Shocking: Truth About Democrats & Insurance Companies

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WHO'S REALLY IN THEIR POCKET?
Democrats Demonize Insurance Companies, But Still Cash Their Huge Checks & Rely On Their Lobbying

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"Top Executives From United Health Group Inc., Wellpoint Inc., Aetna Inc., Health Care Service Corporation And CIGNA Healthcare Inc. Are Scheduled To Attend [A Meeting With HHS Sec. Sebelius At]... The White House On Thursday At 11 Am ET."(Jake Tapper, "Sebelius Meeting With Insurance Executives Moved To White House," ABC News's "Political Punch" Blog, 3/2/10)

DEMS MAKE INSURANCE COMPANIES THE VILLIANS

Obama Accused Insurance Companies Of "Deceptive And Dishonest Ads" In Pursuit Of Profits. "In fact, the insurance industry is rolling out the big guns and breaking open their massive war chest - to marshal their forces for one last fight to save the status quo. They're filling the airwaves with deceptive and dishonest ads. They're flooding Capitol Hill with lobbyists and campaign contributions... The fact is, the insurance industry is making this last-ditch effort to stop reform even as costs continue to rise and our health care dollars continue to be poured into their profits, bonuses, and administrative costs that do nothing to make us healthy - that often actually go toward figuring out how to avoid covering people. And they're earning these profits and bonuses while enjoying a privileged exception from our anti-trust laws..." (President Barack Obama, "Taking The Insurance Companies On Down The Stretch," Weekly Address, 10/17/09)

HHS Sec. Kathleen Sebelius Accuses Insurance Companies Of "Raking In Billions In Profits" At The Expense Of The Sick. "In our current health insurance system, too many Americans are at the whim of private, for-profit insurance companies who are raking in billions in profits each year, while policyholders struggle to make ends meet in this tough economy." (HHS Sec. Kathleen Sebelius, "In Any State, At Any Time: A Reminder Of The Urgency Of Health Reform," The White House Blog, 2/9/10)

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Called Insurance Companies "The Villains." "Of course they've been immoral all along in how they have treated people that they insure ... they are the villains. They have been part of the problem in a major way." (Richard Cowan, "Pelosi Lashes Out Against Insurance Companies," Reuters, 7/30/09)

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) Called Insurance Companies "Greedy" And Cited Their Profits As A Reason For Reform. "Majority leader Harry Reid, D-Ne v... In a speech on the Senate floo r... attacked WellPoint and other 'greedy insurance companies that care more about profits than people ... A lot of companies are hurting in this economy but this California health company isn't one of them,' Reid said, citing Wellpoint's profits." (Tom Murphy & Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, "WellPoint Insurance Hike Becomes Target For Obama," The Associated Press, 2/11/10)

Because Dems Are Using Their "Fallback Strategy - Bashing Insurance Companies" Yet Again. "When health reform has hit obstacles in the past year, Democrats have consistently turned to the same fallback strategy - bashing insurance companies. The tactic continues today with HHS Secretary Sebelius releasing a report detailing premium increases in Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington." (Chris Frates, Politico's "Live Pulse" Blog, 2/18/10)

YET INSURANCE COMPANIES HAVE PUSHED FOR DEMS' GOVERNMENT-RUN HEALTH CARE, GIVEN MONEY TO THEIR CAMPAIGNS

For His 2008 Presidential Campaign, Barack Obama Received $1,440,723 From The Health Services / HMO Sector. (The Center For Responsive Politics Website, www.opensecrets.org, Accessed 3/3/10)

In 2008, Joe Biden's Presidential Campaign Received $49,080 From The Health Services / HMO Sector. (The Center For Responsive Politics Website, www.opensecrets.org, Accessed 3/3/10)

Since 1998, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-NV) Campaign Committee And Leadership PAC Received At Least $511,000 From The Health Services/ HMO Sector. (The Center For Responsive Politics Website, www.opensecrets.org, Accessed 3/3/10)

Since 1998, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) Campaign Committee And Leadership PAC Received At Least $62,400 From The Health Services/ HMO Sector. (The Center For Responsive Politics Website, www.opensecrets.org, Accessed 3/3/10)

BECAUSE INSURANCE COMPANIES KNOW THEY WILL CASH IN ON OBAMA'S BILL IF IT PASSES

Obama's Government-Run Health Care Experiment Forces Americans To Buy Policies From Insurance Companies And "Makes Them Criminals" If They Don't. "Democracy for America, the successor to the Dean campaign ... is out today with an email attacking health care legislation on a vulnerable point: The individual mandate. ... '[T]hey say that even without a public option, the bill still "covers" 30 million more Americans. What they are actually talking about is something called the "individual mandate." That's a section of the law that requires every single American buy health insurance or break the law and face penalties and fines. So, the bill doesn't actually "cover" 30 million more Americans - instead it makes them criminals ...'" (Ben Smith, "Dean Group Attacks Mandate," Politico's "Live Pulse" Blog, 12/16/09)

•And Obama's Assistant HHS Secretary Admits Individual Mandate Is "A Very Regressive Tax." "The individual mandate offers new options, but it also introduces risks. The mandate is in many respects analogous to a tax. ... [T]he mandate will act as a very regressive tax, penalizing uninsured people who genuinely cannot afford to buy coverage." (Sherry A. Glied, "Universal Coverage One Head At A Time -- The Risks And Benefits Of Individual Health Insurance Mandates," New England Journal Of Medicine, 4/10/08)

Insurance Companies Want Even Stronger Individual Mandate To Bring In New Customers, Generate Windfall Profits."[I]nsurance companies are pushing back against changes to the latest Senate health-care bill that ease the penalties for Americans for don't carry health insurance ... The changes mean the new mandate would apply to two million fewer people, largely those with lower incomes ... Key industries bought into the measure -- and agreed to absorb cuts in reimbursements -- on the expectation that millions of new customers would be brought into the health-care system." (Janet Adamy & Greg Hitt, "Insurers Fight Bid To Ease Penalties In Health Bill," The Wall Street Journal, 10/6/09)

No Wonder Obama Attacked Hillary Clinton Over Individual Mandate During Campaign. "Senator Clinton believes the only way to achieve universal health care is to force everybody to purchase it ... and my belief is the reason that people don't have it is not because they don't want it, but because they can't afford it." (Michael Luo, "Check Point," The New York Times, 2/22/08)



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