What a crummy organization....BCBS plans should be broken apart in the U.S. plain and simple, or be forced to occupy less than 45% marketshare in any particular market....that would get some healthy competition.
They have long been regarded as subpar in the New York City Market (i.e. Empire BCBS) as most consumers would rather go to an NYC DMV, or Rykers Island than to be forced to call customer service at Empire. They are just awful....
So though it is not surprising, or unwarranted, Empire BCBS announced a few weeks back that they would terminate almost their entire book of small businesses and give those companies an option to buy one of 3 remaining and crummy products (that have never sold to begin with) or go about searching for another insurance company. This has created a move/buying frenzy with Aetna and Oxford frankly, and brokers have been moving large blocks of Empire BCBS business in droves. Again, Empire, so funny, they are just clueless, but then again, they are a Blue Cross organization, so what should I expect.
Well guess what, in a city with 11 million folks we are now down to only TWO (2) reputable health insurance companies - Oxford Health Plans (a United Health Group company) and Aetna. Emblem Health, the old "Atlantis" company, and HIP are options, but have never been considered real competitors to these two.
So, in another market where we have lots of customers for example, Charlotte, NC, we have at least 7 solid health plans - United Healthcare, Cigna, Aetna, Coventry Wellpath, Humana, and the local monopoly BCBS of NC...so, within a 50 mile radius of Charlotte we have like 1.25 million folks or something close to that, a medically underwritten market (unlike NYC's socialized community-rated market...which is double the price and imploding as evidenced by Empire's pull out) and 7 good options? Compare that to NYC and 11 million and you scratch your head? Well yes, you do, b/c Obamacare has been based on a socialized system because he is a socialist to begin with and we already have TONS of evidence that a socialized system will never work in the US so why base a dumb law (Obamacare again) on socialism?
If we do not change fast in the U.S. Obama is going to turn us in to a third world country.....we are in real trouble with healthcare, but generally speaking, we are on the hottest burner on the stove in just about every category because of this absurd administration....
Friday, December 30, 2011
Obamacare?
So where is Obamacare? Where are the efficiencies? How has he and his terrible administration set the U.S. for a better, more affordable system? Answer is simple....HE HAS NOT, and HE WILL NOT.
The only savior in the U.S. is consumerism and our company now has hundreds of small and middle market clients that have instituted consumer-directed health plans (CDHP)with enormous savings and cost-stability year in year out for the last 5 years while at the same time traditional plans have imploded.
Obama doesn't want to give credit to the savior because he did not come up with it. As a matter of fact consumer-directed plans have been around for a long time, but there was not an economic event that forced the adoption of the plans. Now rolling in to 2012 which undoubtedly will be another poor economic year (and even worse if Obama stays in office) we will be faced with the same challenges as before. Whether Independent, Democrat, or Republican, from the standpoint of health insurance I pray nightly we get a Republican President who understands consumerism and will listen to all parties. Our government in the U.S. can't even run DMV, or Medicare (remember that IS health insurance and our precious government has bankrupted it already!!) so why in the world do I want them touching the coverage I hold in high regard for myself, my wife, and 4 growing children.
Our clients have been seeing on average a 3% increase in costs on CDHP plans compared to 25% for traditional plans (in some cases closer to 40%)....proof is in the pudding, give me CONSUMERISM!
The only savior in the U.S. is consumerism and our company now has hundreds of small and middle market clients that have instituted consumer-directed health plans (CDHP)with enormous savings and cost-stability year in year out for the last 5 years while at the same time traditional plans have imploded.
Obama doesn't want to give credit to the savior because he did not come up with it. As a matter of fact consumer-directed plans have been around for a long time, but there was not an economic event that forced the adoption of the plans. Now rolling in to 2012 which undoubtedly will be another poor economic year (and even worse if Obama stays in office) we will be faced with the same challenges as before. Whether Independent, Democrat, or Republican, from the standpoint of health insurance I pray nightly we get a Republican President who understands consumerism and will listen to all parties. Our government in the U.S. can't even run DMV, or Medicare (remember that IS health insurance and our precious government has bankrupted it already!!) so why in the world do I want them touching the coverage I hold in high regard for myself, my wife, and 4 growing children.
Our clients have been seeing on average a 3% increase in costs on CDHP plans compared to 25% for traditional plans (in some cases closer to 40%)....proof is in the pudding, give me CONSUMERISM!
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