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PrintSeptember 22, 2009
What First Amendment?
Yesterday Kentucky’s Courier Journal newspaper reported that the fight against political free speech has reached new levels.
Louisville-based Humana is under federal investigation for a mailing that asks seniors to protest proposed cuts in funding for the Medicare plans sold by the company and other health insurers.
The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, launched its investigation Friday at the urging of Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., who accused Humana of “scare tactics.”
The mailing from Humana, the second-largest seller of Medicare Advantage plans, warned that if Congress cuts funding, “millions of seniors and disabled individuals could lose many … important benefits” while possibly facing higher costs.
The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, launched its investigation Friday at the urging of Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., who accused Humana of “scare tactics.”
The mailing from Humana, the second-largest seller of Medicare Advantage plans, warned that if Congress cuts funding, “millions of seniors and disabled individuals could lose many … important benefits” while possibly facing higher costs.
If speech rights have become so diluted that shareholders cannot communicate their views on legislation to their customers without the fear of federal investigation, what speech is not in danger?
The slow train to despotism continues to pick up speed.
