The insurance industry has been working overtime to protect its commercial interest and the monstrous cash flow they take from U.S. citizens. Even locally, Santa Maria has people who have a vested interest in derailing any attempt to change the way insurance is manipulated by the industry.

Scott Dunn, a partner at Byars, Thompson, Buchanan Insurance in Santa Maria, wrote a guest commentary called "Health care - a local perspective." He claims the unemployment rate is about 11.9 percent, which is only the number of citizens drawing unemployment.

The percentage including the underemployed and those who quit looking for work is around 20 percent. This indicates that the number of uninsured is much higher than 47 million, since millions of citizens lost work in the last year.

He also gives a convoluted picture of the uninsured. Mr. Dunn uses the figure of 47 million, which was before the meltdown in the economy. He then goes on to tinker at the edges about those who are receiving other types of aid, and reduces the number to 11 million.

We do not know the extent of uninsured, because so many work less than 40 hours, have no insurance, and cannot afford to purchase it.

What we need is the plan that Congress enjoys, which is a single-payer system similar to Medicare. We do not need health savings accounts and other bogus schemes that would not prevent bankruptcy for the average citizen due to medical costs.

Mr. Dunn merely supports the status quo of the health insurance industry. The current insurance business model acts as a middle man who provides no added value to a product. They take from us, and then deny treatment based upon dubious criteria, and in some cases, people die because they were denied treatment.

Wendell Potter, the former chief public relations officer for Signa Corp., has turned whistleblower. He points out that the industry routinely uses actors and actresses to invent stories about the Canadian system, a universal system based upon the U.S. Medicare system.

Potter points out that people routinely die or suffer needlessly in the U.S. due to rejected care. He adds that the insurance industry sent its employees to the town meetings to fight for their jobs. The industry also hired paid agitators from public relations firms hired to provoke outbursts at those meetings. This is outrageous.

Potter stated that when Michael Moore's movie "Sicko" opened in France, the insurance industry sent 200 members to watch and report back to the insurance companies. The industry had its propaganda machine well-oiled before "Sicko" opened in U.S. theaters.

According to Potter, the current debate about reform is a sham. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., is the insurance industry's leading recipient of campaign financing in congress.

Congress is trying to derail any meaningful reform by forcing those who don't have insurance to pay for it. This gives the industry a whole new market, underwritten by taxpayers.

Harper's Index in September noted that the increase in premiums for citizens since 2002 is 87 percent. During that period, the top 10 insurance companies' profits increased 428 percent. The chance that an American family will go bankrupt from health insurance costs is seven in 10.

The health-insurance industry is a kleptocracy. These voracious pirates are plundering a public that needs a health-care system that protects citizens.

We do not need the insurance industry. The insurance industry should be permanently banished, with all of us paying premiums into Medicare for all.

James Murr lives is a resident of Santa Maria and can be contacted at jacomurr@west.net. Looking Forward runs every Friday providing a progressive viewpoint on local issues.

October 16, 2009