Here is a suggestion as to the Baucus plan and any "trigger".
Apparently the Senate "Compromise" plan will still have a total monopoly by private insurance companies for all of us.
That means that in addition to all the overhead for the fancy buildings and Board salaries and meetings, that the executives skim huge amounts of all premium dollars off the top before anything goes to doctors and hospitals an nurses and actual delivery of health care.
The simple facts of these salaries should be highly publicized in true "Frank Luntz" talking point style.
The corporate office and home addresses of these executives should be made known too so folks can do a google map visual of the use of their premium dollars for the offices and housing of these executives.
Maybe the momentum will then shift.
Here is my trigger plan.
If by December 31, 2010 there are not at least 75 % of the public enrolled in plans with private insurers whose management has limited its top executive basic pay to that of the Senior Executive Service of the US Government, approximately $177,000 before location and other modifiers, then a Public Option will be put into effect with one or more US Government run insurance plans.
The US Government pay schedule is below:
http://www.opm.gov/...
The AMA publication, amednews.com, published the recent detailed incomes of the CEO’s of health insurers and it can be found, below:
Among other jaw droppers and talking points that should be used are the following:
Cigna’s Chair and CEO, Edward Hanway, earned $12.2 million in 2008, down from $25.8 million in 2007 He got a $6.6 million dollar bonus
Aetna Chair and CEO Ronald Williams made a $1.9 million bonus in 2008 and his compensation was $24.3 million
WellPoint President and CEO Angela Braly made $9.8 million
Healthnet’s President and CEO made $4.4 million
United Healthcare’s President and CEO Stephen Hemsley got $3.2 million and got $1.8 million in incentive pay
For salary data of CEO’s of Health insurers, see the following
AMA News:
http://www.ama-assn.org/...
For other sources see thisListing of major salaries as of 2005
http://blogs.webmd.com/...
United Healthcare is paying over 3 million in 2009 http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/...
Let the Public know what these companies are taking off the top of every health insurance dollar and then let the public decide if some Baucus Compromise leaving it to private insurance companies to continue to have a total monopoly on health insurance is what we want.
Of course publishing the physical addresses of the homes, all of them, of these executives so personal appeals could be made for coverage when there are denials by insurance "death panels" might be very useful too!
A few years ago I had a client who had been getting no health care from the insurance company and parked his pickup in front of their corporate office with large reader boards with the details of his condition, the denial letters from adjusters and the like. The contrast between his old pickup and his clearly sick condition and the huge fancy office building with the fancy insurance company sign was very effective. I did not know he was doing it, but it did get the attention and action needed to get the health care started and paid for by the insurance company.
It is way past time for some clear "marketing 101" by our team.