Democrats’ Campaign Against Health Insurers
Today marks the beginning of Democrats’ “Consumer Protection Week,” where the majority will promote how the various “reforms” in the health care law will protect Americans – likely with another generous helping of inflammatory rhetoric against insurers. While the President cancelled his scheduled speech to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) meeting in Seattle tomorrow, Democrats in Congress and outside liberal groups continue to agitate about the details of the medical loss ratio (MLR) regulations that NAIC is currently considering. Some thoughts to keep in mind regarding this latest campaign:
The Audacity of Anger: In The Nation last week, Health Care for America Now (HCAN) executive Richard Kirsch wrote about “What Progressives Did Right to Win Healthcare.” Excerpts from the article speak volumes about Democrats’ strategy:
We found that…we need to animate anger and hope as the antidote to the opposition’s main weapon, fear. We also found evidence—not surprisingly—that the popular target for anger was the insurance industry…
The HCAN Organizing Committee wrote an 865-page campaign plan incorporating…a new round of public opinion research focused on generating anger at the health insurance industry….
Defining a corporate enemy: From the first ads we ran during the 2008 campaign, which had a female cancer survivor who linked Republican candidates to the health insurance industry, through the final ads we ran after the House passed the law, which thanked members of Congress for standing up to the army of 2,000 health insurance lobbyists, we had a clearly defined corporate target. Our tag-line was direct: “If the insurance companies win, we lose.” At the grassroots, we wrapped insurance company offices with yellow crime tape, with the words “It’s a crime to deny our care.” Two weeks before the bill passed, 5,000 activists staged a mass citizens arrest of health insurance company executives when they met at the Ritz-Carlton in Washington.
Congress vs. Insurance Companies: Some may question the effectiveness of anger against “a corporate enemy” as a sustainable political strategy, and the numbers bear that out. Last month’s Gallup survey, which showed Congress’ approval rating at a rock-bottom 11 percent, also found that approval ratings for health maintenance organizations (HMOs) actually ROSE by one percentage point as the health care debate transpired over the past year, even while Congress’ approval rating dropped six points. Half of all Americans have little to no trust in Congress, compared to only 32% distrust of HMOs – this after a sustained political campaign by liberal groups targeting the insurance industry. So it’s worth asking how and why Democrats in Congress are so insistent on demonizing an industry that’s actually MORE popular than Congress itself.