Tired of being cast as the villain, the American Association ofHealth Plans said Tuesday it has hired the legendary William Morristalent agency to improve the ailing image of HMOs on the big screen.
At a time when movies like Denzel Washington's 'John Q' andShowtime's recent series 'Damaged Care' have portrayed healthinsurers in a less-than-flattering light, AAHP is attempting toimprove its relationship with screenwriters, directors andproducers. Its transaction marks the first time the Washington, D.C.-based lobbying group, which represents around 1,000 health plansnationwide, has sought Hollywood's help for image improvement.
'We've spent a great deal of time working with the legislativecommunity. Now, we're turning toward the entertainment industry,'said Karen Ignagni, AAHP president and chief executive officer. 'Andit's not about pitching a screenwriter, it's about building abridge.'
With William Morris guiding AAHP, the association will not onlyattempt to doctor its image in film and television, Ignagni said shehopes power brokers and directors alike will utilize the group'saccess to health care information. Indeed, such expertise couldcertainly be tapped for a coming new doctor series, 'Presidio Med,'portraying a physician challenging an HMO.
Terms of AAHP's deal with Beverly Hills-based William Morrisremain undisclosed. Ignagni said 'its length will depend on itsvalue in the community.' Just like Capitol Hill, though,'it'scustomary to engage important individuals and leaders to helpbuild the communications bridge,' she said.
Yet merely improving the health care industry's image doesn'tnecessarily improve current conditions. Dr. Joel Teplinsky, aSherman Oaks-based plastic surgeon, acknowledges that changing theAAHP's image may improve its outward appearance, but the disarraywill still exist below the surface.
'They (AAHP) are simply going out of their way to clean things upwith a good public relations firm,' he said. 'I'm sure some guy inDes Moines wouldn't be happy to know that an association thatrepresents his health plan has hired an expensive Hollywood PR firmto change its image.'
Even so, the AAHP isn't going on the offensive to woo middleAmerica. It's responding to the fact that nearly three times as manyAmericans watch the television drama 'ER' as watch 'NBC NightlyNews,' Ignagni said. For that reason, the AAHP sees an opportunityto better educate more than 170 million American who are covered byhealth plans.
Though Teplinsky doesn't perceive hiring a talent agency as analtruistic practice, several health maintenance organizations arestanding behind the AAHP's relationship with William Morris.
'With an ever-increasingly complex delivery system, it'simportant for AAHP to offer its expertise in Hollywood as peopledevelop story lines,' said Matthew Schiffgens, a spokesman forOakland-based Kaiser Permanente. 'And the broader issue is that avast majority of Americans take their cues and gather informationfrom the entertainment medium.'
As the source of the entertainment industry's power often stemsfrom content, some health care executives are looking forward to theinfluence the AAHP will have in Hollywood. When 'John Q' hittheaters earlier this year, Lisa Haines, a spokeswoman for WoodlandHills-based Health Net, said the movie would have been more tactfulif it focused attention on a burgeoning population of people who gouninsured.
'Now AAHP has an opportunity to get a seat at the table,' Hainessaid. 'This relationship can add real value to the entertainmentindustry.'
But while some insurers advocate the AAHP's presence inHollywood, others remain cautiously optimistic. Michael Chee, aspokesman for Thousand Oaks-based Blue Cross of California, saidbolstering the health care industry's value in film and televisionis not a priority.
'We're really no part of their (AAHP) agenda,' Chee said. 'Fromour perspective, this is not a major part of our own agenda, either.Our primary concern is providing quality insurance for theunderinsured.'
