John Edwards talks about "corporate greed". He's being far too generous. I will tell you that corporate greed, is but the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the health insurance industry in the United States. John Edwards needs to add, "corporate greed and criminality."
I just ended a three hour conference call with David Rosen, the CEO of Medisys Health. You're going to be hearing quite a bit from me about this man and his battle in the weeks ahead.
For now, I'll remind you that Rosen is the hospital executive who has come to be known as the father of the UnitedHealth RICO lawsuit.
Several years ago, he had enough with insurance industry crimes against his hospitals, doctors and patients, and knew he had to take action. His hospital system filed a RICO lawsuit. I would be remiss if I didn't add that the corporate owned media paid scant attention to the story, then or now.
As usual, Paul Krugman was a voice in the wilderness.
So since the COM won't cover organized and institutionalized insurance industry corruption and criminal activity against the American people, we will. Like I said, you'll be reading plenty about David Rosen and his true David vs. Goliath battle, in the near future.
I'm also happy to tell you that David reads and admires Daily Kos, and has decided to give Daily Kos an unprecedented look inside the lawsuit.
This morning, he described to me, in a lengthy telephone conversation, shocking and nauseating stories of institutionalized and organized corruption at the highest levels of U.S. health insurance companies. He described regulators who look the other way, politicians who listen to his documented litany of insurance industry crimes, say they will "look into it," and then do nothing. He called what is going on in the United States "nationwide insurance industry fraud."
You cannot end a conversation like this and not be deeply concerned devastated. I have a ton of material which will take me some time to absorb. It's like drinking water through a firehose. It is a cancer that has metastasized so extensively that, quite literally, you don't know how and where to begin the sordid tale.
So perhaps the best way to begin, and to give you a preview of the insurance industry criminality the next Democratic president will confront, is to ask you to watch this video. It was recently on Good Morning America. I should add that David Rosen is the only hospital CEO in the United States that I am aware of attempting to decapitate the beast. Trust me, David isn't going for low-hanging fruit--he's going for the whole enchilada. But he is a man standing alone. Now I wonder: why aren't any of his colleagues daring to join him? Privately they wish him good luck and Godspeed but public support? It ain't happening.
Which brings me to John Edwards. This isn't an easy diary for me to write, because truthfully I admire all three of our leading Democratic candidates.
I am mesmerized by Barack Obama. I think Hillary Clinton, if elected, would return to her progressive roots. And yes, I am shamelessly the unelected president of the Bill Clinton Fan Club. So I have a real conundrum. But I couldn't walk away from this conversation and not recognize that what is going on in this country is far worse than a garden-variety catastrophe. This is a nation bought, paid for, and owned by merciless special interests, chief among them the health insurance industry.
It is a catastrophe in which the government, regulators, and elected officials conspire together to perpetuate the status quo. This is about as serious an evil as I have ever encountered and David Rosen confirmed all my, and our, worst fears.
It is bad my friends. It is very bad.
Let me turn for one moment to the family of Nataline Sarkisyan and why they are standing standing shoulder-to-shoulder with John Edwards. First, I was advised after Nataline died, that the family was in all likelihood going to become healthcare activists. This was a well-considered decision to support the candidacy of John Edwards. They wanted to do something important to honor Nataline's memory. Clearly, John Edwards is the one candidate who seems to appreciate that we are facing a truly vicious foe--the foe responsible for the death of Nataline Sarkisyan.
So, if you are a healthcare voter, it seems to me there is only one candidate who really appreciates the nature of the looming fight.
After speaking to David Rosen, I have no doubt that Edwards is correct about the the epic battle we Americans are facing. You will have no doubt either after you read my upcoming diaries. Edwards is correct--you can't negotiate with these people, you must fight them with every ounce of your being.
And by the way, David Rosen made it very clear he isn't endorsing John Edwards or any of the candidates of either party. Please understand this point.