WHY THE BLUE CROSS SALE FAILED IN LOUISIANA!

Monday, February 19^th, 2024

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

 

WHY THE BLUE CROSS SALE FAILED!

 

Blue Cross, Blue Shield is Louisiana’s largest health insurer, and one of the state’s largest employers. A major effort was undertaken by the Blue Cross Board to sell the whole system to a company calledElevance Health located in Indianapolis Indiana. Elevance is no new kid on the block, and has gobbled up Blue Cross companies in fifteen other states, making it one of the largest healthcare operations in the nation.

 

But the acquisition ran into problems from day one. Elevance Health has received a series of fines in seven other states totaling more than $26 million, and that did not set well with many observers.  Others, including the governor of Louisiana, tried to jump into the mix and have influence even though they had no authority to do so. But the bottom line was this.  Policyholders in Louisiana we’re OK with the present Blue Cross system, and were reluctant to rock the boat.  The present Blue Cross leadership never offered any solid reasoning as to why any change should be made.

 

Now I know something about the Blue Cross operations. You see, when I was insurance commissioner back in the early 1990s, I discovered massive mismanagement and waste. Blue Cross back then had turned over complete management to the Mississippi Blue Cross organization. The Louisiana board just sat back and let the Mississippi organization pretty much do what they wanted. And they really stuck it to Louisiana policyholders.

 

One of the key roles of the insurance department in Louisiana is to examine companies doing business in the state. Make sure that they are on a strong financial footing, investing their money properly, and are always in good shape to pay any claims from Louisiana policyholders. But the Louisiana board back then, in conjunction with the Mississippi board, had the previous insurance commissioner under their thumb. The department just did not pay attention to Blue Cross, letting the company operate any way they wanted.  

 

A typical example was the misuse of the Blue Cross airplane. It was kept in Mississippi and used exclusively by Mississippi executives, but was fully paid for by Louisiana policyholders. And boy did they ever use that plane. It made numerous trips worldwide, including golf outings to Scotland.  Inflated salaries we’re paid to Mississippi officials who’s work had nothing to do with servicing Louisiana Blue Cross policyholders.

 

The buck stopped at one place to bring the various shenanigans from Mississippi to an end. With me. I called the Mississippi Blue Cross company executives in, and confronted them with a long list of mismanagement concerns. When the Mississippi officials saw that the jig was up, they immediately resigned and basically handed me the keys to the company.

 

Now, remember that I was a new commissioner learning as I went along, and certainly had no experience with taking over what was then the largest employer in Louisiana, and by far the largest insurer. I researched just what authority I had, and determined that it was my job to appoint a new board to run this fragile Louisiana company. I thought about hiring a national firm to make recommendations, but it just didn’t make sense to bring it a bunch of outsiders to take over. We seem to do that way too often and Louisiana.

 

After checking with a cross-section of healthcare professionals in the state as well as numerous successful business operators, I put together a board of medical professionals, some good business minds, and a balance of diversity that at the time made sense to me. For the first several years, my staff and I kept close watch on the company, regularly calling in the board for justification of many of their decisions. But as time went on, it was obvious that they had put together a good business plan, and were running a first rate company. The insurance department received  few complaints, and Blue Cross has been a solid operating business in the state for a number of years.

 

The bottom line In the recent acquisition failure was simply this. Current policy holders are satisfied. There was just no reason to rock the boat. And that makes good sense to me.

 

Peace and Justice

 

Jim Brown

 

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.  You can also listen to his weekly podcast at www.datelinelouisiana.com.

 

 

 

HERE COME THE ELECTION POLICE!

Monday, February 5th, 2024

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

HERE COME THE ELECTION POLICE!

Alright all you Swifties.   I have some bad news for you. When you go to the polls to vote for president on election day,  no Taylor Swift hats or shirts will be allowed. This policy of cutting off poor Taylor’s paraphernalia will no doubt be in effect in a number of states across the country.  Particularly in states where Republicans control elections procedures.

 You see, Taylor supported President Joe Biden in 2020. Republicans are worried she will do it again. This gal has 250 million followers on Instagram. With that kind of clout, there are worries that she can direct enough voters towards the president so as to make a difference as to who wins the election.  So no Taylor paraphernalia allowed in many voting locations.

And if you are a Trump supporter, don’t go jumping up and down and hollerin’ “Tough luck all you die hard Swifties.” That’s because you MAGA supporters will no doubt be prohibited from wearing a Trump hat or even one that says, “Make America Great Again.” Why? It’s because the US Supreme Court is meddling again.

Yep.  In a recent case titled Ostrewich v. Hudspeth, the Supremes have ruled that  it is quite OK for citizens to be prevented from wearing something expressive on their clothing for the sole reason that their clothing might be an expression of supporting  a candidate or initiative on the ballot. So if there’s anything remotely related to a ballot issue, you will be ordered to take it off or cover up. No images of Martin Luther King Jr., John Lennon or possibly any other ballot issue.

Free speech at the polls makes you persona non grata.  Texas has now made it a criminal offense for a voter to wear an  insignia, badge, or emblem if it relates to a candidate or an issue on the ballot. Our own Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New Orleans, also approved the same restrictions.  No surprise here because the Fifth Circuit is notorious for taking away personal freedoms that are supposedly guaranteed in the constitution.

Let me give you some history about the old days. You didn’t have to worry about what you wore back then.  I first ran for state senator in 1971. On election day, I would be up before the crack of dawn ,and my first stop was at Hubert Lee’s donut shop in Ferriday. Forty  boxes of donuts later, I was out the door to personally visit  a number of voting precincts in the district. I would drop off a box of donuts for the election commissioners, then ask if they would mind wearing a Jim Brown for Senator button on their shirts. I don’t remember any commissioner refusing to pin my logo on.

Ok, maybe that did give me a small advantage.  But I never hear of anyone complaining over some shirt, button or hat worn by a supporter of another candidate.

I did catch a little heat as Secretary of State when signs were put up at election sites that read “No campaigning within 300 feet of this polling site. Order by Secretary of State Jim Brown.” Of course I took my name off the signs when my opponents complained.

In this day and age, we certainly want to be sure that the election process is fair.  Particularly when national candidates are complaining that some elections are stolen. But to think that a voter can be swayed by what’s on a hat or shirt seems a bit far-fetched to me.

But just in case, all you Mega supporters and you Swifties better keep your guard up.  The elections police just might be on the prowl come election day.

Peace and Justice

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.  You can also listen to his weekly podcast at www.datelinelouisiana.com.

 

 

 

 

 

BESIDES RACKING IN CAMPAIGN DOLLARS, WHAT ELSE DOES YOUR LOUISIANA CONGRESSMAN DO?

Friday February 13^5h, l2024

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

 

BESIDES RACKING IN CAMPAIGN DOLLARS, 

WHAT ELSE DOES YOUR LOUISIANA CONGRESSMAN DO?

 

So have you been following the antics of your congressmen in Louisiana recently? Oh yeah, we all read were they had a huge gathering. in Washington DC last week. Lots of partying. And, of course, numerous obligatory fundraisers where all those national political PACs pour big dollars into the campaign coffers of our congressmen.

 

But what about how your congressman’s stands on major world and national issues?  Constituents used to be able to visit with their congressman at local civic clubs or coffee shops on weekends when they came home from Washington. We used to open our mailbox for a regular newsletter from the office of our legislators spelling out exactly what their position was on any number of important issues.  That way of keeping in touch with their district seems to be another communications relic that we see happening no longer.

 

So just what should we be hearing from our congressional delegation?  What are their positions on a number of important issues?  Many of these concerns involve billions of taxpayer dollars.  Here is a list.

 

A bipartisan group of Democrats and conservative Republicans drafted legislation to curtail the hundreds of thousands of immigrants crossing the southern border. It’s been a solution being called for by both parties for several years. Donald Trump opposes such legislation and is apparently OK with letting thousands of immigrants cross the borders illegally each day. How do you stand? Are you for the curtailment or do you support Donald Trump’s position?

 

How do you stand on sending billions of dollars to Ukraine to support their war against the Russians? Trump said last year that Russia should” take over “parts of Ukraine and says he can “resolve the war within 24 hours.”  The conservative Wall Street Journal has headlined that “Trump’s Russia  policy is appeasement.” Should the US continue sending military equipment and millions of dollars regularly to Ukraine?

 

The US has been pouring dollars into Israel for many years. Prime Minister Netanyahu shows little interest in allowing a cease-fire as 27,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war effort. Should the US keep pouring billions of dollars into Israeli coffers? Will you vote to keep the flow of dollars going to Israel?

 

If Trump is convicted on federal charges and turned down by any appeal to the Supreme Court, should he still be allowed to both run and serve as president if elected?

 

Should President Biden be allowed to carry on numerous military confrontations in the Middle East without prior congressional approval?  How satisfied are you with the actions of Biden in the Middle East that seems on the verge of exploding?  If you disapprove, what would you  recommend  doing differently?

 

A dozen United Nations employees took part in the Hamas raids on the October 7th assault on Israel. America has been pouring millions of dollars into the UN agency known as UNRWA, who has been sending this money in to Gazza. Should President Biden continue to send so many taxpayers dollars into an agency that allows employees to participate in these assaults?

 

Are both Biden and Trump too old to be president?  Should age be a factor in holding public office?

 

The US House of Representative overwhelmingly approved a new tax bill, loaded with subsidies that that the Wall Street Journal calls “corporate welfare.” In this day and time, with so many obligations around the world and so many needs for crime prevention, healthcare and huge infrastructure necessities, is it proper and timely to vote for corporate giveaways and new entitlements?

 

In my many years as both a close observer and a participant dealing with such public issues, I found that voters throughout the state are not that dumb and want more information from their public officials at all levels of government, including what’s happening nationally and internationally. Here’s hoping we can get more straight answers from those who represent us besides a request for campaign dollars.

 

Peace and Justice

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.  You can also listen to his weekly podcast at www.datelinelouisiana.com.