Why didn't Republicans do this when they were in power?
Why didn't Bush shame Wellpoint to stop dropping patients?
Why didn't Sarah Palin campaign on it? Why didn't John McCain demand it?
Why?
Because Republicans are in bed with the health insurance companies and they work to maximize corporate profits, not the welfare of American citizens. It took Democrats and the Obama administration to get Wellpoint to stop dropping their sick patients, and Americans should never forget it.
WellPoint Inc said on Tuesday that as of May 1 it would stop dropping healthcare coverage for subscribers who get sick, after being pressured by Democrats and the Obama administration.
Kathleen Sebelius deserves a lot of credit on this one, but the entire Democratic caucus does too:
WellPoint announced its decision after Democrats from three U.S. House of Representatives committees earlier in the day wrote to health insurance executives urging them to immediately stop the practice, known as rescission. A separate letter on Tuesday from more than 50 Democrats focused on WellPoint alone.
Reuters also deserves credit as they wrote the original piece that sparked Sebelius' outrage:
WellPoint has called the Reuters report inaccurate, but Reuters has stood by its story. The Reuters report also sparked a stern rebuke from U.S. Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, who on Friday asked WellPoint to end the practice now.
This is a big win for Democrats and for the American people, and a big loss for health insurance company profits.
This is a big part of what the HCR bill was all about. Giving the government the power and the clout to shame these companies into behaving as they should or losing customers.
Of course if/when Republicans regain power, they won't act to protect consumers.
And that's why voters in the future will see a much clearer distinction between administrations like Obama's who work to protect the American public, and Republican administrations who work to harm us.