Health insurer tied bonuses to dropping sick policyholders

[RamboLiberal]

Source: LA Times

One of the state's largest health insurers set goals and paid bonuses based in part on how many individual policyholders were dropped and how much money was saved.

Woodland Hills-based Health Net Inc. avoided paying $35.5 million in medical expenses by rescinding about 1,600 policies between 2000 and 2006. During that period, it paid its senior analyst in charge of cancellations more than $20,000 in bonuses based in part on her meeting or exceeding annual targets for revoking policies, documents disclosed Thursday showed.

The revelation that the health plan had cancellation goals and bonuses comes amid a storm of controversy over the industry-wide but long-hidden practice of rescinding coverage after expensive medical treatments have been authorized.

These cancellations have been the recent focus of intense scrutiny by lawmakers, state regulators and consumer advocates. Although these "rescissions" are only a small portion of the companies' overall business, they typically leave sick patients with crushing medical bills and no way to obtain needed treatment.


Read more: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-insure9nov09,0,3065397,full.story?coll=la-home-center

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I hope there is a hell cause I'd love to see these f'ers burn in it. When will the idiots who listen to the "we don't give a damn about you peons as we laugh our way to the bank" wingnut punditry, Repukes, and the insurance execs cry wolf about "socialized medicine" and wake the hell up!

In the mean time this needs to be made illegal to do to a policy holder and any exec who does this ought to be thrown in the socialized medical prison system!

[rodeodance]

1. more of the same!

[I Have A Dream]

2. Damn straight it needs to be made illegal. The whole idea that it is legal that...

someone has paid for insurance and then has it canceled at the very time that he/she needs it is ludicrous.

These people should be in jail. I really don't know how they sleep at night. x(

[JerseygirlCT]

40. Absolutely right. nt

[Double T]

3. There are CERTAIN Democrats that want to put the criminal HMOs.......

in charge of Universal Health Care? Where the HELL is the sanity in THAT? Wake the "F" up!!!

[Bozita]

4. They make money by DENYING healthcare to policyholders.

How very American!

[guruoo]

5. I'm sure room could be made for them...

[sss1977]

6. disgusting...

Universal Health Care for ALL! No more profit from human suffering.

[donheld]

7. I'm really surprised more aren't

outraged by this. I'd bet there are many more companies like this one.

[Preening Fop]

8. Simply Strengthening the human specie through Corporate Selection

:patriot: :nuke: :patriot:

[truthisfreedom]

9. The word "rescission" is enough to perk people's ears. This situation could be fixed promptly

by calling your congresspeople to ask how in the hell "recission" could possibly be legal.

[eridani]

10. Any Repuke asshole who mentions "socialized medicine"

--needs to have their own goverment medicine stripped from them ASAP.

[JTFrog]

11. Insurance companies need to be taken completely out of the loop.

No dollar penalty can make up for the lives lost and the suffering caused by this kind of crap. I'm sick of hearing we'll tighten up on them. JUST DUMP THE GOD DAMN VAMPIRES.

[Zorra]

12. A large part of the reason I want Nationalized Healthcare is to put

these inhuman scumbag insurance companies that think they're god out of business.

[Vinca]

13. This, in a nutshell, is why insurance companies should not be

included in the healthcare solution for this country. "Insurance" - and I call it that now even though it provides little - is only a payment program. The U.S. government already has 3 health payment plans in place: Medicare, Medicaid and the VA. Wouldn't it make more sense to have ONE universal healthcare administration that would consolidate those programs and add everyone else who is tired of being ripped off by outfits such as Health Net? The government can negotiate payments the same way the "insurance" companies do. The government would remove the profit motive and make the system affordable. The government COULD NOT kick you to the curb when you get sick. This article could be a scene from SICKO.

[Hulk]

14. Just watch "Sicko"...and tell me our system is "adequate"....NOT!!

Our health IS a profit issue. The insurance companies are a corporation and their goal is "profit". It only makes sense they try to deny payments to maximize profits. This system sucks!

Call it anything you want...."socialized medicine", "communism", "bullshit"...it doesn't matter what you call it. IT WORKS...and it needs to happen HERE in the US tomorrow!

[pattmarty]

15. That Socialist Michael Moore bought this up in Sicko.

[BobMorr]

17. eliminate insurance companies now

Our country is on par with third world countries. Actually some of them have better health care than us. Support hr676 before its to late. Thinking of moving to France or Canada soon. Better yet, Norway! Number one in the world for human development.

[pattmarty]

24. Surely you're mistaken.... Amerika is number uno in everyfuckingthing.

[Orsino]

16. This is the failure of capitalism.

Companies will only insure those who are sufficiently profitable. Our choice is between socialized medicine and medicine that isn't available to all.

[fed-up]

18. 2000 is when I was denied a BCBS policy as I couldn't document care for a possible migraine

I had called in about. After fighting for three months to try and convince ins co that I was never diagnosed formally, and there was NO treatment. They refused to insure me. My chart also said I was HBV positive (hepatitis), when it was a typo that should have read EBV (Epstein Barr). I got their first requested liver function test, which I passed and then they wanted a $500 liver test. Seemed like an outrageous cost to prove a negative.

After watching Sicko I realized that I hadn't been a prudent something or other, meaning that I hadn't gotten lots of expensive tests when I first thought I had a migraine (just to rule stuff out).

By that time I was worried that even if I ever did need their insurance they would find a way to deny me. Horror stories about such bad treatment by Ins cos. were already starting to hit the news.

I gave up, managed to somehow survive the last 7 years with self-treatments.

Am now on medi-cal.

[OzarkDem]

19. Every candidate's health care reform plan relies on these people

Any candidate who believes basing a system of universal health care on these private insurance companies is either crazy, ignorant or dishonest.

No matter how many regulations they put in place, any plan that is based on taxpayer subsidization of private insurance for all will be a complete and expensive failure.

Insurers will talk a good game until they start getting taxpayer money. After that they'll start greasing the wheels in Congress to chip away at regulations. Its their nature, its the nature of capitalism. They can't help themselves.

Nothing more than a DLC wet dream.

[flashl]

20. Corporate America's ability to create profit

from its citizen’s mere existence is beyond criminal activity.

[Bigmack]

21. Rewatched "Rainmaker"...

.. the other night, after watching "Sicko" last week.

Those two are a sure prescription for foaming at the mouth and screaming about how screwed we are.

[Solon]

22. The book is better...

Hate to point out the obvious though. Its by John Grisham.

[tabasco]

23. Republicans say: "Best health care in the world!"

The idiot 30% believe it, even if they have no health care at all!

[Faux pas]

25. Insurance is the biggest scam going. If they are going to cancel

a policy based on health, the insured should get a refund of every dime paid in with a hefty punitive damage award. There'd better be a huge class action suit over this.

[killbotfactory]

26. all corporations put profit over people

why anyone would expect anything less than this, I don't know.

[Dulcinea]

27. Insurance companies are not in business to pay for your health care.

Incurance companies are in business to MAKE MONEY, pure and simple.

[pepperbear]

28. this passage right here could be important......

Other suits have been settled out of court or through arbitration, out of public view. Until now, none had gone to a public trial.

[rodeodance]

29. needs sunlight

[flashl]

36. "Sealing" cases and removing them from public sight is newest ploy. n/t

[TygrBright]

30. I am shocked, SHOCKED I tell you! SURELY a free enterprise capitalist entity like....

...a HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY would put the well-being of its customers before actual PROFIT!

sourly,
Bright

[Ellen Forradalom]

31. Utterly despicable.

They're right over on Woodland Hills. Maybe I'l drive by & give 'em the finger.

[mistertrickster]

32. Nothing says "healthy" like a healthy PROFIT. nt

[barb162]

33. That insurer needs a gigantic fine; one that will hurt its stock price

and upset its shareholders.

[harpboy_ak]

34. Time to put all these evil bastards out of business!

HEALTH CARE SHOULD NOT BE A PROFITMAKING BUSINESS! Period.

We need to get rid of for-profit companies in all aspects of health care, but especially the "insurance" industry. All they do is add extra costs and overhead, making money from DENYING CARE instead of providing it.

THE TIME FOR SINGLE PAYER NATIONAL HEALTH CARE IS NOW. How long must we wait to join the rest of the "civilized" world in providing health care as a right, not an expensive privilege?

And this company should be fined to the hilt, and once they have paid all denied claims, forbidden from conducting any further business.

[lovuian]

35. they should be imprisoned

for killing people for money

Universal Healthcare

US citizen's right

[Odin2005]

37. Insurance is one of the biggest scams in the history of mankind.

They are like lending someone an umbrella when it's sunny and then asking for the umbrella back when it starts raining. IMO all the employees of those companies are con men and enablers of con men.

[BlueIris]

38. In other "shocking" news, Laura Bush is an enabler.

[fascisthunter]

39. How about We RICO?

Their actions are killing folks. I do believe RICO would be justified in this instance.