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Health Insurer Lobbying Mailer Came After It Raised Rates

Zachary Roth | October 30, 2009, 12:21PM

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Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC)

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Earlier this week, we reported that Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina had recently sent out mailers that urged recipients to lobby Sen. Kay Hagan to oppose a public option, which it called "a slippery slope to single payer." (You can see the mailer here.)

The story was picked up by the Raleigh News & Observer, which added an additional key fact: Just before sending out the mailer, BCBS of North Carolina had informed its customers that their rates would rise by an average of 11 percent next year.

Of course, part of the whole point of the public option is to help lower private insurance rates, by creating a public competitor.

And the Huffington Post has reported that there was also a robocall from BCBS, urging listeners to contact Hagan about "the vitally important issue for our state and nation."

In other words, this corporate campaign looks even more shameless than it did before.

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6 comments

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TheraP

October 30, 2009 12:30 PM

In case you missed it, here is one recipient's response to the mailer:

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/blogs/therap/2009/10/wheres-the-pony.php

And here's the reason why that recipient is so "worked up" about the issue of health care - and its denial to some:

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/blogs/therap/2009/10/the-reason-why.php

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Frinky

October 30, 2009 12:31 PM

Only 11% ??? Lucky people in NC.

My rates went up 18% this year and 27% last year.

Message to my Rep. Peter King (R-NY): If you are out there please explain to me how enacting reform is going to make rates go higher. Because without reform they've gone up 45% in one calendar year?

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714Day

October 30, 2009 1:12 PM

A hike of only a tenth of last years premiums? What a bargain! Oh, not to worry, the slop that is being churned out from the legislature gives them many more years to glut themselves at our expense. And since we are nowhere near "Medicare for Everyone", let alone single payer, they have lots of self aggrandizement to garner while they set their lawyers to find the loopholes through the new regulations that they have every intention of skirting with zeal as long as they can.
Golly, thank God for all of the cost cutting "reform" will bring. It will cut household food/clothing/shelter expenditures for John Doe, at the very least.

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Chabuka

October 30, 2009 1:26 PM

A slippery slope to to single payer health care?....that'a what the majority of us really wanted in the first place, and had to compromise, thanks to the greedy crooks like you in Congress...you dumb cow....I do not want to protect the Private Health Care Insurance Companies and Corporations...I don't care one damn bit if the Health Care's greedy CEO's, Exec's and stockholders are standing in the soup lines along with the rest of us........I am sure they can sell their Corporate Jets, their golden dinnerware, their stock options, their multi-million dollar homes, their Bentleys and Ferrari's, and fore go their extended vacations in exotic places....and survive a hell of a lot longer than the rest of us...they are nothing more than vampires, leeches and miserable poor excuses for human beings, living off the miseries of others......
And our Congress are just a bunch of cheap whores masquerading as "public servants of the people"

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Lalo35adm

October 30, 2009 2:24 PM

"Of course, part of the whole point of the public option is to help lower private insurance rates, by creating a public competitor."

- No, it's not part of the point. It's part of the spin to sell the "reform". According to a post in the Cafe, the triumphantly unveiled bill so far results in the public option being MORE expensive than some of the private plans, per CBO.

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