Health and Human Services Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius has been accused of soliciting donations from businesses and foundations to fund Enroll America, an independent ObamaCare project, that has been set up to encourage people to sign up for the health care program.
According to Enroll America’s website, they are a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to maximize the number of uninsured Americans who enroll in health coverage made available by the Affordable Care Act.
Sebelius is accused of soliciting funds from insurance companies that will be under the control of her agency once Obamacare is fully implemented. The possibility exists that Sebelius could use the fact that she will be in control of regulating the insurance industry to convince companies to ‘donate’ funds to the non-profit. Ethics rules forbid soliciting donations from an entity that Sebelius will regulate.
The relationship between the Obama administration and Enroll America is somewhat seedy. Several members of the White House staff have resigned in order to solicit funds for Enroll America, or have joined the organization.Many of the people on the Board of Directors at Enroll America are also friends of the president.
Enroll America was founded by Ron Pollack, executive director of the liberal advocacy group Families USA. Pollack, and remains the chairman of the group’s board, is has close ties to the White House. He has been a leading advocate for socialized health insurance for years. He is defending the close relationship Enroll America has with the Obama White House, saying “There has been cooperation since Day One … any way we can achieve cooperation, we are eager to do that,” he said.
In discussing the fundraising, Pollack says the group wants to expand their donor base.”Clearly we want the insurers, we want the hospitals, we want the different groups who frankly will be doing well by doing good.”
At the beginning of this year, Anne Filipic left the White House Office of Public Engagement to become president of Enroll America. Filipic served as Deputy Director of Public Engagement. In that role, she oversaw the team charged with building relationships with constituency group leaders across the country, connecting them and their communities with the programs of the federal government.
Prior to joining the White House, Filipic served as Deputy Executive Director of the Democratic National Committee and Deputy Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the Department of Health and Human Services. She also served on Obama’s 2008 Obama for America campaign.
Officials in the insurance industry believe the White House pushed for the change, fearing that the group’s origins in political advocacy were not ideally suited to the massive and focused enrollment campaign.
Chris Wyant, managing director at Enroll America, ran President Barack Obama’s campaign in Ohio. Wyant, a native of Cincinnati, had been working for Obama since 2007 and was the first person hired in 2008 for the president’s 2008 Ohio campaign. After leading the campaign field operation in eastern Ohio in 2008, Wyant went to Washington to work in the administration. Most recently, he served as chief of staff at the U.S. Tradeand Development Agency.
Prior to joining Enroll America as it’s Constituency Engagement Director, Ashley Allison, was a Regional Field Director for President Obama’s Organizing for America, Coordinated the outreach for all constituency groups that participated in the 57th Presidential Inauguration. She also worked jointly with The White House and The Democrat National Committee to plan the National Prayer Service. Managed relationships with high level national surrogates.
Nancy-Ann DeParle, a former White House deputy chief of staff and director of the White House healthcare office, has made fundraising calls on Enroll America’s behalf.
Sister Keehan, a member of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul and the CEO of the Catholic Health Association of the United States,is on the Board of Directors at Enroll America. She is also a staunch ally of President Obama and his health care law.
With so many members of the staff at Enroll America having either close ties or friendships with Obama and other members of the White House, or have alliances to the Democrat Party, Congressional Republicans repeated their call for an independent investigation to determine whether Sebelius broke any laws, by soliciting for the donations.
by Arthur Seaton
Reblogged from theseatonpost.com
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