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A Complete Farce: Ex-Obamacare Head To Lead Health Insurance Lobby

Tyler Durden's picture




 

If there was any doubt just who Obamacare was created to serve from day one (spoiler alert: it was never America's population), we now have the answer and it is so simple, even a 5-year-old can get it. Moments ago Politico reported that former Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner, and the infamous former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services who was responsible for writing many of Obamacare’s rules and regulations for the insurance industry, only to be fired following the disastrous rollout of the HealthCare.gov enrollment website, has been hired as the new CEO of America’s Health Insurance Plans, the "powerful K Street lobbying group."

Cited by Politico, AHIP board chairman Mark Ganz in a statement that"There is no better individual than Marilyn to lead our industry through the increasingly complex health care transformation that is underway. She has the respect and trust of policymakers and stakeholders from all sides, and a personal commitment to advance meaningful solutions for improving access to quality, affordable care for all Americans."

Well, maybe for some Americans: those who are shareholder or employees of US health insurance companies, which as it now emerges, are the biggest benefactors of Obamacare because from the very beginning, they had their own operative setting up the rules and regulations of the biggest US healthcare overhaul in history to benefit, drum roll, them.

And now the same insurance companies, just to benefit some more, are poised or already in process of hiking insurance premiums across America and crush the spending power of ordinary Americans, those who were supposed to benefit from Obama's socialized healthcare dream.

The Affordable Care Act has been a mixed bag financially for insurers, said Robert Laszewski, an industry consultant. The expansion of Medicaid and the continued growth of private Medicare plans have been a boon for insurers, he noted. But the law’s new health insurance exchanges have been more troublesome for health plans, many of which are seeking greater rate hikes in 2016.

 

“They’re getting creamed,” Laszewski said of plans in the exchange business. “Any time you see a rate increase above 7, 8, 9 percent, they’re losing money.”

Actually, that's bullshit: any time you see a 9% increase (or much more), it means there is cartel pricing in action, and thanks to the Supreme Court's ruling supporting Obamacare, healthcare is now a tax on Americans and one has no choice but to pay whatever premium incueases are imposed on them.

It gets even more comical:

Tavenner can push the group’s agenda in Congress, but she will face a ban on direct communications with the agency that she oversaw. That restriction shouldn’t present too much of a hurdle to being an effective advocate for the industry, said Meredith McGehee, policy director for the Campaign Legal Center.

It won't be a hurdle, but in the meantime, Tavenner will be paid about 20 to 30 times more than when we was a mere government lackey (and quite incompetent considering the billions spent to rollout a broken healthcare.gov) available for hire to the highest bidder, unprecedented conflicts of interest notwithstanding.

And just to show how extensive the revolving door is, Tavenner is replacing AHIP’s longtime head Karen Ignagni, who left the group to run EmblemHealth, a big New York insurer. Her departure was soon followed the announcement that UnitedHealth Group, the country’s largest insurer, would leave AHIP.

So for any 5 year old who are still confused: the insurance industry wrote the rules of Obamacare, and is now set to profit from it, which incidentally was obvious to anyone who has been following the stock prices of publicly traded insurance companies, which if the recent merger mania is any indication will shortly roll up into one monopoly enterprise, thus concluding Obama's dream of a single-payer health system.

And just like that, the corporations win again.

 

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Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:01 | 6316952 knukles
knukles's picture

This isn't even amusing anymore.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:13 | 6316972 Rainman
Rainman's picture

yes ... and kleptocrats being kleptocrats is not even news anymore.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:39 | 6317095 El Oregonian
El Oregonian's picture

We are living in a remake of "One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest".

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:49 | 6317144 TeamDepends
TeamDepends's picture

The only thing that is important now is remembering their names and faces so we can help them into the guillotines they procured for us.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:54 | 6317162 Richard Chesler
Richard Chesler's picture

Obozo's legacy, a tribute to corruption and chicanery. How fitting.

 

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:21 | 6317266 Son of Loki
Son of Loki's picture
Probe: Bogus enrollees kept getting 'Obamacare'

 

http://news.yahoo.com/apnewsbreak-bogus-enrollees-kept-getting-obamacare...

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 19:09 | 6317461 usednabused
usednabused's picture

It wouldn't bother me a bit if someone kicked her cunt in so bad the bitch had to use crutches forever

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:39 | 6317097 HowdyDoody
HowdyDoody's picture

The law was drafted by someone seconded from a healthcare corporation.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:17 | 6317003 Bastiat
Bastiat's picture

Give us this day our daily outrage . . .

Is that warm rain in my face?

 

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:23 | 6317031 Skateboarder
Skateboarder's picture

Revol{t,v}ing doors... h/t to the ZHer who linked this before. Worth sharing with all:

http://geke.us/VennDiagrams.html

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:31 | 6317064 Ward cleaver
Ward cleaver's picture

I agree. In today's world ignorance is truly bliss. Reading ZH has become to depressing to read so I'm going back to scanning USA Today where they have fancy colored weather maps and report on what Kanye and the Kardashians r up to. I'm sure this is exactly what the greedy pricks running this once great nation want but I need to for sanity's sake. Good luck everyone as I go cold turkey.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:46 | 6317126 WTFUD
WTFUD's picture

Never Give Up My Brother!

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:51 | 6317152 TeamDepends
TeamDepends's picture

Amen, never ever!!!

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 19:33 | 6317558 Global Douche
Global Douche's picture

Never, never, NEVER fucking give up! Instead, allow a social revolution (long needed since the 60's) to push down the plunger and hopefully flush down some bank$ters.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 20:22 | 6317702 Jumbotron
Jumbotron's picture

Makes PERFECT SENSE !!!

The Insurance Companies are the ones WHO WROTE OBAMACARE !!!

This is nothing more nor less than pure, unadluterated FASCISM.  

.GOV / CORP.  working hand in hand.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:01 | 6316957 whatthecurtains
whatthecurtains's picture

I'm thinking of something Howard Dean said about Obamacare..

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:04 | 6316962 Dixie Flatline
Dixie Flatline's picture

Somebody has to prop up GDP.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:05 | 6316965 scaleindependent
scaleindependent's picture

Yup,

 

When government is for corporations, by corporations, in the service of corporations... it means socialism. Douh!

 

 

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:09 | 6316986 Citxmech
Citxmech's picture

Fascism is probably a more accurate description.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:20 | 6317020 Ladioss
Ladioss's picture

The Nazis helped to prove that fascism and socialism are not mutually exclusives.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:26 | 6317049 scaleindependent
scaleindependent's picture

citxmech,

 

My point exactly.  Another name for it, corporate welfare, crony capitalism, etc.

 

 

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:28 | 6317053 847328_3527
847328_3527's picture

" Yes we can! "

 

It's no wonder the polls show Trump by a landslide.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:15 | 6317248 FireBrander
FireBrander's picture

"It's no wonder the polls show Trump by a landslide."

You're misinterpreting this poll...the further Trump gets in the "Lead", the more it means Hillary will be the next President.

Sure, Trump will get 90+% of the Rightwing vote, but that's not enough to win...you need the middle ground Independent voters....he won't get the majority of those...dream all you want, but it won't happen.

Plus, the Republican regime is going to toss Trump under the bus here at some point, some how...El Chapo threatened Trump...maybe the NSA, CIA, ect, can help El Shorty carry out his promise to make Trump "eat his words" about Hispanics.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 20:37 | 6317730 Caleb Abell
Caleb Abell's picture

El Chapo may be a better choice for president than all of the other idiots.  At a minimum, he would know how to deal with corrupt corporations like the Squid.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:23 | 6317036 FireBrander
FireBrander's picture

Corporate government is NOT Socialism, it's (failed) Crony Capitalism...the "socialism" part is just what it likes to hide behind because there's enough Rightwing morons out there to eat it up and keep the game going.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:31 | 6317065 scaleindependent
scaleindependent's picture

FireBrander,

 

The irony is that despite all the evidence we see, like the revolving door for banksters to control gov for their purposes, their bailouts and bailins, or the current evidence of Obamacare being owned by health insurances, or other evidence like the MIC owning congress for their corporate profits, idiots here are down arrowing your post. 

We can throw the kitchen sink of evidence and they still will believe in "free fucking markets".  

 

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 21:25 | 6317897 venturen
venturen's picture

"rightwing" I believe you are the moron!

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:07 | 6316975 44magnum
44magnum's picture

WW2 was fought to stop fascism and nationalism. So 70 yrs later those poor bastards died for nothing. Well it wasn't a total loss at least some people made money on it.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:09 | 6316981 Occams_Chainsaw
Occams_Chainsaw's picture

If everyone summarily dropped their insurance on Jan 1. it would shut the whole system down.  That's what it will take to get their attention.  For now they are quite happy with slowly killing the HC industry so the gov't can do a complete takeover.  The insurance companies love it now since they make bank but they will find out that when you make a deal with the devil you pay for it in the end.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:24 | 6317043 DollarMenu
DollarMenu's picture

Yes, and if everyone would turn off their phones and their TVs, and just sit n their asses for a week, the whole everything would shut down - banks, airlines, TSA, Starbucks, and the list goes on.

BUT, that ain't gonna happen either.

 

Too many have their little piece of the current pie, and they can't imagine life without it.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:53 | 6317371 pods
pods's picture

There's pie?

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 19:30 | 6317548 Global Douche
Global Douche's picture

Well, well, well... Just wait until the next mammoth earth-directed solar flare Carrington Event comes. Even if you don't wish it, it may well happen. A nuclear EMP event could do this too.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:09 | 6316983 Chuck Knoblauch
Chuck Knoblauch's picture

Cunts are proving to be just as corrupt as Dicks.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:47 | 6317133 WTFUD
WTFUD's picture

Slippery any roads Chuck.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:09 | 6316984 Seasmoke
Seasmoke's picture

FASCIST CUNT. MOST LIKELY TRIBE CUNT TOO.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:09 | 6316985 WTFUD
WTFUD's picture

Another fuck you all in a sea of fuck you all's.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:13 | 6316996 Dixie Flatline
Dixie Flatline's picture

From her wikipedia page:

Marilyn Tavenner spearheaded the Affordable Care Act website rollout, www.healthcare.gov, that allows people to enroll in health care plans.

Great so the person who headed up the largest failure of a website rollout is being richly rewarded.

Failing all the way top the top.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:20 | 6317019 Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill's picture

Her face would look good on a pike. Come to think about it, Vlad the Impaler

had a better, slower method.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:30 | 6317060 Implied Violins
Implied Violins's picture

I wouldn't even skullfuck that cunt, let alone putting that mug up on a pike to scare the whole fucking countryside.

I'd securely chain her to a rotting body - some poor sod who died because they couldn't afford Obamacare - and leave her to slowly die in a few inches of foetid water.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:34 | 6317073 Budnacho
Budnacho's picture

Soon enough my friend...soon enough.

You know, if ZH wanted to put a quick starter up for a full-page ad in the WSJ with a picture of a Guillotine and a caption of "When you fail next time, we will be waiting for you"...would be a worthwhile thing.

I just checked and about 300K would cover it. I'd be in for $10...who's with me?

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:55 | 6317164 WTFUD
WTFUD's picture

Well intentioned Bud but there Ain't no next time. Rather than support the WSJ i'd rather put a $300k contract on Rupert Murderer.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:04 | 6317204 Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill's picture

For 300k I'll throw in Jamie Dimon as a bonus.

A joke NSA watchers.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:53 | 6317157 Captain Willard
Captain Willard's picture

There is no surprise here. There's not even a revolving door here. They sit in the same chair now.

By the way, Karen Ignagni was a big think-tank "reformer" in the 90's (when I first met her) and supported a lot of the "Hillary-care" agenda. She was immediately hired by the insurance industry and co-opted willingly on her way to making 100x what she would have made as a do-gooder.

So this is nothing new and is really just a continuation of a well-established pattern. All the leading Obama Admin. fuck-ups will re-emerge as lobbyists (see Holder) and private-sector advisors very soon. 

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:19 | 6317014 Rehab Willie
Rehab Willie's picture

brought to you by the most opaque administration taxpayer money can foot the bill for.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:20 | 6317023 FireBrander
FireBrander's picture

The "Health Lobby" spent $500,000,000 in 2009 to "Shape" the ACA to their liking....and in return for that $500M "investment", the government pumps an additional $100 BILLION PLUS a year into the "health industry"...What a great fucken deal...FOR THEM!

ACA IS NOT SOCIALISM YOU MORONS>>>>IT'S CRONY CAPITALISM!

PS> If the Republicans are against "Socialized Medicine", then why do they support the VA hospital system so strongly??? Uber-Right-wing-nut-job Joni Ernst says the Va System provides good care...just needs more money and "reform"...THAT SYSTEM IS PURE SOCIALIZED MEDICINE you stupid bitch...SHUT IT FUCKEN DOWN should be your rally cry, not "reform" and "better funding".

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:26 | 6317046 Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill's picture

No its not, even the NHS in the UK is 100 X better than the VA, and the cost per capita

is half. The VA is a bloated pig in comparison.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 21:28 | 6317902 venturen
venturen's picture

I am guessing you didn't serve in the military for low wages and total take over of your life. The government has good functions...but we are about 100 times too large...and with Obama EVERYTHING IS CONTROLED BY HIS HENCHMEN and their cronies.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:23 | 6317030 Yen Cross
Yen Cross's picture

 I see a huge opening for {cash and trade} related medical care. (concierge medicine)

 The insurance companies are completely gutting production in the United States, and have destroyed most of Europe.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:51 | 6317153 Bastiat
Bastiat's picture

It's happening. 

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:11 | 6317234 Meat Hammer
Meat Hammer's picture

Was talking about this with a buddy of mine last night.  He's dating a chick whose father is a doctor at one of the oldest hospitals in Oakland, Alta Bates. He's doing house-calls and taking cash from people he trusts becuase Obamacare is killing the hospital and it will most-likely end up shutting it down.  It has become a welfare hospital and a complete shit-hole.

FORWARD!

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:25 | 6317045 Meat Hammer
Meat Hammer's picture

Damn, they're so blatant about it now.  They're practically sticking their tongues out at us and laughing like Nelson from The Simpsons.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 19:23 | 6317525 Global Douche
Wed, 07/15/2015 - 17:46 | 6317074 22winmag
22winmag's picture

"...spearheaded the Affordable Care Act website rollout..."

 

Now that's a fucking farce.

 

Just another tasty bureaucrat for the zombies to feast on when the time comes.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:00 | 6317188 Dragon HAwk
Dragon HAwk's picture

Hopefully somebody points her in the direction of Zero Hedge.. and she can read all about herself...

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:11 | 6317231 Able Ape
Able Ape's picture

There's no need to go into depth about the reasons, so to keep things simple: OFF WITH HER FUCKING HEAD!!............

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 21:33 | 6317345 BoPeople
BoPeople's picture

Stinky

But, she too was at one time an innocent child, whose mother and father loved very much.

How people fall so far ... assuming she is human.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 18:50 | 6317358 CHC
CHC's picture

Ah jeez - this fucking cunt.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 19:02 | 6317417 kchrisc
kchrisc's picture

My treason list just got longer.

How's your list coming along?

Liberty is a demand. Tyranny is submission..

 

CAAPTL:

Every American should be compiling a list, call it the Crimes Against the American People Treason List (CAAPTL). A list of known criminal pols, crats, functionaries (funcs), gun and badge thugs (thugs), and banksters that they are aware of.

Oath violating and treasonous gun and badge thugs, corrupt pols and crats, thieving banksters, etc. should be placed on it. At a minimum, their names, crimes, and positions, should be kept for future reference for accountability, trial, and punishment--Retribution.

When the DC US that is currently criminally occupying the American county, and oppressing the American people, finally collapses, these lists can then be used to root out the known criminals that will think that they can hide among their victims--no "Truth and Reconciliation," and no quarter.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 20:45 | 6317767 rosiescenario
rosiescenario's picture

It was very clear to me immediately when the act went into effect: the same insurance from the same company raised the deductible by about 500% but kept the premiums at the same level.

 

Absolutely no surprise that the industry rewarded their benefactor.

Wed, 07/15/2015 - 21:13 | 6317862 MedicalQuack
MedicalQuack's picture

This perception here is all wrong!  Tavenner's background is a nurse.  Hey, the current temporary Algo Man running CMS pushed her out.  We all know it in healthcare as Andy Slavitt who is now running CMS is one time Goldman Sachs banker.  He works algos and not people.  Be sure to tell your Senator to vote no on his confirmation.  Did you folks not notice that United Heatlhcare a few weeks ago pulled out of this lobbyist group?  Duh??

They have hundreds of subsidiaries to include huge companies that are government contractors they own.  Here, look at the tweet and the link in it that I send Schumer. It's the same guy Cuomo took out with the AMA lawsuit that used algos to short pay doctors for 15 years.  

MedicalQuack @SenSchumer Pls vote NO on Slavitt CMS confirmation-it's the same guy Cuomo took out over rigging MD pay for less bit.ly/1a17Omu
Fri, Jul 10 19:58:05 from TwInbox

 

Now the other insurers have had it with United and who better than Tavenner that Slavitt pushed out?  Here the other insurers licensed the United formula to pay doctors less, and guess what, they got sued too, this is the same guy.

They have had it with United pulling them around by the nose.  Here take a look, Tavener was pushed out and sure she doesn't have the business intel that others have but she's a decent person, so the other insurers are using her and paying here to get the "too big to fail" insurer out of the driver's seat.  I have two people from CMS scared to death that Andy Slavitt will be confirmed.  What do you have running HHS?  The six degrees of Bob Rubin, a former director of his.  This is a move on the part of the other insurers to get United out of coercing HHS as they have been doing for years.  Look at this link to where the other insurers licensed the software formulas that paid MDs short.  What did it get them, a law suit or two.

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2009/08/ingenix-data-base-has-some-long.html

Safeco sued Ingenix and Slavitt the CEO of Ingenix now known as Optum Insights. 

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2009/06/health-net-agrees-to-stop-using-ingenix.html

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2010/02/class-action-lawsuit-filed-against-blue.html

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2010/04/class-action-lawsuit-against-safeco-car.html

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2010/05/outpatient-surgery-centers-file-class.html

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2010/05/cma-offering-help-and-assistance-for.html

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2010/05/unitedhealth-subsidiary-ingenix.html

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2010/06/for-top-program-combines-prototype-from.html

And look who created these bogus medication adherence prediction models that Express Scrips and other use that ding you on your scores for not using a mail order prescription service..Ingenix.

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2010/10/express-scripts-new-program-to-contact.html

Let's go current day with these flawed scoring algorithms that deny people access, ok>

http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2015/06/medication-adherence-predictions-enter.html

This is what the other insurers are tired of, the United Healthcare Algo monopoly at HHS which began when Hillary hired Lois Quant from United and they all filed in.  Lois's buddies include Gruber and Zeke Emanual, who says you're useless after 75.  They all hang out at the CAP, Center for American Progess that writes healthcare policy for the US.  The other insurers are tired of this and if anyone can shine some light on the United corruption, Tavenner can.  She had to supervise the Algo Man that Obama has now nominated.  Go over to HHS and see secretary Burwell, as we are running the six degrees of Bob Rubin over there, she's a former director of his.  

So you're off base on this one and the other insurers have had it and that's why they hired Tavenner.  Sure she's going to benefit money wise but why not to help keep a former Goldman Sachs banker from running Medicare.  Just search my blog for 8 years worth of United/Optum/Ingenix corruption and it's all there if you like.  This could have been a bigger plan as well to put Tavenner in as a puppet as well but now it may backfire on them.  

 

 


 

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