Posted on 10/17/2009 4:15:04 AM PDT by reaganaut1
The Obama administration on Friday backed away from an order that had prohibited insurance companies from warning Medicare recipients about the possible loss of benefits under pending legislation to overhaul the health care system.
Medicare officials set off a political storm when they tried to stop such communications last month. Under new guidelines, insurance companies can communicate with Medicare beneficiaries on pending legislation, provided they do not use federal money to do so. In addition, insurers must get permission from beneficiaries before sending them information about legislation or asking them to join grass-roots advocacy efforts.
Beneficiaries can provide consent in writing, by telephone or on a Web site, the guidelines say.
At the same time, the Obama administration cited Humana on Friday for violation of Medicare rules, saying the company had misled beneficiaries by telling them they could lose valuable benefits under the legislation being pushed by President Obama and Democrats in Congress.
The actions on Friday were the latest skirmish between the Obama administration and the insurance industry. For months, the White House and insurance companies had worked together on efforts to overhaul the health care system. But the relationship deteriorated this week after two insurance trade groups issued reports saying the legislation would cause big increases in premiums.
Nearly one-fourth of the 45 million Medicare beneficiaries are in private plans. To help offset the cost of subsidizing coverage for the uninsured, Democrats have proposed cutting payments to these Medicare Advantage plans, which they say are overpaid.
In September, Medicare officials told Humana and other insurers to stop sending information about the proposals to Medicare beneficiaries.
Representative Dave Camp of Michigan, the senior Republican on the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, said Friday that the Obama administration was “backing away from its inappropriate and unconstitutional gag order ..."
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
They needed permission?
really. they tried to bluff,had nothing in their hand.
The White House is way out of bounds.
“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited to it by the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”
Are the medicare recipients also customers of the insurance company? Are they saying that a company cannot communicate information to it’s clients? We are so screwed.
Nothing this POTUS does has ANY credibility!
This is just one example of how this administration will conduct itself to ensure consumer protections from bloggers.
I am confident that protection can be purchased via campaign contributions.
Damn, isn’t that nice of them?
Asshats..........ALL.
Well I would say its about time the Suckers at Insurance companies finally realized that trying to Make a Deal with the Devil who is going to Put all of them out of Business, is a Losing game,Time to try and save themselves
Every healthcare bill working its way through the National Snakepit (Congress) cuts hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicare. The boy wonder thinks he can make that up with a $250 check to every senior.
That sure is sportin’ of them to recognize the existence of the Fist Amendment.
Obama is a threat and intimidation shuck and jive machine — question with boldness, stand and speak, hold to the truth ... It's principles we need to engrave on people's foreheads. Thank Beck for reminding us.
Apparently some Americans have forgotten to read the Constitution. There are reasons places like Mexico and Venezuela are run by tin-pot Fascists, and America is free — And that reason is our written Constitution.
Thank you; I should’ve included a sarcasm tag on my question. The White House is trying to whip these companies into line, but the Naked Emperor’s whip is just like his new clothes. I’m glad to see his agenda apparently isn’t making much progress...
Behold unworthy subjects! Dear Leader, Barack the Magnificent, has chosen to restore your pitiful free speech “rights”........ for now.
How special. Obama allowing the exercise of free speech.
Here we come Gramma!
Hey, if you don’t stand up, speak your mind, it will go away ... That’s how this shuck and jive act works.
Silence is acquiescence. We need to be bold and noisy.
Stand up for the Constitution or we may lose it.
Let?! lol That’s a problem right there...”let”! We LET them serve us.
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