Democrats plan hundreds of reform rallies

[PocketProtector]

Grassroots?????????????? Huh??????? Here we go.....the polarization is on...


http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0809/26409.html

Faced with a souring public mood on health care reform, Democrats and their supporters are launching a national grassroots push Wednesday to show lawmakers that the majority of Americans still support overhauling the system.

Reform supporters are planning to hold more than 500 events between Wednesday and when lawmakers return to Washington Sept. 8, ranging from neighborhood organized phone banks to professionally staffed rallies with hundreds of people.

The Democratic National Committee and its grassroots arm, Organizing for America, are helping to organize the effort along with the Health Care for America Now, a group pushing to create government-run insurance plan.

“In these last few weeks of recess we want to demonstrate the energy, passion and commitment that the American people have to health insurance reform so that when members return after Labor Day they know that they can turn their attention to getting this done because they have the backing of the American people,” said DNC spokesman Brad Woodhouse.

Supporters have their work cut out for them. Many lawmakers were thunderstruck over the August recess by the anger and outrage expressed by their constituents in town hall meetings across the country. And in poll after poll, support for reform has eroded throughout the month.

But Democrats and their allies insist that the majority of Americans still support reform and have organized the grassroots campaign to buck up lawmakers as they get ready to head back to Washington.

A health-insurance-reform-now bus will travel the country starting Wednesday and anchor events in 11 cities: Phoenix, Albuquerque, Denver, Des Moines, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Charlotte, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Indianapolis and Columbus, Ohio.

But the talk of broad health insurance reform does mean that progressives have backed off their push for a government-run insurance option.

“We want members of Congress to get back to work and pass reform that means something. We need affordable care. We need real insurance regulation. And we need a strong public health insurance option,” said HCAN spokeswoman Jacki Schechner. “It’s doable and we expect it to get done now.”

[jerkin]

Wow, that's just a wee bit of an oxymoron isn't it? A professionally staffed grassroots push, lol.

[camper]

Yeah...when people show up with home-made signs, it's a bunch of paid corporate shills pulling the strings, but when the democratic party organizes hundreds of professionally staffed rallies and pays people to man the phones and it's grassroots democracy in action.

Sounds to me like the DNC has more to gain financially than the healthcare industry has to lose, if you want to start crying 'corruption'.

camper

[PocketProtector]

All this grassroots action and probably paid for with taxpayer (Our) dollars..State Run media doin it's job....propagandizing for the Oman....sheesh!

[stephpd]

Your tax dollars at work! Hundreds of paid people being bussed in to show support, during the regular work hours. Sounds like grassroots to me.

And we all work for the gun lobby! I need the membership card for the discounts on ammo, so how can we go about getting paid for this?

[MTechnik]

because they feel the need to fight back against 50,000 people employed by just one of the health care lobbies to derail health care reform? Sounds like fighting fire with fire.

[PocketProtector]

because they feel the need to fight back against 50,000 people employed by just one of the health care lobbies to derail health care reform? Sounds like fighting fire with fire.

Proof of that please ?

[MTechnik]

Proof of that please ?

Sure - Wall Street Journal good enough? - last line:

All told, AHIP spokesman Robert Zirkelbach says, about 50,000 employees have been engaged in writing letters and making phone calls to politicians or attending town-hall meetings.

[PocketProtector]

These are not the vocal people at the Town halls. It would only stand to reason that persons whose employment was at stake would join in to protest OHellthscare. Unlike the left who will be sending protesters with no horse in the race other than their hand out for Government (taxpayer confiscated) giveaways.

Insurers' Employees Counter Criticism

By VANESSA FUHRMANS and AVERY JOHNSON

The health-insurance industry is sending thousands of its employees to town-hall meetings and other forums during Congress's August recess to try to counter a tide of criticism directed at the insurers and remain a player -- and not an outsider -- in the debate over the future of the health-care system.

Among the throngs of Americans crowding the sessions across the country, the industry employees come armed with talking points about the need for bipartisan legislation and the unintended consequences of a government-run health plan to compete with private insurers.

But unlike the angry crowds shouting at politicians to keep government out of their health care, the insurance industry supporters have garnered little attention, and that's partly by design.

A "Town Hall Tips" memo written by America's Health Insurance Plans, or AHIP, the industry's chief lobby, warns people attending the meetings to expect harsh criticism directed at health-plan employees. Stay calm and don't yell at members of Congress, the memo advises. "It is important not to take the bait," it cautions.

The town-hall meetings are an opportunity "to strongly push back against charges that we have very high profits," said Karen Ignagni, AHIP's president and chief executive officer. "It's very important that our men and women...calmly provide the facts and for members of Congress to hear what these people do every day."

Lary Loew, who heads Cornerstone Group, a Wheeling, W.Va., concern that administers health-insurance benefits for 600 employers, said he attended a recent town-hall meeting hosted by Rep. Alan Mollohan (D., W.Va.) because "my whole industry is being threatened." He said he was called on to rebut an advocate for national health insurance, who said her disabled daughter wouldn't be able to get health insurance after graduating from college.

Mr. Loew said government-run insurance wouldn't be necessary in part because private companies have agreed to accept all comers despite pre-existing conditions. "Those are reforms we approve of," he recalls telling the audience.

Mr. Loew, who wasn't coached by AHIP, said he prepared for the meeting by gathering information from hospital and insurance-company Web sites.

Under Ms. Ignagni's leadership, AHIP and its 1,300 members have agreed to concessions in the way they do business, including halting the practice of denying coverage to people with pre-existing medical conditions. By positioning itself as constructive rather than obstinate, the industry hopes it will maintain an influential seat at the legislation-drafting table.

"We have to get everyone into the insurance market," said Ron Williams, chief executive of Aetna Inc. "That is a huge, big deal [and] everyone has coalesced around that."

But as President Barack Obama and his congressional allies turn up the rhetoric during the August recess, accusing the industry of profiting at patients' expense, and as town-hall meeting with lawmakers have turned into anti-government shouting matches, that strategy is being tested.

Dan Lucas, a database operations manager for Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oregon, said he got upset when he heard the White House demonize health plans as profit centers, when many, like his employer, are not-for-profit companies. He decided without coaching from AHIP or Regence Blue Cross to take that message to Rep. David Wu's (D., Ore.) town-hall meeting in Portland on Aug 11.

He didn't get picked to ask a question, but while waiting in line, he struck up a conversation with an advocate for nationalized health care, who told him that insurers' profit margins are 35%. Mr. Lucas says he told him it was 2.2%. (That is consistent with nonprofit health plans; the net profit margins of many for-profit insurers fall in the 4% to 6% range.) The other man took notes on the talking points Mr. Lucas had prepared.

"I could tell he was going to do some more research on it," Mr. Lucas said.

All told, AHIP spokesman Robert Zirkelbach says, about 50,000 employees have been engaged in writing letters and making phone calls to politicians or attending town-hall meetings.

[MTechnik]

These are not the vocal people at the Town halls. It would only stand to reason that persons whose employment was at stake would join in to protest OHellthscare. Unlike the left who will be sending protesters with no horse in the race other than their hand out for Government (taxpayer confiscated) giveaways.

AHIP is a LOBBY. Everyone who works there's job is to try and influence politicians. It's not like "if they make guns illegal, I lose my job at Ruger making barrels, so I'll take my spare time and dedicate it."

So, now people paid to lobby on behalf of someone else is better than people who are being helped to express their own opinions and needs? Give the government to the companies, take it from the people.

Now I remember why I steer clear of the politics section. Bye.