A fool and his money…

How does this make sense? Aetna Insurance company inadvertently revealed that it has donated $7 million to two groups, the US Chamber of Commerce and the American Action Network in 2011.

Insurance giant Aetna inadvertently disclosed more than $7 million in donations to conservative political groups in a regulatory filing made earlier this year, according to a Washington-based advocacy group. Insurance giant Aetna inadvertently disclosed more than $7 million in donations to conservative political groups in a regulatory filing made earlier this year, according to a Washington-based advocacy group. Documents obtained and distributed by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington show that Aetna made a $3 million donation to the American Action Network and a $4.05 million donation to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 2011.

Both groups are actively fighting the Affordable Care Act (aka “Obamacare”.) But the insurance industry LOVES the ACA? Why? Because the individual mandate part of it ensures them a giant pool of money.

Oops.

The American Action Network’s thinly-veiled lobbying efforts are not fooling anyone:

By law, American Action Network, a tax exempt group, must limit itself to “charitable, educational, or recreational purposes.” But in practice, the phrase “educational activities” is often used as a euphemism to describe so-called issue ads. […] “Everyone knows what American Action Network does. And everyone knows what the Chamber does,” [Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics executive director Melanie] Sloan said. “This is all just a fiction.”

And part of what they do is fight Obamacare. But, here’s the American Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the industry group for health insurance companies, on the individual mandate which is a key component of the ACA:

As the nation awaits the Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), it is important to keep in mind that severing the individual mandate from market reforms in the ACA could have a negative impact on individuals and families. Experience in eight states that enacted various forms of guarantee issue and community rating in the 1990s all showed what happens when these market reforms are not linked to a mandate – higher premiums, no reduction in the uninsured and loss of consumer choice.

How can companies like Aetna stay in business when they are literally spending millions of dollars against their own self-interest?

It just goes to show you just how profitable it is to make money off from sick and injured people. Welcome to health care in America: a for-profit business designed to make money from your misfortune. So much money, in fact, that they can afford to waste it to the tune of $10 million.

Capitalism!