Obama Pressures Insurance Companies, "Shut Up Or ELSE!"

10/31/13

Looks like Don Obama is making the insurance executives an offer they can't refuse.A trade group leader told CNN says the Obama administration "is exerting massive pressure" to keep silent." Other insurance company executives say they got calls from White House after speaking out.

After insurance officials publicly criticized the implementation, White House staffers contacted insurers to express their displeasure, industry insiders said. 

Multiple sources declined to speak publicly about the push back because they fear retribution. 

But Bob Laszewski, who heads a consulting firm for big insurance companies, did talk on the record. 

"The White House is exerting massive pressure on the industry, including the trade associations, to keep quiet," he said. 

Laszewski, who's been a vocal critic of Obamacare, said he's been asked by insurance executives to speak out because they feel defenseless against an administration that is regulating their business -- and a big customer. 

Government-backed plans accounted for about half of health care policies last year, a number that is expected to grow over the years. 

White House spokesman Jay Carney said the idea that administration officials are trying to silence insurance industry insiders is "preposterous and inaccurate." He added that Laszewski has been a vocal critic of health care reform for two decades.

According to Laszewski  insurance company officials are embarrassed that they have to cancel plans and force people into more robust, and possibly more expensive, coverage. But they their hands were tied due to Obamacare regulations.  He adds that insurers warned the White House that the regulations would lead to discontinued policies.

"One of the things I think is clear here is the Obama administration has no trust in anything the health insurance industry is telling them about how to run a health plan," Laszewski said.

 The White House denies the charges of intimidation.

Source: "The Lid"