Why is Obama vilifying Health insurers, while giving them $365 Billion? Doesn't this seem hypocritical?

Question

http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2010/03/a-complicated-enemy-obama-seeks-to-vilify-health-insurers-give-them-336-billion-check.html

ABC’s Z. Byron Wolf reports: President Obama and Democrats launched a campaign to vilify insurance companies in the final stretch of their health reform effort.

Republicans, meanwhile, pointed out that those very same insurance companies would get huge checks from the government if health reform is enacted.

“(Health Insurers) will keep on doing this for as long as they can get away with it. This is no secret,” the president said. “They're telling their investors this – ‘We are in the money. We are going to keep on making big profits even though a lot of folks are going to be put under hardship,’” the President told supporters at a stop in Pennsylvania today.

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, meanwhile, wrote to insurance company executives demanding that they justify premium hikes.

Neither mentioned that the Senate health reform bill, which is the basis for Democrats' last best chance at comprehensive reform, would give the insurance companies millions of new customers required by law to buy health insurance. It would also require insurers to cover everyone, regardless of age, gender or pre-existing condition.

To help pay for the new insurance requirements the government would give to people money to buy insurance - $336 billion over the next ten years. That money, ultimately, would have to go to... drum roll... insurance companies.

Answer 1

Yes, it does appear profoundly hypocritical, now that you mention it. Why, it's almost as if Obama is deliberately misleading us with trite hollow bluster while giving away yet another bonanza to corporate america without effort or contribution. Huh! That is kind of weird that his actions are always contrary to his words, isn't it? What do you suppose that's all about?

Answer 2

Obama began his campaign in 2008 promising that he would push for a single payer system (the health care system favored by >60% of Americans). Later, he said he didn't think single payer would work 'in a country like this', and changed his plan to one where the govt. subsidizes the big insurance companies, and where the govt. buys insurance for some uninsured from the existing companies at their going rates. In the meanwhile, Obama had accepted millions of dollars from the insurance companies.



The real problem in our political system is that we have allowed money to become too important in our elections. The 2008 election lasted two whole years, forcing the candidates to raise and spend all that much more money. Richard Nixon spent $25 million to win the presidency in 1968. Barack Obama spent $600 million!



Both parties desperately need money to run, and since they both get this money from the same sources, you can't realistically expect their actual agendas to be all that different.



So Obama wasn't able to propose any health care reform plan that might hurt the profits of the existing insurance companies. His plan was essentially the same as Clinton's plan, also GHW Bush's plan, it included protections to preserve and perpetuate the control over our health care system by seven enormous corporations that are 'too big to fail'. They even have a specific anti-trust exemption.



So you can see this as Obama's fault or you can see it as a systemic problem. Most of the Republican opposition to Obama's health care plan has nothing to do with health care policy, it has to do with Obama. Republicans don't want Obama to have a victory and get credit. They are reflexively opposed to ANYTHING Obama says or does or wants.



I see Obama's plan as better than nothing. A start. Half a loaf. Hell, I'll settle for a few slices! 8^) We are paying more for health insurance now that we pay for our mortgage. The cost Americans pay for health insurance has more than doubled since 2000, and it was considered a crisis even before that!

Answer 3

I think that you are not looking at the whole picture. They have worked against the reforms, and Obama is going to end the death panels that they run.



The facts on reform are simple.



FACT - Insurance companies in the USA admit to pushing up prices, buying politicians and not paying out claims when they should [1]

FACT - PER PERSON the USA spends more on healthcare than any other nation on the planet [2]

FACT - Obama debated his plans before the election for healthcare [3]

FACT - the chance of a child under five of dying in the USA is greater than industrialised nations with universal health coverage [4]

FACT - Obama was elected to bring in change [5]

FACT - Obama wants to stop insurance companies from screwing America [6]

FACT - The reforms Obama wants work in the Netherlands and Switzerland [7]



Let me know if my facts are wrong, but please provide proof.

Answer 4

Why do the insurance companies need $336 billion dollars? This is ridiculous. President Obama is just dying to pull our country down under. I'm really starting to get the feeling he became President only so that he may destroy our country. This is getting out of hand.

Answer 5

Since Obama runs the biggest health insurance company in the country (Medicare, Medicade, VA, etc.etc...) one needs to know they deny more claims and waste more money than all the other insurance companies combined.

Answer 6

Which is why health insurance stock prices climbed when each version of the bill passed.

Answer 7

Yes it does.

Answer 8

thats so you or your family wont be denid when you need them now they would have no reason to denie you when you need them

Answer 9

They pay his bribes