Philadelphia, PA– As health insurers spend $641,000 a day to oppose meaningful health care reform in Congress, more than 500 supporters of Health Care for America Now (HCAN) from the greater Philadelphia region will today join ACORN, AFL-CIO, MoveOn.org, Penn Action, Philadelphia Unemployment Project, SEIU, 32BJ SEIU and UFCW to protest Cigna Insurance for standing between working families and a national health insurance plan that includes a public option.
Pat Eiding, President of the AFL-CIO Central Labor Council talked about the importance of health care reform to working people and the middle class in introducing the keynote speaker, AFL-CIO International Executive Vice President, Arlene Holt Baker who said, “All across America today people have something to say about Big Insurance–We’re Sick Of It. We’re sick of Insurance companies telling doctors what they can and can’t do. We’re sick of our family members and neighbors getting denied coverage because they once got sick. And we’re sick of their using our premium money to work against the health care reform we need.”
Wendell Potter, the former Cigna executive who has been speaking out about the abusive practices of health insurance companies followed Ms. Holt and said, “Insurance companies maximize profits by denying claims, denying care and dumping the sick.”
Pennsylvanian Stacie Ritter, gave a personal account of the practices Mr. Potter described, talking about her struggle to get good care for her twins who got cancer when they were four. “Despite appeal after appeal and the support of a leading expert in the field , Cigna has never paid for the growth hormone replacement that is vital for my children. My children suffer from chronic conditions and I’m tired of living in fear of their next denial.”
Dr. Valerie Arkoosh, a Philadelphia pediatric anesthesiologist and President-elect of the National Physicians Alliance then spoke about the same problem from the point of view of doctors, “Insurance companies should be in the business of helping people get health care. Instead, they stand between doctors and patients and try to substitute the judgment of corporate bureaucrats for medical experts.”
Wayne MacManiman, Mid-Atlantic Area Director of SEIU 32BJ concluded the rally by saying that “Hardworking Philadelphians are sending a loud and clear message that they won’t wait any longer for affordable healthcare. Cigna and other insurance companies are spending $641,000 a day to oppose reform because they profit by keeping the system exactly the way it is.”
Prior to the rally, Jeff Blum, Executive Director of US Action and National Co-chair of Health Care for America Now led a delegation of supporters to Cigna’s Philadelphia headquarters to demand that the company’s chief executive, H. Edward Hanway sign the following pledge:
Stop Denying Our Care!
We are here to demand that Cigna CEO H. Edward Hanway, who made $22,716,454 million in 2007 by denying care to Cigna customers, agree to the following, effective immediately:
1. Cigna will not stand between a doctor and a patient when it comes to deciding what care that patient needs. No one at Cigna will substitute their judgment for the judgment of the patient’s physician in deciding if care is medically necessary.
2. Cigna will not deny or drop coverage based on a pre-existing medical condition.
3. Cigna will terminate any policy or incentive that rewards employees financially or otherwise for denying care and rejecting claims.
4. Cigna will not use any resources – including funds, employees, and facilities — to oppose any aspect of the health reform proposals supported by President Obama and being considered by members of the United States Congress.
The Philadelphia event was one of scores held around the nation today as part of the kick-off of a new campaign by HCAN called “Big Insurance: Sick of It.” The campaign is intended to focus public attention on why a public health insurance option is necessary to give consumers an alternative to coverage by large corporate insurance companies like Cigna.
Health Care for America Now (HCAN) is the nation’s largest health care campaign. Founded July 8, 2008, HCAN fights to win a guarantee of quality, affordable health care for all with the choice of a strong national public health insurance option in 2009.
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With more than 110,000 members, including more than 15,000 in Pennsylvania, 32BJ SEIU is the largest property services union in the country.
updated 9/23/09
