The Key To Health Care Reform: Call Centers?

By Big Tent Democrat, Section Other Politics
Posted on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 01:56:21 PM EST
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lilburro has a great catch:

Ezra [Klein] favors incrementalism vis a vis the Baucus plan because it sets up a call center:

The emphasis here, however, is on making them easy to use: "The exchange will provide a standardized enrollment application, a standard format for describing insurance options and marketing, call center support and customer service." It's not clear why you'd do all that if you weren't planning to let them expand.

So whereas enrolling 10 million people is meaningless, setting up a call center is a monumental gain in health care reform destined to bring us to universal health care. WTF???!!

(Emphasis supplied.) My question is will the call centers be multi-lingual? I mean, since illegal aliens are sure to be using the "exchanges," we need to make sure there is a Spanish speaking option at least. Without it, the "expansion" seems doubtful . . .

Speaking for me only

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The Key To Health Care Reform: Call Centers? | 33 comments (33 topical)

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IIRC - I read or heard a story about (5.00 / 2) (#1)
by inclusiveheart on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:04:18 PM EST

private health insurers setting up "stores" where customers could come in and review their insurance options - thinking that they were "helping" this situation somehow. Sounded like a colossal waste of money to me since the problem really isn't that people don't understand as much as it is that they can't really afford coverage or the cost of denial of claims.

This whole healthcare debate is so frustrating because few to none in positions of power actually understand the problems well enough to identify legitimate solutions correctly. Then, of course, there are the hucksters whose goal is to confuse and deflect any and all legitimate progress towards problem solving. It is very distressing.

What I find most frustrating (5.00 / 3) (#11)
by lilburro on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:20:32 PM EST

is all this dragging the goalposts around. I am not a healthcare wonk by any stretch of the imagination but I think the premise of cheaper healthcare is easy to understand - you have to spread risk. Plans that don't do that are going to suck. Ideally it should all be pretty logical.

Anyway, in this particular column quoted above, Ezra seems down with the CO-OPs. I don't understand why he thinks these are viable. It seems like a completely unorganized public plan guaranteed to result in pockets of health insurance "blackouts" across the country (if the Alabama CO-OP fails, what happens to the Pennsylvania CO-OP?) I just don't get this ...


You (5.00 / 1) (#12)
by Ga6thDem on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:24:37 PM EST

are right about the risk. The more you spread it around the cheaper it is for everybody. that's where mandates actually help BUT not in the way 3200 is written it seems.


Because he's never had to worry (5.00 / 3) (#25)
by gyrfalcon on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 04:21:08 PM EST

about insurance in his entire young life?

It's an intellectual exercise to him, seems to me, not a real life situation with real life people who need not to be bankrupted by medical care.


: Remember (5.00 / 1) (#30)
by nycstray on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 06:29:53 PM EST

this is the same guy that just admitted he didn't realize he wasn't currently insured at his new job . . . .
I'd like to hear him explain his current employer plan to us (without re-reading it/cheat sheets)

: Maybe he should read his own paper... (5.00 / 2) (#32)
by Anne on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 11:19:00 PM EST

as today's WaPo has an article that showcases a number of people who have insurance or who have decided to drop their insurance, and how they would or would not be helped by reform.
There really is something to be said for some life experience - and for being willing to listen and learn from the experience of others.

Exactly (5.00 / 2) (#20)
by ruffian on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:34:40 PM EST

the problem is not that it is hard to choose among many, many options. The problem is that many have no options.

That should make the call center job easier, however: "No insurance for you - next!!!"


I saw that commercial (none / 0) (#6)
by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:11:40 PM EST

Progressive Insurance is even the name of the company.


I find that woman really irritating (5.00 / 1) (#8)
by andgarden on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:12:17 PM EST

: I love her! (5.00 / 1) (#23)
by gyrfalcon on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 04:17:40 PM EST

The ambiguity of this semi-rational, semi-insane, semi-surreal personage I really enjoy.

I found another article - (5.00 / 1) (#14)
by inclusiveheart on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:46:02 PM EST

actually think the original story I heard was on NPR - but the WSJ just ran a story about health insurance stores on Sept 1st. I seem to remember Aetna and BCBS being featured in the story I heard. The WSJ story cites those two and Humana as well. Brick and mortar stores really won't help people I am sad to say.


I don't think Progressive does (none / 0) (#24)
by gyrfalcon on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 04:18:55 PM EST

health insurance, though. Or at least that's not the part of their business they're advertising with the "store."


Forget call centers. Now, if there was an iPhone (5.00 / 7) (#3)
by steviez314 on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:10:30 PM EST

app though....

Claim denied? There's an app for that! (5.00 / 4) (#7)
by andgarden on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:11:49 PM EST

LMAO (none / 0) (#5)
by Big Tent Democrat on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:11:04 PM EST

Hey, I may have to wrtie one (none / 0) (#18)
by ruffian on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:30:38 PM EST

if only for a joke. It would be pretty funny. I'll call it- Apple A Day because this exchange plan will keep the xoctor away.


Doctor, I mean (none / 0) (#19)
by ruffian on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:32:43 PM EST

the xoctor is what you get when my app fails.


: I think xoctor is an open-source doctor. (none / 0) (#28)
by steviez314 on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 04:54:53 PM EST

Or an open sores doctor.

I can see it now (none / 0) (#22)
by TeresaInSnow2 on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:52:58 PM EST

It's like one of those lighter aps. You shake your IPhone and it tells you which insurance plan to buy.


But, will those call centers be staffed (5.00 / 6) (#4)
by Anne on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:10:59 PM EST

with Americans, in America? Or will people who call get trapped in call center hell, talking to people in India, as my husband has been, off and on for almost a month, trying to resolve a problem with our Verizon DSL service?

Will the employees get that great Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan?

Ezra needs more life experience.

: How true (5.00 / 1) (#15)
by mmc9431 on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:12:59 PM EST

"Ezra needs more life experience".
That statement is true of 99% of the decision makers in Washington, from the Supreme Court on down.

LOL! (5.00 / 3) (#9)
by Ga6thDem on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:13:11 PM EST

Does Ezra not realize that every insurance company in the world has these "call centers". Truly this guy has fallen down the rabbit hole and it's becoming downright embarrassing that he's even trying to talk about heathcare.

I need to form a group called "ex-employees of insurance companies" who can answer your questions. We'd have a better understanding of the subject than eh does. I mean this is just mind boggling bad.

: That's not a bad idea, actually (none / 0) (#26)
by gyrfalcon on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 04:22:14 PM EST

Is Ezra familiar with the government? (5.00 / 2) (#10)
by cawaltz on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:15:03 PM EST

They could just as easily decide not to expand a call center and scrap it down the line.

In the military they scrapped stuff that cost millions to billions all the time.

I remember them purchasing a rotating shelving system at NMCSD that they never ended up utilizing because the head honcho wanted them to go to a patient delivery system that filled the pills while the "customer" was waiting. The system was not cheap. Then there was the automated robot system(really cool btw) that was going to replace the technicians but didn't work out because it couldn't prioritize the new prescriptions vice the refills and increased waiting times(It wasn't scrapped but it did get relegated to refills only).

I doubt the waste is relegated to DoD and would anecdotally be transferable to other programs.

Sorta on topic (5.00 / 1) (#13)
by andgarden on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:26:20 PM EST

the Big Dog:

[T]he people hire you to deliver.

: Maine's rep. (5.00 / 3) (#27)
by gyrfalcon on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 04:23:51 PM EST

was just on Hardball and got very cranky. "The people of Maine didn't elect me to make sure insurance companies got a level playing field so they could preserve their profits."

For-Profit Health "ANYTHING" (5.00 / 3) (#16)
by tokin librul on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:27:34 PM EST

is criminal. Literally a crime against humanity. The health Insurance Industry is parasitical. There is NO other word for it. The parasite is wholly indifferent to, unconcerned about the health of the "host." It takes what it can get, what it needs, and moves on. The condition of the "host" is of no concern as ANY point in the process. The parasite contributes nothing, and removes vital resources that could be better used in keeping the host alive.

Tell me how that does NOT describe the "health insurance industry."

: It's a sign of (none / 0) (#33)
by cal1942 on Wed Sep 09, 2009 at 07:18:09 AM EST

national madness that so many people are doing everything possible to keep one of the nation's parasites alive and well and as dangerous as ever.

Call Centers... (none / 0) (#2)
by CST on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 02:06:09 PM EST

Sounds like a good way to get the rest of the country to hate their health insurance.

12 dimensional chess?

Outsourced too, no doubt. (none / 0) (#17)
by jean in MN on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:28:12 PM EST

And no doubt they'll outsource those call center jobs to third-world countries. They do that sort of thing well.

: Oh now that would (none / 0) (#21)
by TeresaInSnow2 on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 03:51:52 PM EST

be insult to injury....

Some people... (none / 0) (#29)
by kevsters on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 06:10:34 PM EST

How are we ever going to compromise when right wing business owners complain about potentially saving $50,000 because of the public option, yet never once brings up the fact that they are spending $115,000 to insure 8 employees?

You have to watch this video.

http://progressnotcongress.org/?p=2821

What kind of insurance do you all have? (none / 0) (#31)
by catmandu on Tue Sep 08, 2009 at 08:25:49 PM EST

I've never had any problem with my insurance. I've used several policies--BCBS, Eatna, and Pacificare. With my best friends who have different policies we've had no problem with pregnancy, c-section, heart problems, cardiovascular problems, weight surgery, hospitalized addiction care, in patient addiction services, back and neck problems, and aheart attacks, broken bones and pain management and carpel tunnel surgery.
That is from twenty odd years and seven people.
Very few problems.
We are part of the 80% of private insured who are pleased with their policies.
Especially private rooms.