We explore the various types of patient advocacy, including non-profit, for-profit and government-run. We also hear from people
who've had problems with their health care, and talk with the head of the leading non-profit patient assistance organization
in the country. Guest: Nancy Davenport Ennis, co-founder, CEO and president of Patient Advocate Foundation, a non-profit whose mission is to eliminate obstacles to access
for quality health care .
As patients are asked to get more involved in their own health care, there is a growing trend of for-profit patient advocacy
businesses. These companies act as hired guns to challenge an insurer's denial of treatment or billing disputes. Reporter: Sarah Varney
We talk with representatives of both the health advocacy and health insurance industries about their business. The reality
is that insurance does not cover everything -- even if patients want it to -- and the overwhelming majority of consumers do
not have problems with their insurers. Guest: Chris Ohman, president and CEO of the California Association of Health Plans, a statewide trade association representing 40 public and
private health care plans that provide coverage to more than 21 million Californians .Guest: Dr. Abbie Leibowitz, co-founder, chief medical officer and EVP of Health Advocate, Inc, the nation's leading health care advocacy and assistance
company .
Did you know the State of California will help you resolve an issue with your health insurer? We talk with the head of the
Department of Managed Health Care, which runs a health care help center that reviews cases brought to it by the public. Guest: Cindy Ehnes, director of the California Department of Managed Health Care .
In our continuing coverage of innovations in thinking about and dealing with health care, we talk with a major player in Health
2.0 -- a social media health movement. Guest: Amy Tenderich, health and diabetes consultant, writer and founder of the blog DiabetesMine.com.
