Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Buttigieg Reveals Blue Cross Was One Of McKinsey Clients He Worked On Prior To Insurer Slashing 10% Of Workforce
The Associated Press: Buttigieg Discloses Ex-Clients As Fundraising Swing Begins
Facing intense pressure to answer questions about his work in the private sector, Democratic presidential contender Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday disclosed a roster of former consulting clients that include a major health insurance provider, a nationwide electronics retailer, the U.S. Department of Energy and the Department of Defense. (Peoples and Smith, 12/10)
The New York Times: How Pete Buttigieg Spent His McKinsey Days: Blue Cross, Best Buy, U.S. Agencies
The most politically troubling element of his client list might be his tenure working for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, a health care firm that at the time was in the process of reducing its work force. Last week Mr. Buttigieg’s campaign said his time in Michigan included “analytical work as part of a team identifying savings in administration and overhead costs.” While it was not yet clear exactly what Mr. Buttigieg did at Blue Cross, his work appeared to come at about the same time the insurer announced that it would cut up to 1,000 jobs — or nearly 10 percent of its work force — and request rate increases. (Epstein and Saul, 12/10)
The Atlantic: What Pete Buttigieg Says He Did At McKinsey
He said that while working with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, he remembered going along with his manager to a few meetings with people on staff, but he couldn’t remember any meeting he’d been able to attend on his own. “Mostly I was with fellow consultants in a room working on a spreadsheet,” he said, explaining that the analysis had focused on rent, travel costs, mail, and printing, but nothing having to do with policy or premium costs. He insisted that none of his work could have led to people’s insurance changing, or being taken away. (Dovere, 12/10)
Politico: Buttigieg Releases Names Of Consulting Clients
In 2007, Buttigieg analyzed Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan’s “overhead expenditures,” like rent, utilities and company travel, according to a memo from Buttigieg’s campaign. ... The insurance company was running into trouble, and two years later, in January 2009, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan cut nearly 10 percent of its workforce, after the company reported a loss of $140 million on health care plans. It had been a target for Michigan’s then-attorney general, who sued Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan multiple times and, in 2007, published a presentation titled, “Profits Over People: The Drive to Privatize and Destroy the Social Mission of Blue Cross and Blue Shield.” (Schneider, 12/10)
The Washington Post: Under Pressure, Buttigieg Releases Names Of Former McKinsey Clients
Buttigieg was 25 years old at the time he joined McKinsey, working his first job after graduating from Oxford University, and reported $73,557 in income on his 2007 federal tax return. Buttigieg also filed a state return in Michigan that year, in which he reported that just more than $22,000 of that income came from the work he did for Blue Cross Blue Shield there. Buttigieg has received about $26,000 in contributions from individuals associated with the national health conglomerate, according to OpenSecrets.org — more than any of his rivals, though Biden and Sanders have received nearly as much. (Janes and Wang, 12/10)
Los Angeles Times: Buttigieg's Clients At McKinsey Included The Pentagon
To Warren and other Buttigieg rivals, the secrecy surrounding his work at McKinsey has offered a tempting target. McKinsey’s image has been battered in recent years as news stories revealed its work for authoritarian regimes, opioid manufacturers and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (Finnegan, 12/10)
Axios: Buttigieg Says He Doubts His Consulting Work Led To Insurer's Layoffs
Why it matters: The Southbend mayor has faced scrutiny from other 2020 candidates and liberal activists in recent weeks over his work for McKinsey & Company. A ProPublica report this month, headlined "How McKinsey helped the Trump administration detain and deport immigrants," raised further concerns about the company. Buttigieg says he "never worked on a project" inconsistent with his values. (Falconer, 12/11)
Bloomberg: Buttigieg Says McKinsey Clients Included Blue Cross, Best Buy
Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday released the names of clients that he worked for as a consultant at McKinsey & Co., a list that includes Blue Cross Blue Shield Michigan, the U.S. Postal Service and the Department of Defense. Buttigieg, who has risen to the top tier of candidates in the Democratic primary, had come under fire from Democratic rivals, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, for not giving voters a full picture of his private sector experience. He made public the names one day after the firm released him from a nondisclosure agreement. (Pager, 12/10)
In other news from the elections —
The Hill: 'Medicare For All' Backers Notch Win With High-Profile Hearing
"Medicare for All" supporters scored a victory Tuesday with a long-awaited hearing in one of the House's most powerful committees, putting more focus on the health care proposal that has divided the field of 2020 Democratic presidential candidates. The Energy and Commerce Committee discussed the single-payer health plan backed by White House hopefuls Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) after a sustained campaign led by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), a co-chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and other members of the party's liberal wing. (Hellmann, 12/10)
