SACRAMENTO, Calif. – In the age of Black Panther, Thor and Captain America, California’s medical health insurance plans convey you … A large, androgynous purple coronary heart.
The well being insurers debuted their bubbly superhero Tuesday in entrance of California’s stately Capitol constructing. The coronary heart, who wore black booties and white, Michael Jackson-esque gloves, had no title. No matter. S/he bopped. S/he waved in school youngsters. S/he flashed the thumbs-up. S/he made the Capitol really feel a bit like Disneyland.
Passers-by couldn’t assist however giggle on the insurance coverage trade’s mute mascot. And they actually appeared to haven’t any clue that the anthropomorphized coronary heart was merely the newest PR stunt in an ongoing feud between two well being system titans: well being insurers and drugmakers.
“It’s very cute. I don’t know exactly what’s going on. … What is happening here exactly?” requested Christine Danho, 25, an administrative assistant who stopped to snap an image.
In current years, the 2 deep-pocketed industries have pointed fingers at one another over the rising price of prescribed drugs, both sides accusing the opposite of ripping off patients who want life-saving medicines.
The California Association of Health Plans, which bankrolled the occasion, launched its coronary heart “hero” and “high-priced drug nemesis” with combating phrases for drugmakers.
“Pharma has made a practice of swarming the State Capitol with their minions working to keep drug prices sky high,” the lobbying group’s press launch proclaimed.
True, drugmaker Pfizer shelled out $732,454 in 2017 to foyer California policymakers on well being care, and the California Life Sciences Association, comprised largely of pharmaceutical corporations, spent $522,323, in keeping with the California Secretary of State.
But among the many high 5 spenders in well being care lobbying final 12 months? The well being plan affiliation itself, which doled out about $1.2 million.
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Drugmakers known as the well being plans out on their very own ways.
“Like a broken record, the insurers continue to blame everyone else for high health care costs when their policies are making lifesaving medicines increasingly more expensive for patients,” stated Priscilla VanderVeer, a vp with Pharmaceutical Researchers and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).
VanderVeer’s colleague, Nicole Kasabian Evans, was a spokeswoman for the well being plans not so way back, however now she helps run PhRMA’s public relations technique in California. And she had no qualms about criticizing her former employer’s media technique.
“Honestly, are they generating any real news out of this event?” Kasabian Evans requested. It’s nothing greater than “someone in a costume hand[ing] out tchotchkes,” she declared.
The well being plan group stated it timed the occasion to coincide with American Heart Month, and highlighted three coronary heart illness medicines on a poster board whose costs have spiked in recent times.
During the primary hour of the occasion, the guts appeared lonely, hoping for slightly consideration. But because the solar warmed the air and an unrelated rally introduced individuals to the Capitol steps, onlookers cozied as much as the well being plans’ cherry purple mascot for photo-ops or grabbed free heart-shaped stress balls.
Eric Wang bumped into the heart-shaped mascot whereas visiting California’s Capitol. He stated excessive drug costs are “something we need to figure out.” (Pauline Bartolone/KHN)
Lila Cervantes posed for a photograph with the guts mascot on the Capitol in Sacramento. When it involves insurers and pharmaceutical corporations feuding over well being prices, she stated, “there’s probably a lot of right and a lot of wrong on both sides.” (Pauline Bartolone/KHN)
Eric Wang, visiting from Los Angeles for a gathering with legislators, stated opposing teams must “work together to figure out a way to make our health care system affordable.”
But it’s unlikely the feud between drugmakers and well being insurers will dissipate anytime quickly. The federal authorities is simply taking small steps to regulate drug costs, which suggests the controversy over drug costs will proceed to flare in state homes across the nation.
“That’s where the fight has shifted,” stated Steve Pearson, an knowledgeable on medical prices with the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review. “There’s going to be a lot more money from both industries.”
Lila Cervantes, who was on the Capitol advocating for increased schooling funding, posed for an image with the guts, however she admitted later that she didn’t know a lot in regards to the struggle between well being insurers and drugmakers.
“There’s probably a lot of right and a lot of wrong on both sides,” Cervantes stated. “We gotta’ sometimes take the politics out of it and … do what’s best for the people.”
This story was produced by Kaiser Health News, which publishes California Healthline, a service of the California Health Care Foundation.
Pauline Bartolone: [email protected]”>[email protected], @pbartolone
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