The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act – aka Obamacare – was government further inserting itself in the business of health insurance.
Obamacare – is an unmitigated disaster. Premiums have doubled. Deductibles have tripled. As many people have lost their insurance – as purchased it at gunpoint under the Obamacare mandate.
The takeaway?
You don’t want government anywhere near any insurance policies you purchase.
Or insurance policies anyone else purchases. Because when government isn’t screwing you with government insurance – they’re screwing you with changes to private insurance.
Because if the government gives someone else crony discounts – you’ll be paying to make up the difference.
Now…please meet trial lawyer John W. Houghtaling.
Houghtaling is a huge and longtime Democrat donor.
(A trial lawyer – funding Democrats? The heck you say.)
Houghtaling is now leading a coalition of very large businesses – with the poorly chosen acronym BIG (Business Interruption Group). Made up of a bunch of very wealthy, very large businesses.
You know: The kinds of large businesses who applied for and received CARES Act shutdown relief money – and then were shamed into returning it. (Well…some of them returned it.)
Because these are huge companies – and the CARES Act money was meant for Mom & Pop shoppes.
Houghtaling is representing BIG – and its big businesses. Like Driftwood Capital.
Driftwood Secures Capital, Adds Lending Division:
“Driftwood Capital has secured new general partner capital allowing $3 billion in deployments over the next five years.”
Driftwood Capital Is Ramping Up Acquisitions and Lending In 2020
So Driftwood definitely deserves some government cronyism.
What do the poor, downtrodden members of BIG say they want?:
“The Business Interruption Group is a coalition of thousands of businesses, employing millions in every sector of the Economy. We band together to form the BIG nonprofit to INSIST INSURERS PAY OWED BUSINESS LOSSES CAUSED BY THE CORONAVIRUS.”
Except that second sentence – is a lie. Told by a trial lawyer pushing to get crony government policy – to clean up insurance messes made by the BIG clients he represents.
Insurance companies – actually owe BIG clients no such thing.
The BIG client businesses had an opportunity to purchase in their business insurance – something specifically called “pandemic coverage.”
And they didn’t do it.
It’s Too Late for This Pandemic. But Everyone Wants Insurance Against the Next One:
“Marsh, a leading insurance broker, said it is experiencing a surge in inquiries for PathogenRX, a product it launched in 2018 to provide financial protection to companies hit by an infectious disease outbreak in the United States and Asia. The product includes a policy underwritten by Munich Re, one of the world’s biggest providers of cover to protect insurers against big losses.”
Houghtaling’s BIG clients could have had the coverage – but chose not to.
Houghtaling is suing the insurance companies on behalf of his BIG clients – because of course. Trying to get the insurance companies to cover something – for which his BIG clients didn’t purchase coverage.
And Democrat donor Houghtaling and his BIG clients are playing a safety – in case their ridiculous lawsuit fails them. They are looking for a crony bailout from Congress.
They’re trying to get Congressional Democrats to rewrite the policies BIG clients purchased – to retroactively include pandemic coverage.
Ummm…NOT A CHANCE.
Again, we do NOT want government anywhere near the private insurance sector.
And we absolutely do NOT want Congress rewriting policies to benefit crony trial lawyers and his BIG clients.
These insurance policies are closed negotiations – and done deals.
Having government parachute in and rewrite them after the fact – would be INCREDIBLY destructive.
Because how the heck could you write any policy ever again – with the incredible uncertainty looming of government again parachuting in and rewriting them?
Can you imagine the incredibly high price – of the insurance rider covering “incredibly stupid government action?”
Thankfully, Oklahoma Republican Congressman Kevin Hern is having none of it.
Get the name of last week’s Congressional hearing – chosen by the House majority Democrats:
Business Interruption Coverage: Are Policyholders Being Left Behind?
No slant there.
Un-slanted – was Hern:
“Mr. Houghtaling represents a very interesting partisan position. He’s been a very large donor to the Democratic party over the years and he’s currently involved in a major lawsuit against the insurance industry.”
Oh: And Houghtaling has a history of suing insurance companies – to get them to retroactively cover things policies clearly did not cover.
Court Rules Against Homeowners in Katrina Case:
“Insurance policies did not cover flood damage, federal appeals court says.”
Oh: And speaking of dealing with Houghtaling and slimy ilk….
McConnell Draws ‘Red Line’ on Coronavirus Bill: It Won’t Pass Without ‘Liability Protection’:
“Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday that the next coronavirus bill has to include liability protections for employers or it will not pass the Senate.”
Everyone should thank Leader McConnell for this – including, ironically, Houghtaling’s BIG clients.
Because how hilarious would it be – if BIG’s businesses reopened post-pandemic without the liability protections.
And immediately thereafter – Houghtaling and his slimy ilk sue them for “rushing” to open post-pandemic.
It’s as morbidly humorous – as it is likely.
So let’s NOT have Congress rewrite and retroactively expand existing insurance coverage – to protect us from Houghtaling and his slimy ilk.
And let’s have Congress pass some pandemic litigious liability protection – to protect us from Houghtaling and his slimy ilk.
This first appeared in Red State.