Giving the insurance companies control over healthcare reform implementation:

To no one's surprise on Blue NC, they're not even trying to hide the buying of policy anymore. The NC House Insurance Committee has taken up a controversial bill (H-115) that gives insurance companies a large role in overseeing how consumers will be able to buy "affordable" insurance coverage through a state-level “health benefits exchange” to be created under the new national health reform law.

The bill’s biggest supporter is Blue Cross and Blue Shield, NC’s largest insurance company. It gets to help name at least one representative to the new exchange. Why? Probably because sponsors of the Insurance Exchange Bill are top recipients of Blue Cross contributions. Other reserved seats on the Exchange are being earmarked for other special interests and big donors of the bill's sponsors.

Know who you won't see getting a reserved seat on the Exchange? ANY consumer group, and not even any non-profit devoted to public health or health-related concerns. Nada. It's nothing but foxes guarding the hen house. You are not represented at all.

Download the full report, including top donors of Blue cross largesse here:

http://www.democracy-nc.org/downloads/BlueCrossRecipients-4-2011.pdf

Stay tuned for how you can put pressure on the senate to modify this bill or other action steps you can take. In the meantime: as always, follow the money. You never know when it's going to be up to you to point out that the Emperor has no clothes.