Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and other staffers may be inappropriately raising funds to promote Obamacare as enrollment woes continue. Troubling questions and Freedom of Information Act requests by the Washington Examiner seem to be fraying nerves in certain quarters of the Obama administration.
Republicans on Capitol Hill were outraged to learn in May that Sebelius was asking high-powered CEOs to “donate” to Enroll America, a nonprofit organization created by Obama loyalists and designed to encourage Americans to sign up for the Affordable Care Act, according to an exclusive report by the Examiner.
Now, eight months later, a Sebelius spokesperson is evading questions about whether the potentially unethical practice has continued.
“The secretary has engaged in a sustained, aggressive outreach campaign to reach as many Americans as possible during open enrollment,” agency spokeswoman Joanne Peters wrote in an email to the Washington Examiner. “We’re [sic] have been working closely with a range of partners groups across the country to reach the uninsured.”
Emails reveal an intimate working relationship between the White House Office of Pubic Engagement and Enroll America President Anne Filipic – a former Obama aide. Of the 448 pages of emails and documents turned over in the Freedom of Information Act request, 257 were redacted and released to the Examiner, and another 179 were still under review.
The close relationships included these examples, according to the Examiner exclusive:
- H&R Block donated $500,000 to Enroll America. The prominent tax services provider stands to make a mint advising clients on Obamacare subsidies and/or penalties.
- The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation contributed $14 million to Enroll America. Although it supports anti-obesity and other health campaigns, the foundation also owns $1 billion in stock in Johnson & Johnson, whose drugs are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration under Health and Human Services auspices.
- Kaiser Permanente, no small player in the health care pantheon, has representatives on the Enroll America board.
- Enroll America has also raised $27 million from the Ford Foundation, the California Endowment, Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust and others.
U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., the ranking member of the Senate Health Oversight Committee, said Sebelius’ solicitations are illegal because Congress denied funds to implement Obamacare and her behavior parrots Iran-Contra fundraising. He has asked the Government Accountability Office and the Health and Human Services inspector general to look into the extent of the agency’s relationship with Enroll America.
Watchdog groups agree that serious ethical questions have been raised, although they are not sure if Sebelius has crossed the legal line.
Update: 2/19 – 5:38pm
In an email to BizPac Review, H&R Block Corporate Communications Director Gene King said the tax services provider has not contributed any money to Enroll America. King did not comment on the emails obtained by the Examiner.
DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW
Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!
- New campaign ad sees national security as a game-changer: ‘Vote as if your life depends upon it’ - September 11, 2014
- McCain pounds Jay Carney over president’s Iraqi blundering: ‘You don’t have the facts!’ - September 11, 2014
- White House denies family’s claim Sotloffwas ‘sold’ to ISIS by ‘US-friendly moderates’ - September 10, 2014
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.
BPR INSIDER COMMENTS
Scroll down for non-member comments or join our insider conversations by becoming a member. We'd love to have you!
Comments are closed.