Health Insurers Offer to Drop Overcharging for Illness

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Specializes in Critical care, tele, Medical-Surgical.

the nation's private healthcare industry has made a new concession in its effort to stave off proposals for a government-run healthcare program.

on tuesday, the two main health insurance trade groups said they would be willing to stop charging sick people higher fees if all americans were required to buy insurance.

the proposal doesn't completely rule out continuing charging varying premiums and would only apply to individual customers, not small businesses.

http://www.democracynow.org/2009/3/25/headlines

new york times - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/washington/25health.html

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Specializes in Critical care, tele, Medical-Surgical.

nurses blast "cruel ruse" by insurance giants to cover patients as deal for forcing americans to buy insurance

the nation's largest organization of registered nurses today condemned the conditional offer by the insurance industry to stop denying coverage to sick people in exchange for a massive government bailout....

... on tuesday, the insurance trade lobby america's health insurance plans and blue cross and blue shield offered to stop denying coverage to those with pre-existing conditions - but only if the healthcare reform plan under consideration in congress contains a requirement forcing all americans to buy private insurance - and if congress rejects a proposal to include a public plan alternative for people not wanting private insurance.

"that's not a sign of flexibility at all, it's blackmail," said geri jenkins, rn, co-president of the 85,000-member california nurses association/national nurses organizing committee.

"they are only willing to scale back on their immoral denial of coverage for people who are sick, even those who have had minor illnesses, if they are given billions of dollars in payments from private individuals and government subsidies," said jenkins.

the insurer's proposal "amply demonstrates what is so fundamentally wrong with our insurance-based system. decisions on whether patients can receive healthcare coverage are not based on patient need, but on how much profit the private insurers can make."

nurses, said jenkins, were also disturbed at the response of lawmakers and others who praised the proposal.

http://www.bio-medicine.org/medicine-news-1/nurses-blast-cruel-ruse-by-insurance-giants-to-cover-patients-as-deal-for-forcing-americans-to-buy-insurance-40649-1/

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Specializes in psyche, dialysis, community health.

"That's not a sign of flexibility at all, it's blackmail," said Geri Jenkins, RN, co-president of the 85,000-member California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee.

"They are only willing to scale back on their immoral denial of coverage for people who are sick, even those who have had minor illnesses, if they are given billions of dollars in payments from private individuals and government subsidies,"

I'm gonna practice this line in front of a mirror.

Thanks for the post!

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