Yup, right from the horse’s mouth, comes this statement that the Obama Administration believes that cutting brokers out of the health insurance equation is the right thing to do.

Nancy-Ann DeParle, President Obama‘s director of White House of Health Reform, speaking during a recent media briefing, said of health care reform: “A public plan is something that’s sponsored by the government, and therefore has very low or almost nonexistent administrative costs, compared to others. It doesn’t have the need to have brokers out selling; it wouldn’t have the need to have a lot of costs and profits, the way private plans would. So it has that advantage.”

This from an Oxford- and Harvard-educated professional who served under President Clinton as head of the Health Financing Administration, which today is known as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Studies.

It sounds as if some of the old Hillary-Healthcare speak is back in practice.

15 Responses

1. Theresa Semple Says:
   June 3rd, 2009 at 2:11 pm

   It is nice to know that President Obama thinks so little of my industry…how we he handle if we thought the same thing of his profession…I would like to know who is going to help my clients with their claims/RX issues/Benefit issues if I am not there? The carrier who has to pay these claims…I think not….He needs to realize that I am not out to hurt my clients I am out there to educate them and protect them and all of their employees……UGH….another politician with little knowledge but a great deal to say…..

2. Anonymous Says:
   June 3rd, 2009 at 2:32 pm

   AMEN Theresa.

3. Darla Rose Says:
   June 5th, 2009 at 8:36 am

   Statements out of Washington continue to amaze me. Did I find it offensive that we have “no value”, obviously I did. However the statement prior to that “A public plan is something that’s sponsored by the government, and therefore has very low or almost nonexistent administrative costs, compared to others.” When has the government ever been more efficient than private business? I think never – if they were so efficient, why are they now paying insurance companies to manage Medicare through the Advantage Plans? We can post comments here, but I believe we need to make sure that Washington understands we are paying attention to what they’re doing. It’s time to write letters and make phone calls, this is our profession, and we need to protect it.

4. Tom Lane Says:
   June 5th, 2009 at 9:38 am

   “A public plan is something that’s sponsored by the government, and therefore has very low or almost nonexistent administrative costs, compared to others. It doesn’t have the need to have brokers out selling; it wouldn’t have the need to have a lot of costs and profits, the way private plans would. So it has that advantage.”

   Let’s see, govt employees work for free, they are incredibly vigilant in claim investigation/process/payment, and, oh yes, they “care” more.

   Will some one please remove the rock that this person is living under. 43 million currently in Medicare. Their appears to be a need for “change/reform” so let’s add 180 million new members. How simple is that? Obviously cost doesn’t matter once agents/brokers are out of the equation, it must be the 5%/10% commission that makes healthcare unaffordable.

   KNUCKLEHEADS!!!!

5. Rick Roach Says:
   June 5th, 2009 at 12:33 pm

   Great response Darla. The “real fact” is we need LESS GOVERNMENT, Less Politicians, Less Government workers, and Less socialism in AMERICA !!! Hint hint.

6. Lucille Bondi Says:
   June 5th, 2009 at 1:17 pm

   If Medicare is such an easy product to understand and purchase, why does CMS make agents jump through many, many hoopes and become certified with every product and pass many, many tests to sell this easily understood product to our Senior Population?

7. Barbara Hostetler Says:
   June 5th, 2009 at 2:15 pm

   Lucille, I agree with you. I also agree with Theresa. When the government gets involved, things rarely get simpler – example: HIPAA; example: Medicare Part D.

   While I understand that HIPAA was well-intentioned, I believe that it has had a tremendous impact on our healthcare system, and that partly as a result of that one well-intentioned but insufficiently thought-out law, pricing is out of control. I realize that utilization is a significant problem, too, but it seems that things really went south after HIPAA was implemented.

   Further, I meet with seniors who do not understand Medicare or the Medicare Part D Prescription plans every day. They certainly feel that I provide value because I explain the government’s “simple” plan to them in a way that they can begin to understand it. And once they understand it, they also realize that they have a significant need to fill-in the holes in the Medicare plan, because by itself, it will not adequately protect them from devastating financial loss in the event of a large claim. Is that the system we want to put everyone in – one that requires substantial supplementation to work well?

   I know that what I do has value. I know that my clients appreciate the ways that I help them to plan for their futures. Our government needs to spend more time speaking to real citizens and good health insurance agents to learn what we do, how we do it, and what it’s truly worth before they try in earnest to get rid of us.

   How many health agents are in the US? Putting us all out of work won’t help the unemployment numbers either.

8. Jeff DeMatteo Says:
   June 5th, 2009 at 2:16 pm

   In 13 years of selling Individual and Small Group health insurance, I can confidently say that I have not only helped my clients find affordable, suitable health insurance, but I’ve saved many of them from the brink of financial disaster due to my diligence and understanding of the multitude of products available). There is so much garbage out there that if it wasn’t for the brokers committment to educating themselves (Carriers offer little to no training whatsoever), the healthcare crisis would be even worse. As far as reduced Admin costs on a Gov’t plan… you’ve got to be kidding me!!!! Brokers don’t even see a penny unless they sell something… government paid employees will get paid for sitting around and doing nothing waiting for an e-mail or a phone call to come in.

9. Dwight Lydic Says:
   June 8th, 2009 at 11:26 am

   This is why it is so important for members of our profession to join organizations like NAIFA that represent the interests of our clients, the public, and our profession. It is so important that we have a strong unified voice in educating those who will make the decisions. Congress. The mid-term elections are going to be very important because, believe it or not, our government is best when one party does not control both the administrative and legislative branches.

10. John Medved Says:
    June 8th, 2009 at 9:18 pm

    The American people will rue the day they destroyed the system we have. I spend hours a week servicing my clients and they all hate dealing with the companies or dealing with the claims. Well now they need to deal with big brother.

11. Charlotte Says:
    June 12th, 2009 at 11:23 am

    My advice — is that you had better start pooling your money together and use all your pennies for a major national TV and Radio campaign if you expect to beat this administation at their game. If not your about to lose your jobs.

    Your only hope is the American public not members of Congress on Capital Hill. Right now the House and the Senate is marching in lock step with the President or haven’t you noticed? Why you do think we have all these crazy czars being appointed, what do you really think that’s all about? It’s to keep us all in line. Your pay, your businesses from banking to insurance companies are under seige! And if you think that what happen to the 780+ Chrysler dealership actually can’t happen to you; well you had better think again. And frankly, you don’t have much time – because this bill is going to be push through by the end of the July if not sooner. The name of this game is rush,rush, rush.

    And this administation is going to take as many prisoners as quickly as possible (i.e. industries) before the general public wakes up. Well, folks this is your wake up call. And I say that as blogger and a broker who works in the direct marketing industry you had better get busy. The clock is ticking!

12. Joe Says:
    June 13th, 2009 at 12:19 am

    Every plan I’ve ever seen attempted to be set up by different States or hospitals has been financial disasters.

    Medicare is going broke, and it has been subsidized for years by the private insurance sector.

    If you take out the competition, you’ve got the post office.

    If Obama cons everyone into his offering a public option he’ll just pull a ponzi scheme with the numbers until he wipes out the private sector.

    Not to mention how many people will lose their jobs? Hundreds of thousands if not a million or more? Entire insurance companies will be put out of business, not to mention health insurance brokers.

    Nobody will want to be an MD and we’ll have rationing on top of it. It’ll be a disaster.

13. Joe Says:
    June 13th, 2009 at 12:23 am

    I just did a required course to sell Medicare Advantage Plans and also Part D, and I couldn’t believe how complex and convoluted the whole mess was. They had rules upon rules upon rules. It was ridiculously complex.

    I can only imagine the disaster they will make if they take over the entire system.

14. Joe Says:
    June 22nd, 2009 at 2:50 pm

    I also find it interesting that they think agents are unnecessary, yet Obama says we need more “competition” in the healthcare business. Huh? How is setting up a dictatorial government run insurance agency aka an insurance “exchange” going to promote competition?

    It’s obvious he will undercut private carriers with his “public option” and drive them all out of business, then what’s left but the government plan. It’s ridiculous to have the federal government as your competitor. Not to mention, how many people will lose their jobs from the brokers to their staff to those at the insurance companies. But he doesn’t seem to be concerned about those jobs does he? (The way he’s concerned about saving the auto workers jobs)

15. Thomas Link Says:
    January 8th, 2010 at 9:10 am

    Politicians are elected to represent us. That is very hard to dowhen they don’t talk to us. Senator Specter held a town hall meeting in a facility thatcould have held nearly 1000 but chose to shrink it to hold only 400. Senator Casey didn’t hold one within 100 miles.
    I visited with 4 of Casey’s staffers last fall. I asked why we need exchanges. She replied “so people have access to buy insurance”. I then asked if she had any idea what brokers do now. She replied that she meant people who don’t already have insurance!!! They are selftaught idiots.

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