufacturing—construction has eliminated 1.1 million jobs; and professional and business services have cut 1.2 million positions.

Everybody deserves good healthcare - Everyone.

If you are hurt or sick you deserve to be cared for period. Just like if your house catches on fire (firemen put it out), or your house is getting robbed (call 911 & police come) or any other social service.

Social Service is not a bad word. It is a "Working together for the good of all".

United we stand, divided we fall.

I was in nursing and watched a young man of 26 bleed internally from a car accident in 1971 because they were waiting to transfer him to "county". Derrick B did not make it to county, the hospital I worked at let him die, again he was 26 and didn't have health insurance.

You don't care......doesn't concern me. Then don't tag me as a friend, I would prefer a foe. If your son or daughter was lying there instead of Derrick this would matter. Healthcare reform is a must and it's time the big insurance companies, pharmamaceutical companies and their lobbyists in DC get the boot.

The health care industry is corrupt and it's time we demand a stop to their bedding down with our government in Washington.

Many people think that having a "medical issue" can't happen to them.

You can have a house almost paid for, your car paid for and work every single day following the rules, paying your taxes, doing what you were told is "correct behavior" - Then, with just one medical incident, just one medical issue and you are screwed.

We need universal health care and to kick the insurance companies, HMO Executives and Pharma executives out of our politicians beds.

Insurers and Politicians Create Health Care Tyranny
By David Sirota

For those still clinging to quaint notions of the American ideal, these have been a faith-shaking 10 years. Just as evolutionary science once got in the way of creationists' catechism, so has politics now undermined patriots' naive belief that the United States is a functioning democracy.

The 21st century opened with a handful of Supreme Court puppets appointing George W. Bush president after he lost the popular vote -- and we all know the costs in blood and treasure that insult wrought. Now, the decade closes with another cabal of stooges assaulting the "one person, one vote" principle -- and potentially bringing about another disaster.

Here we have a major congressional push to fix a healthcare system that leaves one-sixth of the country without coverage. Here we have 535 House and Senate delegates elected to give all 300 million of us a voice in the solution. And here we have just 13 of those delegates holding the initiative hostage.

In the Senate, both parties have outsourced healthcare legislation to six Finance Committee lawmakers: Max Baucus, D-Mont.; Kent Conrad, D-N.D.; Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M.; Mike Enzi, R-Wyo.; Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Olympia Snowe, R-Maine. The group recently announced it is rejecting essential provisions like a public insurance option that surveys show the public supports. Meanwhile, seven mostly Southern House Democrats have been threatening to use their Commerce Committee votes to gut any healthcare bill, regardless of what the American majority wants.

This, however, isn't about the majority. These lawmakers, hailing mostly from small states and rural areas, together represent only 13 million people, meaning that those speaking for just 4 percent of America are maneuvering to impose their healthcare will on the other 96 percent of us.

Census figures show that the poverty rates are far higher and per-capita incomes far lower in the 13 legislators' specific districts than in the nation as a whole. Put another way, these politicians represent exactly the kinds of districts whose constituents would most benefit from universal healthcare. So why are they leading the fight to stop -- rather than pass -- reform?

Because when tyranny mixes with legalized bribery, constituents' economic concerns stop mattering.

Thanks to our undemocratic system and our corrupt campaign finance laws, the healthcare industry doesn't have to fight a 50-state battle. It can simply buy a tiny group of congresspeople, which is what it's done. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, health interests have given these 13 members of Congress $12 million in campaign contributions -- a massive sum further enhanced by geography.

Remember, politicians trade favors for reelection support -- and the best way to ensure reelection is to raise money for TV airtime (read: commercials). In rural America, that airtime is comparatively cheap because the audience is relatively small. Thus, campaign contributions to rural politicians like these 13 buy more commercials -- and, consequently, more political loyalty.

The end result is an amplifier of tyranny: precisely because the undemocratic system unduly empowers legislators from sparsely populated (and hence cheap) media markets, industry cash can more easily purchase tyrannical obstruction from those same legislators. In this case, that means congresspeople blocking healthcare reform that would most help their own voters.

Of course, there is talk of circumventing the 13 obstructionists and forcing an un-filibuster-able vote of the full Congress. Inside the Washington palace, the media court jesters and political aides-de-camp have reacted to such plans by raising predictable charges of improper procedure, poor manners, bad etiquette and other Versailles transgressions.

But the real crime would be letting the tyrants block that vote, trample democracy and kill healthcare reform in the process.

[edit on 5-9-2009 by ofhumandescent]

How interesting that only a few years ago all we heard on the news and talk shows was about the horrors of HMO's and how they rationed care. Stories of doctors getting perks for keeping costs down often jeopardizing patients. Now you never hear about that at all! Can Americans really all suffer from short term memory loss?

You bring up good points but be ready, i hear them coming with flame throwers.

The media focuses on what suits them, their ratings and their advertisers. I still shake my head over much of what is going on with this debate. With all the horror stories you used to hear about "managed care" it would seem that We the People need some sort of treatment for forgetfulness.

I could be mistaken, but I believe the theme for the healthcare issue in the US is aiming toward affordability more than socialization. The present plans reflect a desire to make the cost of healthcare drop. They will do this through government competition and inspection, not replacement with a completely government health care system. This will enable the major insurance companies to continue to exist, while forcing the cost of health care down nationwide. Competition will increase, which may also cause a decrease in new development of expensive equipment. For example, instead of having the MRI today, we would still be using CAT scans.

I predict the new health plan will slow down tech development for new medical equipment, putting the US on the same plane as the rest of the world. Health care will be cheaper, but the abilities of the health care industry will be slowed.

The thing is the Socialist and their collectivist minds think they should get things for free.
President Osama has the communist manifesto under his pillow and he is waiting for day when he can watch them death panel Granny.

All I know is that preventative medicine in this country is a joke. For my own experience, and keep this in mind that this happened several years ago when I had health insurance through my employer. For starters I have flat feet, I know it, as does my doctor. They are flat enough to where if I was to step in water and then down on a flat surface you can see 75% of the outline of my foot from the imprint. They took x-rays and looked and stated I needed arch supports, as it would help with some of the pains that I was dealing with. Ok, so I go to get arch supports. The health insurance I paid into, the one that was offered by my employer flat out denied the claim, stating I did not need it. They did not do the exam, nor were they there when the foot doctor looked and stated if I did not have arch supports, in 5 years I would have arthritus in my feet and require a walker to move around. The reason the insurance company gave for denying the claim, I did not have diabetes. And I had other problems with this health insurance company, from regulating the amount of medications prescribed to me by my doctor to actually getting care that was on the plan from the Doctors that they recomended.
They did not stop and think that a 250 dollar solution in preventative medicine would prevent a much greater dollar amount problem.
So yes there needs to be change in the way insurance companies run and focus more on preventative care.

reply to post by sdcigarpig


I absolutely agree with you on that one! I had private insurance when I had a lumbar fusion and the insurance tired to send me home 4 days post op! I could barely walk at that time and was totally in need of care, which this insurance company did not cover, no home care at all. My doctors raised hell with them and they transferred me to a nursing home for a month. Once home I had to delay physical therapy for 2 months until I was able to get to appointments via medical cab, which made the recovery even slower.

It seems that in the midst of shouting town hall meetings and fears of death panels people are forgetting just how messed up health care is in this country. Considering where we fall compared to the rest of the world, something needs to be done.