Marketing Bad Health Care Decisions as a New Form of Stealth Health Policy Advocacy

A remarkable set of video advertisements appeared a few weeks ago that seem designed to frighten people into making bad health care decisions.The "Bad Uncle Sam" Advertisements As described by Businessweek,In the first ad, dubbed 'The Exam,' a young woman who has signed up for Obamacare arrives at a medical facility and changes out of her clothes and into a flimsy hospital gown. Following the instructions of a doctor, she reclines on a hospital bed and spreads her legs into a pair of stirrups. The doctor leaves the room. Then, suddenly a mascot wearing a plastic Uncle Sam mask and sporting an unwavering grin—Creepy Uncle Sam!—pops up between her legs. As she screams, the ad pans out. 'Don’t let government play doctor,' reads the kicker.The final message, for some reason not described by Businessweek, wasOpt out of ObamaCare Similarly,A second spot, entitled 'The Glove,' follows a similar narrative arc. A young man sits in an examination room and tells a doctor that he’s signed up for Obamacare. 'I saw the ads and figured, why not?' he says. 'Okay,' says the doctor. 'Take your pants off.' The man drops his trousers, reclines on the hospital bed, and brings his knees to his chest. The doctor leaves the room. Behind the young man, Creepy Uncle Sam pops up, raises his hand into the air, snaps on a latex medical glove, and wiggles his fingers menacingly.Once again, the final message isOpt out of ObamaCare The Ostensible Message of the Advertisements Again pe...
Source: Health Care Renewal - Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Tags: health care reform stealth health policy advocacy health insurance disinformation Source Type: blogs