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Ed Hanway, CEO of Cigna, one of the nation’s largest health insurance companies, will step down at the end of this year, in just over a week. When he does, he’ll get $73,200,000 as compensation for a job well done.
What makes Hanway worth $73.2 million? Well, for one example, he’s presided as Cigna denied a liver transplant to 17-year-old Nataline Sarkisyan, causing her death and widespread outrage. Wendell Potter, Cigna’s former spokesperson turned whistle-blower, was at the company during the Sarkisyan scandal, and he explains its effect on him personally, as well as how the company thinks about denying care:
In our system today, there is literally no repercussions for insurance companies when they deny care, jack up rates, or do all the other things they do to screw over their customers. Ed Hanway did all those things as much as he could, and for that, he’s being rewarded.
Out there in America, people are losing their jobs. They’re losing their homes. They’re skimping on holiday gifts to put food on the table. And they’re still going bankrupt due to skyrocketing medical costs.
Meanwhile, insurance company stocks are "on fire" in reaction to the Senate bill, which, though it has some regulations, leaves people at the mercy of private insurance because it lacks a public health insurance option.
People out there are suffering, insurance companies are winning, and Ed Hanway is walking away with $73.2 million.
We’ve managed to track down Hanway’s personal email address. This isn’t a spam box or an unattended address, this is Hanway’s actual corporate email. It’s H.Edward.Hanway@CIGNA.com.
Send him an email. Tell him what you think of his golden parachute. While you’re at it, why don’t you tell Hanway what you’d like for Christmas, and what you’d buy with his money. You can leave a message on Cigna’s Facebook page as well, if you want.
(also posted at the NOW! blog)
I’m proud to work for Health Care for America Now
38 Comments
This present is from the people who are bringing you Obamacare.
I totally agree.
Ed Hanway should become the poster child for this scam call Health Care Reform.
Wonder how many people Old Ed Hanway turn down for health care?
We know 45,000 people die a year.
Wonder how many times Old Ed Hanway has voted progressive? I would guess never.
Old Ed Hanway knows that Insuring health people makes you a lot of money!
Remember the Va covers Vets (govt run)
Medicare covers Old People (govt run)
Medicade covers Poor People (govt run)
Old Ed Hanway knows that insuring healthy people makes you the BIG BUCKS!!!
Old Ed Hanway already knows that this BILL is going pass. Why he wrote and brought it.
How many people still think that Obama is a Progressive? Old Ed Hanway knows Obama wants to join his club andhis club does not allow progressives.
little off topic but not much;
jane was mentioned BIG time on ron reagan show
they were talking about her ten points against the bill and they had someone from the wapo on to argue against her points
I sure hope she was on to counter his counter but I had to go before I heard the segment
Only $73 million? How will he pay the grocery bill?
taking in laundry?
Good question.
Hopey Changey! Vote DSUSA,Green or anyone else because the Dems are beyond redemption.
And Obama wonders why we don’t want to be forced to join Cigna or any other health insurance company?
Cigna as my last provider –and I use that term loosely, since they refused to cover $500 of medical treatments I required every month, despite my $700 premium.
Then, gawd love ‘em, they raised my individual rate to $1,000 a month — well beyond my ability to pay, but effectively forcing little old expensive me off their books.
But all is clear now, my sacrifice if being 59 without any insurance coverage has helped Cigna save up for a $73 million Christmas present to one needy insurance executive.
Heart warming!
I feel like Clark Griswald and Hanaway is Clarks boss in the film Christmas Vacation.
People, EVERYONE CALL PELOSI – EML PELOSI – HAMMER THESE PEOPLE WITH YOUR VOICES!
Do Not Let Up! The Lobbists have the money, fortunately the VOTE still keeps them their jobs.
We HAVE THE VOTE – Burn up the wires! Overload and blow out their hard drives!
JUST DO IT!
http://firedoglake.com/2009/10/05/bailing-out-failed-management-health-insurance-company-edition/
Ok explain to me why this jerk is getting paid like he made the company money?
Sigh….
The left has always been able to provide us with these horror stories. But they have been much less successful in organizing to stop them.
Particularly over the past 30 years.
Until the gap closes, appalling stories like this are likely only to make folks more and more bitter and more and more cynical about how things never really change at all. Not systemically, across the board.
Something needs to be done to galvanize a population that is either oblivious to the nature of Obamacare Inc. or, worse, oblivious to “the news” altogether.
Vast swaths of American youth know little more than pop culture, being “cool”, following celebrities, embracing fashion, music, sexplotation, video games…
Nothing will really change [really change] unless this does.
“the left”?
I’m sure you mean both the left and the right, but maybe you actually think this is “left territory” only?
not
But “the right”, alas, has been more successful of late in getting folks riled up en masse. The teabaggers may have a lot more bark than bite, but the left hasn’t brought tens and tens of thousands of folks to DC in quite a while.
In other words, marches and protests aimed not at particular issues [like immigragtion reform or Iraq] but a general protest against the way Washington works itself. Again, I go back to “the movement” days of “the 60s”.
That is what I am talking about. A national uprising against everything Obamacare Inc. stands for.
$73,200,000 in cash but they deny people liver transplants and let them die? When everyone is forced to pay for this crappy service The Dems will lose big.
Oh well we warned them the Rahm Trolls better lay off attacking the Lake and get their own house in order.
Moderate voters? Tea Baggers does anyone like this bill? No then don’t blame us for why nobody likes it.
$73.2 Mil…? *ouch* that’ll take a big bite outta Cigna’s 85% rate…!
At 90% tax, that leaves him with a measely $7,300,000.
TAX THE GREEDY BASTEDDS.
The real sickness is that people are walking around saying, “The Senate healthcare bill will prevent insurance companies from denying people coverage! Isn’t that great?”, as if the very fact that insurance companies can deny people coverage for pre-existing conditions along with all the other outrageous behavior they engage in is somehow already acceptable and normal. And what do our representatives do to curb insurance abuses and to punish these rapacious companies? Hand them 30 million coerced customers.
When I worked as a manager for CIGNA, I was told in a memo from my new regional manager that “only a naive or novice manager would put quality of care as their first priority.” We had good consumer ratings for our work–and our profit margin approached 30%.
I can think of a reward I’d like him to have – his eternal reward. But guess I’ll have to wait on a higher power for that one. It’s just great that all these health insurance CEO’s seem to get rich off of SPM – Sick People’s Money. And if the Senate bill makes it all the way through in its present form, they’ll be able to add TPM – Tax Payer’s Money – on top of that, for a real bonanza.
Makes me so angry I just want to beat an inanimate object. As if eight years of being angry wasn’t enough, now I get to sit through 4 more years.
To be fair to Cigna, they did jack up my rates every other year, even in years I wasn’t scoring much health care.
But after I required a year of therapy, two visits to the emergency room, and an MRI, that apparently really ticked ‘em off enough to jack me for a grand a month (just me, no family coverage this)
Imagine that! Requiring expensive healthcare and not paying ‘em back dollar for dollar on the premium, what nerve I had.
Especially when they were saving up for a 73 million dollar goodbye gift for a departing employee.
(Gee, wonder why my executive brother didn’t get a payoff like that when he was laid off by his company after 17 years? But then again, he wasn’t in healthcare, where they literally have the blood of their victims to suck.)
This makes me more angry than I was earlier today, if that’s possible. Every media outlet should be camped at one of Ed’s houses asking family, friends and neighbors how they feel about living among a greedy bloodsucking parasite like Eddie.
This must be why vampire movies are so popular these days.
Actually a lot of us should camp out on Ed’s lawn and ask if we can live with him since we have nowhere else to go. Or maybe he could just feed us and we will stay outside in our tents. If neither of those work for him and his $73 million, maybe we could ask that he send a doctor around once in awhile to check on us.
This is a golden opportunity for a powerful message about the evils of private healthcare insurance. Ed Hanway and Nataline Sarkisyan should always be pictured side by side – over a stack of money. Perhaps a headline like “Private Healthcare – Profit from Pain”. This should be top of the list on communications.
For pete’s sake! Can’t any of you see that this is not a partisan issue? Democrat, Republican, Independent, we are all suckers when it comes to this one.
The fact that it was reported just makes the healthcare insurance industry giddy. One more jab at the American people.
Talking about voting folk out of office is an empty pursuit. What makes any of you think they cannot be had by the healthcare insurance industry once in office? Or any other corporate interest, for that matter.
Remove the source of the problem, things will get better. Until then, the partisan bickering is just a waste of oxygen.
ANTI-TRUST LAWS NOW!
Oh, f*ck all the sick people; will no one think of the stockholders?
I tried that e-mail address, and it worked. This is what I wrote:
“Dear Ed: Best wishes on your retirement. I hope it’s a long one. You’re going to need a long one to think up an argument that St. Peter will buy. Love, Lex”
Spent six hours in local E.R. with very sick neighbor. The five sick people who registered for help immediately after her were uninsured and had no money to partially pay. If they are unemployed and trying to survive, how will they pay for insurance?
Do you think the health insurance companies care? I don’t think so.
In the meantime, all those people did receive immediate care. They were given pain relief only. Now, who is paying for this? In the final moment, Americans will continue to get partial care as they have been doing.
The insurance companies are not created and run to take care of the people. There is too much profit to be had. They win, we lose.
They are on top, we are on the bottom. They are right, we are wrong.
They are worthy of their profits, we are unworthy of care.
How long will we American citizens take this treatment? Isn’t there someone who is going to lead us to protest and demand more? Maybe Dr. Dean has the guts and voice. Or maybe Mrs. Clinton who tried and was ridiculed and was stopped. Certainly Mr. Obama, a true centrist, will not risk the fury of the corporations and lobbyists. Who will help us?
Dean pretty much caved today.
the rich have failed America
massively
“the rich have failed America”
but they’ve done just fine for themselves.
I sure hope this is getting some coverage in the MSM, but I kinda doubt it.
Too inconvenient for Obama & the Dems, consumed, as they are, in passing the Senate bill.
Would THIS perhaps be enough to get one courageous Democratic Senator to stand up?
this is just capitalism doing its thing.
but keep blaming the individuals that is what the capitalists want you to do.
this keeps your mind off the system.
they are ten times smarter than those that have been conditioned to love capitalism.
america’s love affair with capitalism will eliminate the middle class to lower class and third world wages.
right on schedule with what the capitalists want. ie cheap labor.
few will understand my words very few.
dont expect journalists to tell you these things as their wages and profits depend on capitalist corp america.
even npr radio has to cow down to corp america for money.
wake up americans you are being had. big time.
I’ve been saying we need anti-trust laws reinserted into the language of the bill, but alas, it was removed, and the house bill may not have the language. if not, THAT would be the beginning of what you espouse. Since the rest of the bill could have been written by the healthcare insurance industry, I hope the House bill does SOMETHING.
I just wish the rest would realize what the real problem is, instead of wasting time and energy taking jabs at each other. This is not a partisan issue. The HII must be laughing their asses off right about now.
You are correct that capitalism is a major part of the problem. Americans have a misinformed idea that capitalism is Constitutional or somehow a government protected economic model. That is untrue.
A simplified way of looking at this is that capitalism is based on the underlying premise of winners and losers. We form societies for the common good starting with family groups, to tribes, to countries. Capitalism is in direct opposition to the formation of societies.
Nowhere in the Constitution is it defined what economic model should be used. The rich white men that were in power decided they liked capitalism because it worked for them, not because it was good for the masses.
Hanway is a piker.
Rick Scott of Columbia/HCA had a golden parachute of $310 million, way back in 1997 when the dollar was actually worth more than the Euro. Of course, HCA shortly thereafter paid $1.7 BILLION in fines.
Oh yeah, HCA was created by Bill Frist’s (yeah, that doofus) family. Probably a decent doctor, but a lousy Senator and terrible majority leader who makes Harry Reid look dominating.
Sorry to be so cynical.
Wendell Potter a man with a conscience. Hmmm that could be the title of a documentary
Thanks Jason. If there is a hell besides the one that exist for millions of folks on this planet, Hanway will be spending a great deal of time there.