Hammerand Rebutts NWH Criticism

Two things about the McHenry County Board’s 10-10 rejection of Federal money to help people find health insurance occurred today.

Well, maybe three.

The first was the Northwest Herald criticizing those who voted against the proposal.

The second was a partial robo-call.  All I caught was,

The County Board has already said No to Obamacare, but at noon today they board will be holding a secret meeting to…

Then words ran out.

Third was this statement from County Board member John Hammerand:

John Hammerand

John Hammerand

You are arrested and charged with a crime you know nothing of.

Do you call a professionally accredited attorney you know or a kid in the neighborhood who has taken a few law classes?

The answer is obvious.

Likewise, when you buy health insurance, you want an experienced Licensed Insurance Professional.

The Affordable Care Act Grant is not calling for hiring experienced licensed and insured professionals, who have sold health insurance policies in the past, but rather, for the poorest people in our country, their decisions to choose insurance are guided by a person called a navigator receiving on the job training with little or no experience and no professional insurance.

I am sorry, this is wholly inadequate.

The decisions made in consultation with these untrained navigators could very well change the course of these people’s lives.

The navigators should be licensed and insured Insurance professionals who have taken the appropriate tests required by Illinois Insurance Laws and been certified accordingly.

My recent vote to reject the Affordable Care Grant was based on the fact that untrained people would be making the decisions for people not only in our county but across the State of Illinois.

I found this unacceptable then as I still do now. I have empathy for these people, not disdain.

The condemnation I received from a local paper (not the Daily Herald) without the simple courtesy of a call is unacceptable.

Once more the newspaper is going for sensation over fact.

 


Comments

Hammerand Rebutts NWH Criticism — 20 Comments

  1. “The navigators should be licensed and insured Insurance professionals who have taken the appropriate tests required by Illinois Insurance Laws and been certified accordingly.”

    Wow, that’s ridiculous.

    The economic justification for occupational licensing is that people can be severely harmed by incompetent or corrupt practitioners.

    For example, we license doctors because of the risk that patronizing a bad one could result in your death.

    We license attorneys and accountants because of the risk that that they will embezzle your money.

    We license hairdressers because. . . well, we shouldn’t license hairdressers.

    What’s the risk associated with an incompetent Obamacare navigator, John?

    Or is this just meant a handout to the insurance salesmen of the county?

  2. I believe that any uninsured person or one looking for insurance can call Blue Cross or a licensed agent to help them also.

    Some people might be intimidated by a professional if they never bought insurance and sadly to say some people don’t know about deductibles, copays etc which navigators can explain.

  3. As a licensed health insurance agent in the state of Illinois I find it interesting that the government has sought to complicate our insurance regulations and give the responsibility of marketing health insurance to individuals who are not trained licensed insurance agents.

    They carry no error’s and omission coverage as we do so the County will now assume responsibility for their actions from a liability standpoint.

    Let it be known that purchase of health coverage is available to all members of the county from a licensed professional at zero cost to county/state residents.

    We have in the past and will continue in the future to service the health insurance needs and will be there when the individual has a claim issue or has a question about their coverage.

    After the grant has expired and the navigator is gone “who you gonna call?”

    No need to wait 3 to 4 hours on hold with the insurance carrier they can’t reach you can call your agent.

    Also, when an individual applies online they don’t know if they are covered until they hear something back.

    The way things currently work if there is a problem there is no way to trace it back.

    Many thought they were covered and only found out after waiting long periods of time and after they had incurred a claim.

    Regardless of how this situation works out I would urge the public to always seek out a real licensed professional we are listed on the website and are as close as your telephone.

  4. Finally someone besides John, who knows what thier talking about here.

    Thank you for weighing in Mr. Wheeler!

  5. So, Chuck, your answer is basically, “As a member of a cartel, I dislike competition and can make a buck from this, so I support barriers to entry into this field.”

  6. You liberals always like to put words into rational peoples comments.

    Don’t read what I said and try not to put a liberal slant on it.

    It won’t work, Ive been around the block twice as many times as you have.

    I am just stating the facts, if you want to go to a Navigator to get coverage you can, but now knowing the fact I would ask, why wouldn’t you want the advantage of a licensed insurance professional who will be there to service you when you need it?

    From the county’s standpoint, the claim is out there just waiting to happen it’s not will a claim arise out of an error or an omission it is simply when will it happen.

    Agent services are free to the participant and we will probably save you money because you won’t purchase something you don’t need or want and you won’t purchase something solely based on cost.

  7. Chuck of course is correct on savings to be had.

    Having an insurance pro on your personal financial team, is as important as your accountant and investment advisor.

    I suspect anyone who doesn’t understand that fact, doesn’t have two nickels to rub together anyway.

    They don’t care as long as Government holds their hand and someone else foots the bills.

  8. Once again, Mr. Hammerand seems to be the only person on the board that actually engages his brain.

  9. Chuck- I spent the afternoon with 2 other insurance professionals and they have wildly different view than yours.

    Navigators are to help those who can not afford insurance professionals.

    They can not serve their need and stay in business.

    I am glad to know that I can send all of those who need assistance to you.

    And can I assume you will not be taking the tax payer supported insurance (As Mr. Hammerand does) and instead go to a reputable insurance agent and pay your own freight?

    It is the responsible thing to do.

  10. “From the county’s standpoint, the claim is out there just waiting to happen it’s not will a claim arise out of an error or an omission it is simply when will it happen.”

    Chuck, I’m interested in this novel theory of liability.

    Please explain how permitting the federal government to dole out grant dollars to local non-profit employees creates the risk of liability for the County of McHenry.

    Feel free to cite whatever sources you deem to be relevant.

  11. There is a company aggressively courting all ‘dual eligible s’ in the area.

    They spend their own money on promotional events to gather potential clients to hear a pitch.

    When government money (including tif and enterprise zone money) is steered toward those selected by any current regime, it has a chilling effect on private money put at risk.

    Anything outside the zone of government funding is an automatic blight zone, as it would be idiotic to risk personal funds in competition with unlimited government funds and favoritism.

    The few clients left in the county who have thus far resisted signing up by the government exchange may have good reasons and would continue to resist coercion in the future.

    Or people might find that private citizens and.church goers step in to help those requiring help , once government gets out of the way.

    We will never know what healthy beneficial competitive forces might arise as.long as government money squelches any private endeavor.

  12. Healthy.

    Beneficial.

    Competitive.

    Words that have never been used in the same sentence as the word government.

  13. Mr. Hammerand should actually read what is required before someone can become a navigator.

    He is simply wrong about many of his claims.

    Those voting against this are NOT using their brains – they are playing silly anti-Obama politics.

  14. Based on my read of the resolution and the associated contract, the NO vote has nothing to do with “silly anti-Obama politics” but has everything to do with wasting MY tax dollars.

  15. This has nothing to do with navigators or insurance pros, this has to do with tax payers footing the bill or government redistributing the wealth of the tax payers.

    Keep government out of our healthcare.

    The tax payers of McHenry County do not need another tax burden created by our Government whether it’s local or federal.

    If you feel compelled to pay for people that are in need of health care donate to Catholic Charities or another charity that helps people in need.

  16. Lori, you do understand that this taxpayer wealth has already been taken by the federal government and will be redistributed to someone.

    Are you willing to give a handout to Cook County to prove a point about how anti-Obamacare McHenry County is?

  17. The refusal to accept money earmarked to be wasted, if practiced by all counties, would send the message that we are all anti-waste and do not hate our fellow counties so much we are willing to facilitate waste just to keep them from getting it.

  18. Susan?

    You are talking to juveniles.

    Their answer to everything is to whine, “Everybody else is doing it!”

    This is how we ended up living in the present reality that everyone is actively pursuing getting their “fair share” of the government stash. Does anyone remember personal responsibility?

    What happened to integrity?

    I am actually ashamed that so many have lost the crucial ability to think critically.

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