Blue Cross goes there

Blue Cross of California wades into the health-care debate today with a new advertising campaign pushing the Legislature and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on health-care reform--while casually dropping a little bomb by raising the specter of the energy crisis that sunk the previous administration.

"Unintended consequences do happen," the new ad says. "Other states have tried healthcare reforms like 'guaranteed issue' that sounded good. They now have the highest premiums in the country while California has the lowest. Sound familiar? Remember how the rash deregulation of the energy market in California spawned power outages and soaring rates? Let's not go there again."

Schwarzenegger Chief of Staff Susan Kennedy and senior advisor Daniel Zingale worked in the Gray Davis administration during the height of the chaotic energy crisis, which was spawned by the Legislature and Gov. Pete Wilson in 1996. Now, Kennedy and Zingale (who worked in the Dept. of Managed Health Care under Davis) are leading negotiations on health-care reform for Schwarzenegger.

In many respects, creating universal health care while satisfying California's powerful business interests, health plans, doctors and hospitals is more complicated than the energy deregulation discussion a decade ago. There are too many moving levers.

But there is a lot more attention from the media and lawmakers on health care reform in 2007 than on energy deregulation in 1996. Few Capitol insiders understood the energy legislation that eventually triggered a meltdown in the system, market manipulation, blackouts, endless Jay Leno jokes, and the political destruction of Gov. Gray Davis.

Nick Garcia, director of public relations for Blue Cross, said the company created the Coalition for Responsible Health Care Reform with an initial $2 million investment. "We must engage in a well-thought, thorough evaluation that protects consumers choice, affordability and access to world-class care in California's health markets," he said.

Or face the end of your political career and the destruction of this great state. Wink wink.

UPDATE: Health Access rips into the ad campaign, saying if Blue Cross wants to make analogies to the energy crisis, then they are Enron.