business
N.C. Blues fined for 2009 robocalls
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Feb. 15, 2010
Prerecorded political calls to an estimated 100,000 North Carolinians earned BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina a $95,000 fine.
The health plan paid a third-party vendor to place recorded calls to registered voters in October 2009, urging recipients to contact U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan (D, N.C.) to express opposition to a public health plan option that at the time was being contemplated as part of federal health system reform legislation.
State law limits prerecorded phone calls by requiring that callers clearly identify themselves and the nature of the call, and give the recipient contact information.
In an agreement with the state attorney general's office signed Jan. 27, the company agreed to pay the fine, though it did not admit any wrongdoing. The North Carolina Blues said it believed that the vendor it hired, Campaign Connections, would follow any applicable state laws regarding automated calls.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2010/02/15/bibf0215.htm.
