UnitedHealthCare wins giant Employees Retirement System contract
The Perry gravy train is back on the track. UnitedHealthCare is a client of … Mike Toomey. What a remarkable coincidence.
From the release:
UnitedHealthcare has been selected by the Employees Retirement System of Texas (ERS) to be third party administrator of the HealthSelect of Texas health insurance plan. As the administrator, UnitedHealthcare will process claims, provide customer service and manage the HealthSelect network starting September 1, 2012.
We are grateful that ERS sees us as a valuable partner and we look forward to serving the health care needs of state employees and their families. UnitedHealthcare currently provides benefits coverage to more than three million Texans, and we are excited for the opportunity to continue our commitment to Texas.
JFK's Ghost says:
Paul, why should they care? Perry will get re-elected no matter what he does so long as he has an R by his name. I know many Republicans are tired of this stuff, but not enough to elect someone new.
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 11:56 am
Perry will not serve out this term, much less get elected again.
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Anonymous Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:19 pm
Thanks for giving me a glimmer of hope.
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Bodhisattva Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:19 pm
Wha-a-a-a-at????
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Blue Dogs Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 9:02 am
Burka, Perry will FINISH out his 3rd full term and likely retire on January 20, 2015.
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Art Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:11 pm
Republicans live by this stuff. Their masters make money off this stuff. Rank and file Repuiblicans do as they are told.
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Jerry Only Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:29 pm
so do dems, just not in this state, they dont have enough power.
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Toll Widow says:
Thats nothing! Armbrister and the boys have got it going at the Lottery Commission too! The crew is defintely back in the saddle. Welcome to Perry’s Texas……..
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half full says:
So ask the real question Mr. Burka. How many companies are there that can actually do this? Not a big number. Reminds me of all the howling about Halliburton getting bids in the Persian Gulf. Guess what? Halliburton was about the only country in the world that could do the work.
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Cow Droppings Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 12:05 pm
Exactly. Who was the competition and who were their lobbyists? I bet they all gave Perry money. I bet you could make the same assertion without any actual evidence regardless of who got it.
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 12:10 pm
You’re missing my point. The issue is not who gives Perry money. All lobbyists who seek state contracts give governors money. The issue is who Perry gives money to. He controls the boards that deliver the contracts that enable him to enrich his friends with state tax dollars.
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 2:16 pm
I’m told by a veteran House member that Toomey called legislators yesterday to tell them that his client had won the contract.
Fiftycal Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 6:46 pm
Yah. It’s IRRELEVANT that United does a good job. I have United now. You don’t have to wait 45 minutes to talk to someone. Claims don’t get screwed up. The COST is lower for prescriptions. Of course that doesn’t matter. “Somebody” knows “somebody”. YAH, that’s what happened. It’s never about MERIT! No.
Now if the trial lawyers buds got the contract it would be all peaches and cream, right? Or is this because the doctor lobby (Blue Cross) didn’t get the job? Whose friend are they?
paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 12:06 pm
How many companies can do this? Among Toomey’s clients are Aetna, Cigna, and UnitedHealthCare, and don’t forget Blue Cross (not a client), which had the contract. It’s not rocket science or deep sea drilling. It’s just a matter of clearing paper work. Perot invented the industry with EDS.
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Sumitt Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 12:50 pm
Wasn’t this awarded by the low bid?
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:57 pm
All of you who are defending this are going to wish you didn’t before this is through.
Cow Droppings Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:47 pm
based on what, Paul? What Bill Miller is telling you? I’m sure as a BCBS rep he wouldn’t dare spin the facts to you!
Anonymous Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 10:51 pm
ERS had been with BCBS for over 30 years. BCBS has an excellent customer satisfaction record with ERS and what they believed to be a solid relationship. Suddenly ERS is going to Toomey’s client after Perry’s failed presidential bid with promises to save $41 million. Wonder if the high deductibles and higher premiums will be as well publicized when they’re announced in May? Where did you think the “savings” would come from? Paul’s right. You’re going to wish you hadn’t supported this.
Art Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:12 pm
And Halliburton overbilled our taxpayers billions of dollars.
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huh? says:
so this contract saves the state $40+ million over the previous contract held by blue cross…damn that mike toomey for helping save the state money! damn him!
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 12:25 pm
So this Toomey contract saves the state $41 million. His Accenture contract cost the state half a billion. I hope the estimate of $41 million is more solid than the Accenture contract was.
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Art Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:15 pm
Save $40 million…bull.
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 2:21 pm
This is going to be Accenture 2.0 before it’s through.
Reminder Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:15 pm
Toomey never worked for Accenture. Check your facts.
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Cow Droppings Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:43 pm
in fact, Toomey’s client BearingPoint lost out to accenture on that issue and another company on the TexasOnline rebid. Paul, when you take sides in a Buddy Jones-Mike Toomey war, do you really think it makes sense to say virtue rests on one of the sides?
half full says:
So Paul Burka is advocating the state pay more money to some company not qualified to do the work?
I understand that’s Texas Monthly’s MO but we’ve all seen how good their decision making is.
How’s that new HQ Paulie?
Nice gravel pit.
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:21 pm
I didn’t say UnitedHealthCare was unqualified. I said the Perry gravy train was running again, shipping favors to his friends. FYI, TEXAS MONTHLY moved downtown in September.
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Anonymous says:
Was there a better bid than United’s? The ERS leadership has a lot of integrity; this is a pretty harsh allegation. Where’s the merit behind it?
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huh? says:
paul, your beef is obviously with mike toomey then if you are keeping score on state contracts received by his clients. wow. thought you were an objective journalist. or maybe you are just reciting bill miller’s talking points? did he talk about his obsession with perry stuffing his pants with socks for photo shoots?
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paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:24 pm
My beef is not with Toomey. It’s with Perry.
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Anonymous Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:50 pm
Perry traveled across this country preaching that “revolving door” lobbyist and the power they weild should be considered a crime……why not here Guv…..
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Robert Morrow Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:52 pm
My beef is with Perry AND Toomey regarding that Gardisil fiasco. “Mike the Knife” stuck it to every family in Texas on that one.
I really do want the Republican party to be torched and burned. The next time they dare to call a Democrat a “socialist” …
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Distinguished Gentleman says:
Burka says: “The Perry gravy train is back on the track. UnitedHealthCare is a client of … Mike Toomey. What a remarkable coincidence” and Burka subsequently says: “Perry will not serve out this term, much less get elected again.”
I hope to God that Burka is correct about getting rid of Perry. However–unlike Burka–I have great fear that the Uber Goober WILL run for re-election as Governor in 2014 and that he WILL win such a race! Can Texas stand another term of Perry as its Governor?
In a prior post, Burka predicted that in the 83rd Legislature, some member would have the guts to introduce a State consitutional amendment placing term limits on how long one particular individual may “serve” as Texas’ Governor. I hope that Burka is correct about that, as well, and I further hope that the proposed constitutional amendment captures the required two-thirds vote in both houses of the Legislature. Because once it goes before the voters of Texas in a statewide referendum, it would definitely be approved by them. No question in my mind about that.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:53 pm
It is not Uber Goober; it’s Goofus: Governor of the United States
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Blue Dogs Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 9:04 am
Distinguished, SHUT THE HELL UP ABOUT TERM LIMITS.
My god, you keep bringing up the same shit and Perry will likely decide to retire in 2014 and finish out his 3rd full term because you and Burka keep bashing him every single day.
This hostility towards Perry has been brewing since 2006.
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huh? says:
paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 1:24 pm
My beef is not with Toomey. It’s with Perry.
That’s nice. I wish other journalists who trash Republicans would be as brave as you and just come out and say you don’t like them. And then you and others wonder why there’s a growing alternative media….
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Tom Barry Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 3:42 pm
A lot of people confuse a blog – which this is – with news reporting. And good news reporting today is increasingly going beyond “he said, he said” to get to the real story: “A said X, B said Y – and here are the facts.”
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Wilson Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 8:42 am
The growing alternative media is owned by the mainstream media.
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Anonymous Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 9:24 am
Please don’t associate Perry with all Republicans.
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Carousel Club Dancer says:
“Perry will not serve out this term…” Mr. Burka, please elaborate on this comment. You almost took my breatrh away with this statement.
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curious says:
Burka: You say ” I’m told by a veteran House member that Toomey called legislators yesterday to tell them that his client had won the contract.”
The ERS award was made on Tuesday. http://www.ers.state.tx.us/News/Articles/Healthselect_Administrator/
I’m curious what your point is?
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JUICE says:
http://www.customerservicescoreboard.com/United+Healthcare
And I think their subsidiary, Evercare, performed so badly they were run out of Texas.
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Nortel says:
Any company that won this contract would be a giant health care company. All giant health care companies have no doubt given to Perry (and probably to most legislative members as well) This hit could be directed at anyone who won it. So, what’s the story?? “Big Company Wins Big, Complicated Contract” Wow, that’s some award-winning journalism….
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half full says:
…proof that TM has its own tin foil hat wearing “writer” on staff.
What’s next Paulie?
TxDOT gives contract to road building company?
TDC hires graduates of criminal justice college?
State dental board comprised of….wait for it…
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huh? says:
I hope to hell nobody ever tells paul that state employees on travel stay at various hotels and motels across texas and that toomey represents the hotel and motel association. damn that perry for steering state employees to stay in hotels and motels all so toomey can have a client! put a real reporter on that asap.
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Fiftycal Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 6:59 pm
And I’ll bet they eat at restaurants that Toomey represents. CRONY CAPITALISM! But Obama giving BILLIONS to electric car makers in FINLAND and solar panel makers in MEXICO is “good”. Oh and that $7500 gift for buying the fancy electric golf cart “Volt” is really good for the environment. IF you happen to have $42K to spend on an “electric” vehicle that goes 35 miles on a charge.
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Wilson Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 8:30 am
Your meds, sir!
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anon Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 10:54 pm
I traveled extesively across Texas and to Washington as a state employee. No one EVER told me where to stay. There is a book listing hotels/motels which charge government rates. That’s where you go. Those rates apply to employees of all states. Pull your head out.
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jpt51 says:
‘Half Full’ asked the wrong question, (how many companies do this work). The issue is; how many companies contracting with the State of Texas also provide campaign contributions to Rick Perry or entities connected to him? Perry knows first hand about Vulture Politics.
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half full Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 7:31 pm
You must be a blast of fresh air with your friends.
With an attitude like that, it’s amazing you manage to get out of bed at all.
Just as a warning to you. The bed you sleep in was probably inspected by someone with ties to BIG MATTRESS, the house you live in was built by people in BIG CONSTRUCTION, and the vehicle that takes away from the conflict of interest you call a home is powered by BIG OIL.
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Anonymous says:
Follow the money.
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Anonymous Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 8:02 pm
Excuse me. They are following the money.
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Robert Morrow says:
I do know that United Healtcare jacked up my premiums in my health insurance plan a few years ago … after I had made NO claims on it EVER. So I switched to Blue Cross.
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Fiftycal Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 10:24 pm
They probably saw your droppings on a blog and decided you needed more “help” than was fiscally sound.
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Mr. Smith says:
You can always tell when Paul touches a nerve with the Pro-Perry crowd, because Cow Droppings and Fiftycal rush to the Governor’s defense. Well guys, go ahead and live that fantasy where Perry is still relevant to anything except for the damage that he continues to do to state government. He is the sadest of the sad political animals, the politically dead man walking. The ride is just about over for you two and you will have to go get real jobs. Maybe Gen. Abbott is hiring.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 9:17 pm
Maybe the Midtowne Spa is hiring.
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Cow Droppings Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 9:58 pm
hey, all we ever ask is for evidence to go with an allegation rather than serving a a surrogate spokesman for Buddy Jones.
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Robert Morrow says:
Burka: “Perry will not serve out this term, much less get elected again.”
That sounds like a great idea, then I thought of Dewhurst or whoever the Senate would pick to replace Dewhurst, and a little vomit came up in the back of my throat.
Do you have any inside info on why Perry might not go all they way? Maybe call Glen Maxey and see how his futher investigations are progressing …
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Distinguished Gentleman says:
Paul, please tell us in some detail why it is that you think that Perry won’t even complete the current gubernatorial term to which he was elected in 2010.
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BackUpMembers says:
As a former BSBC customer and a current United customer, the ERS lives are the victors here.
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John Johnson says:
Let’s reduce all this to lowest denominator …our system is screwed up. I’ll go further and say that anyone that disagrees is ignorant or makes money from the screwed up system.
United might be qualified and promise the best deal, but if the state is getting a $40+ million savings, someone else is going to have to pay for it. Wonder who this might be?
How many companies in the U.S. are qualified to manage the ERS system? How many bid on it? Why so few?
Perry’s mode of operation just grows old. It’s time for someone new…someone who doesn’t stink…even though they might by the time they leave office.
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Chester says:
I thought that three of the six ERS board were elected by state employees and retirees. How did Toomey/Perry get to them?
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Seriously Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 10:09 am
The ERS director Ann Fuelberg was around back in the day & was very good friends with Perry, Toomey, Ric Williamson and other House members who hung around together.
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Robert Morrow Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 7:33 pm
I don’t miss Ric Williamson and neither do MILLIONS of other Texans. He was the fool trying to shove public private partnerships and massive land grabs down the throats of Texans.
I wish they would take his name off that meeting room downstairs at the Capital. Arrogant jerk.
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no le hace says:
Perry guys win either way. Blue Cross lost contract, Perry’s PAC co-chair Brint Ryan is Board Member. PAC co-chair Toomey is United’s lobby guy.
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John Johnson Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 8:44 am
When did Toomey become a lobbyist for United? My guess is that he was not on their payroll back when BCBS won the business originally. Correct?
Would also be interested in knowing how many companies that Toomey represents have not won contacts with the state. Have there been any losers?
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Blue Dogs Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 9:07 am
Johnson, the National Enquirer is getting STUPID here:
http://entertainment.blogs.foxnews.com/2012/02/22/national-enquirer-posts-whitney-houston-open-casket-photo-in-poor-taste/
I mean whoever snuck into the Wingham Funeral Home must be a sick person to sell the photo of a dead person for cash.
How much you wanna bet it’s Bobby Brown ?
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WhiteRA says:
Here is how this headline could have read:
Blue Cross/Blue Shield Wins contract even as they are $40m more expensive because of deep Perry — HillCo Connections
Friends, you won’t believe this but the Perry gravy train has continued. Even as their was a bid $40m cheaper, Hillco Partners who helped raised money for Perry’s Super PAC and represent distribute Perry uber-backer Bob Perry have pulled it out again gaining the ERS rebid for health insurance.
The only reason Paul posted on this was that Hillco was looking to cover their tracks after their defeat. . . . Both United and BCBS have deep high powered lobby teams, one bid was lower — there are plenty of examples of Hillco Partners getting great treatment from RP’s office. This post is just Paul rebroadcasting the sour grapes from BCBS. He bit on a bad, and in this case false, storyline.
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Matt says:
With any luck, the Republican presidential candidate will pick Perry for VP. Perry resigns as Gov and then loses the general election.
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Dr. Julius No says:
Burka bit on a great storyline! This will take a while to play out, since the new vendor does not take over till the fall, but the story has a long way to go because the $40 million in “savings” must come from somewhere, and roads will lead back to all of the former Perry staff tied to United Health if it goes badly.
Paul Burka isn’t “rebroadcasting the sour grapes” of a losing bidder if the winning bid he reported on is proven to be justified by using “Accenture-style” math this fall with the transistion takes place.
We must always remember the amanzing math and budget work inspired by the Accenture Contract, where the state (taxpayers) took a massive bath, fake privatization-friendly conservatives could parade around and claim the “private sector” won, and the hundreds of millions in tax money from the deal did little to help anyone… but did provide amazing homes, salaries and lifestyles for certain lobbyists.
Burka is setting up the first chapter in a story that hasn’t fully been written yet. Sour grapes or not.
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Anonymous says:
What does Accenture have to do with the ERS competition to provide state employees health insurance?
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Dr. Julius No says:
Answer: Both are health-related contracts, both contracts deal with claims of projected savings to taxpayers with no loss of service or benefits, both have powerful lobbyists.
There was a “competition” component to the claims made to justify Accenture.
Let’s hope “competition” at ERS will really result in no loss of benefits to policy holders, and lower costs for taxpayers.
I’m not holding my breath.
But you can.
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Bodhisattva says:
Paul, I am still fascinated by, and would love for you to elaborate on, this comment you made yesterday:
paulburka Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 11:56 am
Perry will not serve out this term, much less get elected again.
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Reminder says:
Accenture is not a healthcare provider. United Is.
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Anonymous says:
Dr. Julius No is confused. Accenture’s TIER project was an IT initiative related to client eligibility for state services. Not health health insurance. The effort to tie in Accenture is nonsensical.
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Watchems Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 8:53 pm
Not in the least it it “nonsensical”….both are examples of the Rs sending “bidness” to their friends. The only difference is that Accenture was either incompetent and/or corrupt. United actually runs a decent shop. The issue here is the friends get the gravy and BCBS, which has competently administered one of the largest health care groups in the country for more than 20 years, gets the shaft.
Like momma said…..”It’s who you know…”
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Watchems says:
United has specialized in private companies medical plans, and to my knowledge has never taken on a system as large as TRS. Good luck to them…but this isn’t a Houston law firm they’re working with now…it’s The State.
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Anonymous Reply:
February 24th, 2012 at 11:07 pm
It’s ERS. Blue Cross Blue Shield still has TRS. For now…
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TikiTex Reply:
February 26th, 2012 at 7:05 am
They are the largest insurer in the US and handle many of the Fortune 500 and AARP. Just saying.
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Anonymous says:
Honestly, the fiasco at HHSC and the HMO takeover of the Medicaid Program will be the biggest blowup the state has ever seen. All done with the same promise of saving taxpayer dollars. I’m definetely for that, but it won’t happen in the end. It’s just a massive transfer of money from in–state companies to out of state crooks.
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Quick Review says:
Bill Miller, Buddy Jones and their minions at HillCo got their collective ass kicked on this one!!!!
Maybe it was the Governor’s way at getting back at Bill Miller for all of those ridiculous comments in the Vanity Fair article during POTUS campaign.
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Anonymous says:
Paul, have you called Ann Fuelberg to apologize for alleging the state agency she runs threw a contract to United? She has an impeccable reputation and your suggestion that ERS improperly handled this procurement lacks any merit based on what you’ve posted here.
Even a blog should have show some boundaries with respect to unduly indicting so many characters, as suggested with these claims. The “you’ll regret it” comment is just plain defensive absent any proof of wrongdoing. And there’s just not proof – only spin.
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TikiTex says:
Perry + Toomey = Fix is unfair to all others in the process and way too glib. If it is political fixes you are after you may want to look into how Blue Cross has controlled this taxpayer funded account since the beginning of time. For those who may not know, Blue Cross of Texas is a part of HCSC, based in Illinois.
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anonymous says:
HCSC, Blue Cross and Blue Shield, has held the ERS account for more than 30 years and has served it well. They have always received excellent satisfaction ratings from the state and provided quality benefits at a good rate for this account. This decision just doesn’t add up to me.
As for quality of care for Texas employees, I would be shocked if United Healthcare can serve this account even close to the level that HCSC, (BCBS) has done. Hardworking state employees and their families will be the ones to suffer at the hands of politics.
UHC is completely inexperienced at handling an account of this magnitude. BCBS has not only handled this account for decades, but they have also managed TRS, which is comprised of hundreds of thousands of members as well. They have obtained contracts for these accounts fair and square and have kept them both for decades with good reason.
In addition to lack of experience, UHC does not have the personnel to handle this volume of membership and it takes years to develop a staff who can provide an acceptable level of service for an account that large. Hiring the required mass number of employees to fill necessary positions, training them, and equipping them with certifications that are necessary to maintain QUALITY care by September 1st is not likely.
And most importantly, as mentioned above, UHC’s network of doctors does not even compare to those of Blue Cross Blue Shield, which means a lot more out-of-network charges that UHC hasn’t anticipated, but will dig deeply into tax-payer pockets in the long run.
Read this from the Dallas News today.
http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2012/03/blue-cross-fights-to-maintain.html
It will be interesting to see if Blue Cross Blue Shield is correct in their theory that this change will actually cost the taxpayers $450 million dollars more, rather than saving $40 million…. that is quite a discrepancy.
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Parent of Disabled Child says:
I wish we had the opportuinty to have the TRS policy. You know, the one with out the enormous, idiotic exclusion in place that doesn’t follow state or federal laws on providing medical care for children with developmental delays and autism. ERS throws us under the bus, just like the state and the school district. You could help my child, but you won’t. We’ve spent all our money, done all that we can do. Where are we going to come up with $5000 a month? Isn’t this what insurance is FOR? To cover catastrophic health conditions? All so that Texas will be forced to pay millions so that my children (and many, MANY others that COULD HAVE BEEN HELPED AND THIS SITUATION AVOIDED) will be warehoused/institutionalized later. Glad some of you are happy with ERS. They have blood on their hands, as far as I’m concerned. You screw my family over, but cover ED and infertility. Nice. Wake up, Texas. The rise in autism- ask any parent out there dealing with it- it’s going to bite us in the end. But I guess as long as the boomers get their free mammograms it’s ok to turn your back on the children of our state. It’s not your child or grandchild. Yet.
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