Wendell Potter's Blog, page 23

What Congress Didn’t Say: Obamacare Outlaws Policies That Are Essentially Worthless

Sebelius show trial highlighted lawmakers in the pockets of insurance companies. As I watched Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius being grilled by members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee last week, it was immediately clear to me just how many of them are in the pockets of the industry I used to [...]

What Really Scares Middle-Income Americans Away From the Dentist

Author’s Note: This is the second in a series of articles examining America’s oral health care crisis. Be sure to read part one, “America’s Hidden Epidemic That Obamacare Barely Touches.” If you think that lack of access to dental care is just a problem for the poor in this country, think again. More and more [...]

HealthCare.gov Disaster Symptom of Larger Problem

Government’s technology procurement system is riddled with flaws. The glitch-plagued HealthCare.gov website has, as expected, given critics of health care reform another opportunity to persuade the American public that Obamacare is a failure and should be scuttled. The House Energy and Commerce committee hearing last week was — surprise — little more than a forum [...]

Government Needs to Fix Obamacare Glitches — Fast

Federal health insurance exchanges worse than state versions. Now that the federal government is open again, the attention of the public, media and, of course, politicians, will turn, as it should, to whether the Obama administration will be able to make the glitch-plagued health insurance exchanges work. I wasn’t at all surprised that people were [...]

The Elephant in the Room

You can ask your elected officials, ‘Do you hate Obamacare more than you love your country?’ … but don’t expect a straight answer. Earlier this week on MSNBC, host Thomas Roberts asked Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) a very simple question: “Do you hate Obamacare more than you love your country?” Roberts was questioning Blackburn over [...]

Opponents’ Missteps Locked in Obamacare’s Future

Congressional Republicans overplayed their hand, just as WellPoint did in 2010. Last Thursday, October 10, 2013, probably won’t be mentioned in the history books as an important date for the U.S. health care system, but it was. That’s because last Thursday was the first day reform advocates who’ve worked for years were able to exhale, [...]

Shutdown Takes Focus Off Obamacare Glitches

Public’s attention diverted much to chagrin of Republicans. If health care reform advocates and Obamacare lovers haven’t done so already, I suggest they send the House Republican caucus a thank you note. Because of the actions they’ve taken to shut down the federal government, congressional Republicans have kept the Washington media so preoccupied over the [...]

Beginning of the End for Major Health Insurers

Obamacare will unleash innovation in insurance market, expose irrelevance of the big firms. I’ve often said that the Affordable Care Act is the end of the beginning of reform. Starting tomorrow, October 1, 2014, that law will signify the beginning of the end of the health insurance industry as we know it. As I’ve noted previously, [...]

Shopping Smart in the New Marketplace

When to enroll, where to look and how to save money as you search for quality coverage in the ACA’s new health insurance exchange. The ACA’s health insurance marketplaces will be open soon, and millions of uninsured and under-insured Americans are expected to enroll in qualified marketplace health policies during open enrollment, which will run [...]

America’s Hidden Epidemic That Obamacare Barely Touches

I’ve spoken many times about the life-changing experience of seeing thousands of people standing in the rain for hours at a county fairground near where I grew up to get medical care in barns and animal stalls. What may come as a surprise to many is the fact that most of those people were there [...]