Any minute now I'm going to wake up and think
"WOW...that was a bizarre dream."
The same month Michigan posts an unemployment jump from 12.9% to 14.1% Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, the state's tax exempt, non profit insurer or last resort, asked the state if it could raise rates for private policies by up to 44%, and 22% for group plans.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan wants permission to quickly raise rates for about 400,000 of its health insurance customers.
The company said it is seeking interim rate increases on policies bought by people who typically aren't covered by employer or government plans.
The interim rates would be in place until state regulators decide a more permanent rate increase request filed by Blue Cross earlier this year.
-- The Article from my heat induced weird dream
But it's just an interim rate increase. Right?
It's temporary.
They want to raise rates while the state debates whether or not to grant their request to raise rates.
They submitted a request to raise rates, and then submitted ANOTHER request to raise rates while they wait for their first request to be granted.
See? It's my mind. It's all in my head.
I must be having some weird flashback from when I was a kid and ate that mushroom in the yard. I'm in some weird delusional dream.
But even in this bizarre dream of COURSE Michigan Insurance Commissioner Ken Ross will deny their destructive request, or at very least will revoke their tax exempt status.
I mean, of COURSE he will.
Why wouldn't he?
I mean...400,000 Michigan citizens, including myself, use this insurance...of COURSE he won't throw the beligered citizens of this state under a bus so that Blue Cross Blue Shield can be a little bit more comfortable. So that the millionaire CEO of this Non Profit venture can rest a little easier.
I mean, sure they SET UP the private plans. But they didn't expect people to actually USE them. They're for SHOW. They're window dressing. A pretty array of almost affordable Garbage Insurance.
But oh god...what if they're actually in financial trouble?
What if they REALLY REALLY REALLY NEED this rate increase?
Oh MY GOD!
They could go out of business!!
HOLY CRAP!!! Oh then we'd be screwed. We'd have to quick think up a way to make sure everybody had access to medical care. The gov'ment might have to come in and fix the whole mess...the American People are too big to fail.
You know...we're all tightening our belts. All Tightening Our Belts.
My belt is about as tight as it can go.
Blue Cross has lived tax free in this state for, like, half a century. TAX FREE. From the goodness of our hearts.
Listen up Representatives...
You have a choice here before you.
You can either ask Blue Cross to tighten its belt and live where its price range is Right Now.
OR
You can ask voters who are about to start breaking things to tighten their belts AGAIN some MORE as 14.1% of the state is unemployed.
So here's what you say to Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan: "We're sorry, your claim request has been Declined for some bullshit reason we just made up just now. If you would like to appeal our decision, call 1-800-fuck-you or send a letter in triplicate to our appeals office where it will be fed to a goat."
But...of course this is all just a dream. Nothing this bizarre would happen in the world.
Update [2009-6-22 14:58:21 by Muskegon Critic]:
Michigan folk, call or email your state rep and tell them this is stupid.
Everybody Else getting screwed over, tell your senators to wake the fuck up and support the public option, call your friends and tell them to call, email everybody you KNOW and tell them to call, post it on Facebook and Twitter...EVERYBODY has to call:
Thanks to slinkerwink's phone number list.
Please CALL Senator Max Baucus at (202) 224-2651
Please CALL Senator Olympia Snowe at (202) 224-5344
Please CALL Senator Charles Schumer at 202-224-6542
Please CALL Senator Edward Kennedy at (202) 224-4543
Please CALL Senator John Rockefeller at (202) 224-6472
Please CALL Senator Ron Wyden at (202) 224-5244
Please CALL Senator Kent Conrad at (202) 224-2043
Please CALL Senator Jeff Bingaman at (202) 224-5521
Please CALL Senator John Kerry at (202) 224-2742
Please CALL Senator Blanche Lincoln at 202-224-4843
Please CALL Senator Debbie Stabenow at (202) 224-4822
Please CALL Senator Maria Cantwell at 202-224-3441
Please CALL Senator Bill Nelson at 202-224-5274
Please CALL Senator Robert Menendez at 202-224-4744
Please CALL Senator Thomas Carper at (202) 224-2441
Thanks to Kos user KCK
BC knows that as newly unemployed GM workers find themselves transitioned from their employer group policy to COBRA, many will not be able to pay the higher COBRA rates and fall off into a pool of potential Individual policy applicants. The rest will follow as COBRA expires if they haven't found a job with health benefits...