Friday, October 14, 2016

Why does the Health Care Industry give so much money to Brian Maienschein?

Sacramento Report: Maienschein’s Mammoth Campaign Cash Haul 
By Sara Libby
VOSD
Oct 14, 2016

 Assemblyman Brian Maienschein has more campaign cash for his re-election bid than almost any other state lawmaker in California. He’s racked up 441 donations adding up to $692,002, according to recent filings, and has a whopping $1.22 million cash on hand – second only to the speaker of the Assembly.

Todd Gloria, for comparison, is running to represent the Assembly district next door and reported $277,617 on hand.

 Maienschein’s robust fundraising is made all the more unusual because the district he represents, which encompasses Poway, Rancho Santa Fe and the northeastern communities of San Diego, is not considered especially competitive.

Mainschein has defeated his challenger in the last two general elections by over 40 points. He finished first in the June primary by 15 points over Democrat Melinda Vasquez.

It’s possible that Maienschien is stockpiling funds for a run at higher office that requires a bigger spend. Candidates can roll over any excess money that they have at the end of the campaign into the next cycle, and 2020 will be a big year for down-ticket Republicans who usually see electoral gains in presidential election off-years. Perhaps most importantly, in 2020, Republican Sen. Joel Anderson has said he plans to vacate his seat to run for the County Board of Supervisors. Anderson’s district overlaps considerably with Maienschein’s, which would make it a natural target.

 Many of the campaign donations Maienschein’s received come from the health care industry. Of the companies that donated, $228,024.50 came from the health care industry (broadly defined to include insurance companies, pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers, and occupational political action committees.) In his time in the Assembly, Maienschein has championed legislation amenable to this cluster of industries, putting forward a number of measures related to health care and mental health facilities in the 2015-2016 legislative session. Health care and life sciences comprise a major portion of the regional economy, bringing more than $38 billion into the region 2014 in wages alone...

Monday, July 11, 2016

Will Kaiser Foundation Health Plan lawsuit against its own investigator reveal more than Kaiser would like?

I'm guessing Quinn told Kaiser what they wanted to hear so they didn't ask questions. I wonder how many Kaiser members were denied health care on the basis of this man's information? How much money did he save Kaiser? I imagine that what Quinn charged Kaiser was a small fraction of the large amount of money he helped Kaiser avoid paying. Will Kaiser reopen those cases and give back to members all such amounts?

Kaiser Foundation Health Plan is not a subsidiary. It's the heart and soul of Kaiser Permanente. It makes about 8 billion tax-free dollars a year. Denying care is a major part of its business plan.
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — A subsidiary of health care giant Kaiser Permanente has filed a lawsuit in California accusing an employee responsible for investigating insurance fraud claims of embezzling $7 million, a newspaper reported.

The suit by Kaiser Foundation Health Plan accuses Michael Albert Quinn of submitting invoices for investigative services that were not performed or were not justified over a 16-year span after he joined the company in 1998, the San Francisco Chronicle reported (http://bit.ly/29K2QoA) on Sunday.

Quinn, 45, was responsible for hiring investigators to conduct surveillance on people who were suspected of filing fraudulent claims, He was authorized to approve charges up to $50,000.
The newspaper said Quinn was fired in 2014. Kaiser filed the lawsuit last year...

See more HERE.