The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, aka the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Services Modernization Act, Pub. L. No. 106-102, 113 Stat. 1338 is a long-winded federal statute that created opportunities such as the one that allowed Citibank and Travelers Insurance Group to merge into the colossal fiasco that is Citigroup. The enabling of mega-corporations that have their hands in everything shouldn't affect health insurance, or did it?
Flashback to 1999 and read the intent of the legislators who created this OPPORTUNITY for insurance companies:
"To enhance competition in the financial services industry by providing a prudential framework for the affiliation of banks, securities firms, insurance companies, and other financial service providers, and for other purposes."
Where were all the free market gurus when this nifty piece of governmental "empowerment" took place? Maybe they couldn't understand what several years later would become the further weakening of the individual as a stakeholder in the health insurance company leverage against the consumer. This legislation that states its purpose is to "ENHANCE COMPETITION" gave a free pass for mega-companies like Citibank and Travelers to join together. The other novelty: INSURANCE companies became FINANCIAL SERVICES PROVIDERS for purposes of this law.
More than anything else, this legislation points out the lag time: after enactment the reality of what a law means and the stupidity of any consumer buying into the vanity of the power of one in negotiating the "best deal" on health insurance.
While the government legalized alliances between huge companies, it sold consumers on the fact that they can save their pennies by "shopping" around for insurance. The unconscionable promotion of this ideological fallacy by those who throw out the meaningless "free market economy" language when they say that medicare is an entitlement, emphasizes that the sheer ego of thinking we can change anything without addressing the corporate environment's free pass from government.
Now imagine your appeal letter to your insurer...yeah, that's enough of a tool for the consumer. One appeal requires at least a book of stamps, that's what you need to know. Send your objections everywhere to increase the odds of penetrating the enormous corporate maze that reduces accountability through tiers and permit the perpetuation and institutionalization of the IGNORANCE DEFENSE (you know, every level of employee not knowing what any other level of employee or supervisor, or VP or CEO is doing because there's just too much info).
Government-corporate created problems require the same means for solution.
Perhaps as we all suffer through the corporate-governmental mess of non-accountability we can use the same approach in seeking a or better jobs: When someone asks you about your experience, globalize your approach: banks and insurance companies are financial services so perhaps being unemployed and collecting unemployment checks should now be categorized as extensive governmental experience in delivery of governmental services to consumers....or perhaps going bankrupt is now "troubleshooting" and "problem-solving" through the financial challenges presented by an ailing economy...
Oh yes, and when your credit report and background check come up with smudges, be outraged...there are so many reporting agencies, how could you have known?
