Remember the story of the blind men and the elephant? In varying versions of the story, a group of blind men/men in the dark touch an elephant in an attempt to determine what it is; however, each one feels only one part of the creature, such as the tail or the leg. The men then compare notes and learn that all disagree on what they felt—the man who felt the tail thinks it is a rope, while the man who felt the leg believes it to be a pillar. The story originated in India and is used to demonstrate the relativity of truth.
Well, such is the reporting on the fate of one insurer, Assurant Health, in an era of health care reform. And, I’m certain that similar reports of facts, resulting distinctly different perspectives, will become more common as health care reform is implemented.
The facts: Assurant Health, a Milwaukee-based health insurance company, announced last month that it was laying off 130 employees in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
The first perspective comes from “ObamaCare Has Failed,” an article by Grace-Marie Turner, Chief Executive Officer of the Galen Institute. Ms. Turner writes:
“The wheels are coming off ObamaCare even sooner than most had predicted. The American people are not being fooled by the sugar-coated sales campaign, jobs are being lost, health costs are rising, and the first program to be launched is a dud […]
Do liberals really believe that people aren't going to pay attention to double-digit premium increases that are coming, $575 billion coming out of Medicare to pay for massive new entitlement programs, the $500 billion in new taxes that are driving up health costs, the barrage of new regulations putting employers and the health sector in a straightjacket, and the despised individual mandate that will force Americans to purchase expensive, government-dictated health insurance?
Today’s news has direct evidence of jobs being lost as a result of ObamaCare. Assurant Health, a health insurer based in Milwaukee that specializes in individual and small group policies, announced that it is laying off 130 workers as of October 1. Assurant is a terrific company that was the first to sell a Health Savings Account policy and has continued to be responsive with innovative products to serve customer needs.
But new one-size-fits-all regulatory requirements are forcing insurers to slash personnel to meet new ‘administrative’ tests, rules that present real challenges to a company that focuses on direct customer service rather than selling policies thousands at a time. Assurant is highly adaptable and will survive, but many capable employees and their families can thank ObamaCare for losing their jobs.”
The second perspective comes from “As Reform Improves The Overall Market, Inefficient Insurers Could Take Hits,” by Jonathan Cohn, Senior Editor of The New Republic. Mr. Cohn writes:
Well, such is the reporting on the fate of one insurer, Assurant Health, in an era of health care reform. And, I’m certain that similar reports of facts, resulting distinctly different perspectives, will become more common as health care reform is implemented.
The facts: Assurant Health, a Milwaukee-based health insurance company, announced last month that it was laying off 130 employees in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
The first perspective comes from “ObamaCare Has Failed,” an article by Grace-Marie Turner, Chief Executive Officer of the Galen Institute. Ms. Turner writes:
“The wheels are coming off ObamaCare even sooner than most had predicted. The American people are not being fooled by the sugar-coated sales campaign, jobs are being lost, health costs are rising, and the first program to be launched is a dud […]
Do liberals really believe that people aren't going to pay attention to double-digit premium increases that are coming, $575 billion coming out of Medicare to pay for massive new entitlement programs, the $500 billion in new taxes that are driving up health costs, the barrage of new regulations putting employers and the health sector in a straightjacket, and the despised individual mandate that will force Americans to purchase expensive, government-dictated health insurance?
Today’s news has direct evidence of jobs being lost as a result of ObamaCare. Assurant Health, a health insurer based in Milwaukee that specializes in individual and small group policies, announced that it is laying off 130 workers as of October 1. Assurant is a terrific company that was the first to sell a Health Savings Account policy and has continued to be responsive with innovative products to serve customer needs.
But new one-size-fits-all regulatory requirements are forcing insurers to slash personnel to meet new ‘administrative’ tests, rules that present real challenges to a company that focuses on direct customer service rather than selling policies thousands at a time. Assurant is highly adaptable and will survive, but many capable employees and their families can thank ObamaCare for losing their jobs.”
The second perspective comes from “As Reform Improves The Overall Market, Inefficient Insurers Could Take Hits,” by Jonathan Cohn, Senior Editor of The New Republic. Mr. Cohn writes:
“When Assurant Health, a Milwaukee-based health insurance company, announced this month it was laying off 130 employees in Milwaukee and Minneapolis, it blamed the health care overhaul for its struggles […]. The carrier is Assurant, which specializes in selling policies in the individual and small business markets […] – the place you find carriers that aggressively avoid people at risk of getting sick […]
The health law forces insurers to cover basic benefits […] And it limits the money they can spend on administrative overhead or broker commissions. Once fully implemented, reform will also prevent these carriers from avoiding people with pre-existing conditions. Make no mistake: These are all good things. They mean insurance is becoming more accessible, more comprehensive and more efficient.
Alas, that may […] be bad news for Assurant. If the company's name sounds familiar, that's because it was in the news early this year when a Colorado jury slapped it with a $37 million judgment for wrongly refusing to pay the bills of a woman in a car accident. (The company claimed the woman had hidden evidence of a pre-existing condition. The jury, obviously, disagreed.) And when the layoffs were announced, an article from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel noted that reform would ‘undercut one of Assurant's strengths – determining which customers are the best risks.’ I have no idea whether Assurant can find other ways to survive as a business. But, if it can't, then we're better off relying on competitors that can.”
I was struck by the difference in “perspective” on the facts...and would welcome your own unique perspectives.
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