House health care bill

AOL News — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 06:28:09 GMT

Do you think that the health care bill passed by the House would be good or bad for America?

RE: House health care bill

American Patriot — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:09:43 GMT

Hide Grandma and bring the illegals in deathcare has passed.

Hold on the liberal want grandma dead.Pelosi services the rest rooms at congress to get 220 vote.While Reid waits for his turn for the morsels at the senate restrooms to do the same. 35 blue dog are spared a case of blue balls because Pelosi got her full load of spent loons to gag a vote for her.

35,000,000 illegals and uninsured will get 1,200,000,000,000 dollars to buy insurance do the math. Each uninsured will get $34,245 to buy insurance

One more math problem250,000,000 million people paying $1,200,000,000,000 equals each and every person in America paying $4,800 each,for start.Its get better .Medicare patients lose $500,000,000,000 in medical benifits.

Remember congress has the cadillac insurance paid for by you and me.So the plan is every one drops their insurance to get the government freebee .Then who pays???????????

RE: House health care bill

American Patriot — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:09:53 GMT

Obamacare: Underwhelming Victory in House Hopefully a Bad Sign For Final Passage

The House of Representatives barely squeaked through Obamacare tonight by 220-215. And it took a strong anti-abortion amendment to get that job done. From the story:

As drafted, the measure denied the use of federal subsidies to purchase abortion coverage in policies sold by private insurers in the new insurance exchange, except in cases of incest, rape or when the life of the mother was in danger. But abortion foes won far stronger restrictions that would rule out abortion coverage except in those three categories in any government-sold plan. It would also ban abortion coverage in any private plan purchased by consumers receiving federal subsidies.

This bill should face a veto threat by Obama because it is way over his price tag. The sad part is, we know he doesn’t mean any of it. We know so many of our legislators don’t mean anything they say. For example, Representative Owens in the recent NY 23 campaign said he opposed the public option and then voted for it days later. It is all so craven.

But back to business. It strikes me that the very close vote is another indication of how badly Obamacare has lost the national political debate, as it has bitterly divided the country in a way I haven’t seen since Vietnam. It isn’t going to get better for them as it goes into the Senate. It’s going to get worse as support among the general public continues to shrivel.

RE: House health care bill

ArmyBrat75 — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:51:35 GMT

Yes, I believe it will be a positive thing for all Americans.... especially for those who have pre-exsting conditions as well as women who the facts show are currently suffering gender discrimination under the current system.

RE: House health care bill

dodi55 — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:51:29 GMT

It is a monstrosity that has not been composed by those who know. It is like wrecking the house to fix a leak in the kitchen sink. I admit that the health care system needs reform, and discrimination of any kind is not to be tolerated, But there are a lot of areas that need to be addressed first. Things like Tort reform, removing the invisible boundries between states, so consumers can purchase healthcare plans across state lines. The competition will drive down prices! Also, there are already health co-ops (before the congress ever thought of the idea, though theirs is not a true co-op), like Harvard Pilgrim Health Plans and their affiliates. This is being pushed too fast and without proper deliberation. Everyone needs to cool their jets. Besides, the CBO is saying WE CAN'T AFFORD IT!!!! Does that send up a red flag for any thinking people out there?!!

RE: House health care bill

dodi55 — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:55:30 GMT

PS - Harvard Pilgrim was rated 93% by their members! That says a lot. Health co-ops are becoming more popular b/c they work better. They are usually non-profit and more affordable. Check it out.

RE: House health care bill

JOHN — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:34:52 GMT

Actually it will be good for America. At least it is a move in the right direction. Most feel we will all be cheated. You have to have a SS # to get any insurance and most illegal people don't have that, and if they do, they will be caught, eventually (too bad that will cost us too). Everyone bitc*es about it and does nothing. I "Pass On To Others" my concerns and keep the conversation on a more Optimistic point of view. We "All" should be paying the "Same" amount for Health Insurance including the Congressmen & Senators. They should get no "Special" plan. Give it time and if you don't like it, Quit Bitc*ing and help us do something about it. Everyone has nothing but complaints about Obama's actions. He is at least addressing the issues and he "Is Not" going to be right all the time. I don't like some of his actions but that doesn't make me belittle him.

RE: House health care bill

Pragmatist — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:21:16 GMT

Yes, healthcare reform is needed. Radical zealots who are opposed to reform are unAmerican in their lack of compassion for their fellow citizens---and I DON'T MEAN ILLEGAL ALIENS! Most of you who have subsidized healthcare don't have A CLUE how much private insurance costs. I would love to see EVERYONE be required to purchase private insurance and take the burden off of all employers, both large and small. Then, you would understand why reform is so important.

RE: House health care bill

friday13 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 05:26:51 GMT

Something definately needs to be done, but more goverment involvement is not the way people!! the health care will be rationed, the poor and elderly most affected, they will issue every one a national id card, with a chip in it! what does THAT tell you? The goverment will take over mental health services, perhaps forcing more people to take psychiatric drugs, they'll decide what services are necessary in your care, if they will cover it. they will mandate end of life treatment care, determining how your life will end. Goverment will cover marriage and family counseling. They will interfere with your marriage. And oh so much more. 1000+ pages more!! You only see a small bit of it in the main media and evening news. For more chilling info on the new health care reform check out http://www.conservativeusa.org/action.htm#obamadeathcare

RE: House health care bill

GRIS — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:42:51 GMT

Fellow Plutocrats-
Billionaires, Sound the Alarm! Our GOP subsidiary is hosting another round of Town Halls and inviting our Tea Party friends to come along.

We need you to stand shoulder-to-tuxedo'd shoulder with our teabagger friends, thanking them for their support of the Wealthcare cause.
Here's what we NEED FROM YOU: Let us know when your Senator & Rep are hosting Town Halls so that we can help the Billionaires respond.
+ Check your member's home page for their schedule , or give them a call to find out when they're in town .
+ Report back to Billionaire HQ with dates and times so we can coordinate our thank you tour.
It's always best to be on good personal terms with the hired help, so when they come throguh town, we suggest thanking your representative personally - shake their hand, sing their praises in song, present your donations in person with a giant novelty check.
You can find additional opportunities to support the Tea Partiers at http://www.teapartypatriots.org/Events.aspx.
But wait, there's more - one of our favorite advocates for Wealthcare, Sarah Palin, is on a nationwide book tour. See full schedule here: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/11/11/2124471.aspx
Meet and greet! Welcome this rising lumpen-proletariat star into the ranks of the super-wealthy. Buy her an outfit, even.
All the tools you need to hit the streets are right here on the Billionaires site.
Keep us posted on what you're planning and use the Billionaire Forum to tell everyone what trouble you got yourself into.
Forward the Status Quo!
-Billionaires for Wealthcare

RE: House health care bill

SAAD — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:41:50 GMT

IT IS NOT SO GOOD OR NOT SO BAD . BUT IT IS GOOD FOR THE POOR PEOPLE HOW LIVE THER

RE: House health care bill

vellie — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 04:22:04 GMT

As a health care professional I understand the need for health insurance, but I do not think it is fair for people who work min wage paying for health insurance while the person down the street has poor work ethics and live off government handouts. This is going to create the lower economic class to stop working, after all why should they work so hard and get less than what the unemployed welfare people get. It is also going to create an exodus of health care employees as wages will be cut. Sure they will have jobs but try being a med surg nurse for a day. In fact come work with me for a day. And see how your feet feel, how stressed you are and then told you are going to make less .

RE: House health care bill

Pragmatist — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:26:06 GMT

I am now convinced that Health care reform is doomed. Too many readical conservatives oppose it and the liberals are unable to gather a consensus. 50 years of abuse by the healthcare industry will prevail and our economy will be wrecked. I am am planning for that accordingly. Fortunately for me at 58 I am still in good health. But my insurer is raping me on premiums because they can. For those of you who oppose government run healthcare, cconsider this. Medicare is a blessing for those who have it. A way of solving part of the problem would be to expand eligiblity for medicare and make it optional to those 55 to 65. This would force the Insurance companies to compete to retain customers. If you notice where the big insurance companies are advertising and recruiting new customers ---iti is the medicare eligible age group. If you are not 65 you are basically screwed whether you are healthy or not. All you conservatives out there who are opposed to any expansion of a competitive entity are dreaming if you think the health care industry will correct itself and do the right thing. It is the fundamental idealogy of hardcore Republicans to oppose all government intrusion into public policies.

RE: House health care bill

bella class act — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:22:36 GMT

There is no answer to this question at this time. Reality is far from the elected that are trying to give equality to all, it will never happen.

RE: House health care bill

concerned — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:28:19 GMT

I think it is horrible. I want the freedom to choose which doctor I go to and this just pushes us closer to the government having complete control over our every move.

RE: House health care bill

dillon102 — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 22:28:29 GMT

2 liberal hippie douche bags and a conservative go camping in the woods. 1st liberal hippie see's a knot hole in a tree and starts making love to the tree. The 2nd liberal hippie see's a deer and starts chasing it around the wood to make love to it. The conservative chops down the tree and makes a fire then shoots the deer and BBQ's it for dinner. the 2 liberal hippies are left holding their twigs and berries

RE: House health care bill

jjimedbrown — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:22:35 GMT

I think it will not be a good program there are two many loop holes in this bill

RE: House health care bill

ulysses — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 17:52:38 GMT

Bend over and get screwed

RE: House health care bill

Zeidie — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 12:38:56 GMT

Bad for America because it is overly expensive, poorly draftedand will hurt every American taxpayer.

RE: House health care bill

kicked out gris — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 23:31:25 GMT

Ah the dreams of watching the a big part of our country is to be on their death beds.. If the bill fails. well so far the corporate "healthcare" coverages have already raised the payments.. and will go even higher .. the news so far is tripling the coverage payments..

The 1.4 million spent daily by them for the 1,000 lobbyists are working hard to buy off all in congress..and remove any healthcare rules of selling coverage to people who are in need.. and kicking others off coverage because they are ill.. It is a known fact they will kick off a family if a kid gets a bad case of zits.. some do not cover pregnancy, but they will cover abortions with no reason at all..

We have the jumper of partys.. the Lieberman (german word for little man) ready for his jump to the republican party.. who did push for the PUBLIC OPTION BILL several months ago as his idea.. and now claims he was never was for it.. the corporates have bought him off big time in Conn.. who ever puts up the biggest piles of money for his next political action.. and now wants to be elected president.. Apparently this country is going for corporation ownership instead of for the people.. if they get control.. you can bet minimum wage will be deleted like Georgie boy wanted to do.. no safety on our streets and highways, any kind of welfare will be deleted, no more free shots for kids in schools.. If they get their way America will look like the streets of India.. the kids will look like starvation in progress.. Even want to follow Pat Robertson's desire of American schools to be sold to private ownership. if you can't afford to pay for it.. no education will be allowed..

There is even a fool on the AOL message boards who claims the ww2 holocaust never happened, but a holocausts should be started in the states to kill all with so much as one drop of black blood.. and whether some believe it or not.. there are many posters of right winger bible thumper ilk. that are praising him for to start it as soon as they can kill off President Obama..

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 00:05:19 GMT

All of the pervasive problems within the U.S. health care system are a direct result of statism. Unfortunately, most Americans buy into the feel-good soundbites and look to the socialist utopia to provide answers, not understanding that additional government intervention always worsens the problems.
Not even the so-called experts who villify capitalism understand the difference between Statism/socialism and liberty (see Dr. Arnold S. Relman's For-Profit Health Care: Expensive, Inefficient and Inequitable, in which he refers to "HMOs that would be paid by the government" as "care under the private system").

"War on Fat"
Creeping socialism gives government bureaucrats the power to pry into your eating habits for "the public good".
Deadly shortage
The federal ban on profit incentive is killing those awaiting organ transplants.
Entitlement programs eating up U.S. budget
- Stephen Ohlemacher, December 27, 2005 [IndyStar.com]
New York Medicaid Fraud May Reach Into Billions
- Clifford J. Levy and Michael Luo, July 18, 2005 [The New York Times]
Bad Medicine
The blame for the inadequacies caused by government’s intrusion into health care and other industries does not lie solely on the shoulders of politicians and bureaucrats; it also lies on the masses. - Emiliano Antunez, June 24, 2005 [Strike the Root]
Medical trade is rife with inefficiencies, health secretary says
- Dave Murphy, May 25, 2005 [San Fransisco Chronicle]
Wanted: Scientific Reason for FDA's Gay Sperm Ban
- Aubrey Noelle Stimola, May 23, 2005 [American Council on Science and Health]
Clinton, Gingrich Team Up on Health Care
- Kevin Freking, May 12, 2005 [The Washington Post]
A Cancer Patient Faces the Chaos of the American Health-Care System
- Rosalind Lacy MacLennan, April 27, 2005 [The Future of Freedom Foundation]
Why There's No Cure for the Common Cold
- Bill Walker, April 21, 2005 [Strike the Root]
Feds get tough on Net drugs
- Richard B. Schmitt, April 21, 2005 [SFGate.com]
Kill the Prescription Drug Benefit
- George Reisman, March 1, 2005 [Mises]
How Medical Boards Nationalized Health Care
- Henry E. Jones, February 24, 2005 [Mises]
Drug Safety vs. the FDA
- Alex Epstein, February 18, 2005 [Capitalism Magazine]
America’s Socialized Health Care
- Lawrence Wilson, M.D., Posted January 24, 2005 [The Future of Freedom Foundation]
Bureaucratically Incompetent: Mental Illness and Government Intervention
- Ira Katz, November 9, 2004 [LewRockwell.com]
Health Care in John Kerry's World
Health care and politics are a toxic combination for a life and death issue. - September 21, 2004 [Capitalism Magazine]
The Therapeutic Nanny State
This new proposal threatens to force millions of kids to undergo psychiatric screening, whether their parents consent or not. - Rep. Ron Paul, MD, September 21, 2004 [LewRockwell.com]
Republican Health Care Contradictions
Government provided health care can increase only in inverse proportion to freedom. - Richard E. Ralston, August 30, 2004 [Capitalism Magazine]
Bush to screen population for mental illness
- June 21, 2004 [WorldNetDaily]
100 Years of Medical Robbery
A happy 100th birthday to the Council on Medical Education...and for the sake of all our health, hopefully not too many more. - Dale Steinreich, June 11, 2004 [Mises]
Taxpayers foot bill for aliens' care
- April 1, 2004 [WorldNetDaily]
Health Care in Prison
- William L. Anderson, February 23, 2004 [Mises]
Feeding Obesity
The state creates programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, which force one segment of the tax-paying population to pay for the health care of another segment, creating the incentive to avoid taking personal responsibility for one’s own life and to make others suffer the consequences. - Scott McPherson, February 13, 2004 [The Future of Freedom Foundation]
Ephedra ban sets bad precedent for consumer choice
- Mark D. Valenti, January 9, 2004 [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
A New Prescription For Cutting Costs
- Wayne Dunn, December 20, 2003 [Capitalism Magazine]
Republican Socialism
Congress worked late into the night this past weekend to pass a Medicare prescription drug bill that represents the single largest expansion of the federal welfare state since the Great Society programs of the 1960s. - Rep. Ron Paul, MD, November 25, 2003 [LewRockwell.com]
Why Medicare Expansion is Wrong
Adding prescription drug coverage to Medicare, as Congress is poised to do, is merely more socialism --- it will neither help seniors nor is its passage likely to gain their votes. - Scott Holleran, November 22, 2003 [Capitalism Magazine]
Socialized Medicine in America
Thanks to the untiring efforts of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, Americans have been faced with the greatest expansion of the government into medical care since the 1960s. - Timothy D. Terrell, November 2003 [Mises]
Kill Bill - To Expand Medicare
...expanding Medicare is among the most ill conceived notions in American politics. - Scott Holleran, October 14, 2003 [Capitalism Magazine]
Paying Dearly for Free Prescription Drugs
- Rep. Ron Paul, MD, October 7, 2003 [LewRockwell.com]
A Poison Pill for U.S. Health Care?
- Tom Miller, July 15, 2003 [CATO]
How Socialism Happens Here
- Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr., June 8, 2003 [LewRockwell.com]
Health Care Interventionism: A Case Study
The demise of HealthPlus illustrates the unintended consequences that accompany any government intervention of market forces. - Christopher Westley, January 21, 2003 [Mises]
New Senate Leader Must 'Do No Harm'
There is nothing in Frist’s Senate record to show that he’s even considered free-market options or principles for rescuing America’s rapidly dying healthcare system. - S.M. Oliva, January 2, 2003 [Capitalism Magazine]
Red Flags Over Health Care
- Bill Sardi, November 11, 2002 [LewRockwell.com]
Government Regulation of Hospital Purchasing -- Michigan Patients Pay a Heavy Price
- Dr. Wolfgang Grassl, October 29, 2002 [Mackinac Center for Public Policy]
"Universal" Health Insurance Will Only Enlarge the Medicare Problem
- Nina Owcharenko, May 26, 2002 [Capitalism Magazine]
Morris Fishbein, AMA Enemy of American Health
- Bob Wallace, February 2, 2002 [LewRockwell.com]
Drugs and Politics
- Thomas Sowell, November 27, 2001 [Capitalism Magazine]
Fun With Numbers
"After reading Christopher Westley’s fine article, The Carriage-Trade Trend, I got to thinking about the imminent demise of the health-care industry in this country." - Robert Klassen, August 6, 2001 [LewRockwell.com]
One Patient, 34 Days in the Hospital, $7,000 Syringes and a $5.2 Million Bill
- posted by Antiwar Republican, August 2, 2001 [FreeRepublic]
Socialized Medicine in 10 Easy Steps
HIPAA, MSAs, S-CHIP show how Republicans unwittingly lead the political parade toward increasing government control of health care. - Merrill Matthews Jr., Ph.D., June 30, 2001 [Capitalism Magazine]
Physician group pushes universal health care
Says participation must be 'mandatory,' taxpayer-financed. - Jon Dougherty, February 9, 2001 [WorldNetDaily]
The Medicare Bureaucracy is a Frankenstein Monster That is Destroying American Medicine
- Lawrence Huntoon, M.D., December 22, 2000 [Capitalism Magazine]
Subsidizing Sickness: Medicine and the State
- Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr., October 26, 2000 [LewRockwell.com]
Emergency Medicaid Program For Immigrants
- October 18, 2000 [NCPA]
Medicare should be scrapped, eventually
Medicare was a bad mistake. We can repeat it -- over and over -- or we can scrap a program whose time never came. - Jon E. Dougherty, October 16, 2000 [WorldNetDaily]
Medicare snafu breaks podiatrist
Agency's non-payment of claims forces closure of doctor's office. - Jon E. Dougherty, July 30, 2000 [WorldNetDaily]
The Patients' Bill Of Rights: A Prescription For Massive Federal Health Regulation
- John S. Hoff, Esq., February 29, 2000 [Heritage Foundation]
The Medical Mess
- William Anderson, January 18, 2000 [Mises]
The War on Online Drugs
The Clinton administration wasn’t content with blowing up a pharmacy in the Sudan; now it wants to blow up hundreds of them on the web. - Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr., December 30, 1999 [Mises]
Medicare in Red
According to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), red is the fashion color for the summer. Red tape, that is. - Alejandra Arguello Camerlengo, July 14, 1999 [CATO]
Why Price Controls on Prescription Drugs Would Harm Seniors
- James Frogue, May 4, 1999 [Heritage Foundation]
Why the FDA Wants to Limit Your Freedom
- Henry I. Miller, July 6, 1998 [Washington Times]
Kidcare: Socialized Medicine Through Government Schools
More than thirty states have already implemented school-based health care programs. - Sue A. Blevins & SuYoung Min, January 20, 1998 [IHF]
Medical Regulation Piled on Medical Regulation
- Sheldon Richman, November 1997 [The Future of Freedom Foundation]
The Creeping Takeover of Medical Care
President Clinton favors barring health-insurance companies from using genetic testing to determine whom they will insure. - Sheldon Richman, July 1997 [The Future of Freedom Foundation]
The Back Door to Nationalized Health Care
- Doug Bandow, June 2, 1997 [CATO]
FDA Actions Threaten Civil Liberties
- Jerry Taylor, February 14, 1997 [CATO]
More Kid Stuff
Advocates of politically controlled universal health care coverage have retooled their offensive game plan. Uninsured children will serve as blocking backs for an end run around opposition to regulatory mandates, one-size-fits-all benefit plans, bureaucratic rigidities, and taxpayer-financed cross subsidies. Welcome to the opening round of Village Care 1997. - Tom Miller, January 1, 1997 [CEI]
Blank Check for Mental Health
A few years ago a young woman in Pittsburgh, who had trouble getting to work on time, found a psychiatrist who declared that she suffered from 'chronic lateness syndrome.' Now, if the U.S. Senate has its way, every insurance policy in America will be forced to pay for this woman and millions like her. - Michael Tanner, December 31, 1996 [CATO]
The Medical Monopoly: Protecting Consumers or Limiting Competition?
Nonphysician providers of medical care are in high demand in the United States. But licensure laws and federal regulations limit their scope of practice and restrict access to their services. The result has almost inevitably been less choice and higher prices for consumers. - Sue A. Blevins, December 15, 1995 [CATO]
Are American Children Being Lured Into Socialized Medicine?
- Naomi Lopez, June 28, 1994 [Institute for Health Freedom]
Medical Control, Medical Corruption
- Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr., June 1994 [LewRockwell.com]
Free Medicine
Rising prices pushed the cost of medical treatment beyond the range of more and more people. But, unfortunately, the original culprits — Medicare and Medicaid — were not identified as the cause. - William Dale, February 1994 [The Future of Freedom Foundation]
The Medical Socialism of V.I. Magaziner
- Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr., December 1993 [LewRockwell.com]
National Health Insurance: A Medical Disaster
- Jarret B. Wollstein, October 1992 [Liberty Haven]
Free ... But the Patient Doesn't Get Well
- Lawrence W. Reed, April 1992 [The Future of Freedom Foundation]
Breaking Up the FDA's Medical Information Monopoly
- Robert M. Goldberg [CATO]

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 00:10:27 GMT

Hospitals on the verge of a breakdown
Switzerland’s hospitals may be the envy of the world, but rising health costs and patient numbers are increasingly putting the system under strain. - July 24, 2003 [swissinfo.org]
Sweden Edges Toward Free-Market Medicine
- A. Wess Mitchell, August 31, 2001 [NCPA]
Netherlands aims to tackle health divide
Socioeconomic inequalities remain similar to those in the United Kingdom and Scandinavian countries, despite a sustained effort over 20 years. - Tony Sheldon, October 13, 2001 [British Medical Journal]
A Hard Lesson About Socialized Medicine
Europeans are now learning some hard facts of life about socialized medicine: there's no such thing as a free lunch.- September 23, 1996 [CATO]
Paying The Price For Drugs In Europe
Whether they admit it or not, those who advocate 'making drugs more affordable for American seniors' are actually headed down a slippery slope to price controls, free-market analysts charge.- Stephen D. Moore, July 21, 2000 [NCPA]

RE: House health care bill

WeimMom — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 19:35:15 GMT

Bad doesn't even cover this Corrupt Bribery bill! The sad part is, we Americans will pay the price, not only in $'s, but with our health!

RE: House health care bill

kicked out gris — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:42:17 GMT

Deadly shortage
The federal ban on profit incentive is killing those awaiting organ transplants.

Aw dawgie dawg... should America start buying the body parts needed, and be in the Israelic mode, of paying the Turks a few bucks for kidnapping of the young and healthy kids as they can.. used for for Israeli kiddie porn rape, and snuff.. then sell the body parts.. wow.. won't that be nice..?? Yup, you can get the kids parts, and as a gift when leaving the surgery in Turkey, you get a present of a snuff video murdering the kid who gave you a new heart, kidney, liver, ad infinitum..

RE: House health care bill

F.M. Bass — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 14:12:25 GMT

America can not afford this , we need jobs first and foremost, we can't keep on spending and printing money if we are to survive as a free nation. Any thing that is made behind closed doors and paying huge bucks to someone to support it is fraud and should be treated as such, If you give a donation to a witness to testify for you that is called bribery and punishable by prison, so how can this bill be legal, somebody explaine that to me, or is corruption acceptibale in American government

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 15:15:59 GMT

Nelson is getting an earful right now... What in the hell did he expect?

WASHINGTON — The phone lines were jammed and busy signals greeted callers to Sen. Ben Nelson's offices today in Washington and throughout Nebraska.
Constituents were letting the Nebraska Democrat know what they thought of his decision to back the health reform package on the verge of passing the U.S. Senate.
“Keep trying” — that's the advice to frustrated callers from Nelson's aides.
Nelson said on CNN Sunday that being the center of attention isn't all it's cracked up to be.

http://www.omaha.com/article/20091221/NEWS01/712219890

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 22:28:55 GMT

Senior Dem: Kill the Senate health reform bill and start over

The Senate's healthcare bill is fatally flawed, a senior Democrat atop a powerful committee said on Wednesday.

Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.), the chairwoman of the House Rules Committee and co-chairwoman of the Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus, said that the Senate's bill is so flawed that it's unlikely to be resolved in conference with the bill to have passed the House.

"The Senate health care bill is not worthy of the historic vote that the House took a month ago," Slaughter wrote in an opinion piece for CNN's website.

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/73493-senior-dem-kill-the-healthcare-bill-and-start-over

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:16:19 GMT

Democrats are touting the American Medical Association's endorsement of President Obama's health plan. But there's an important reason why the American College of Surgeons and 18 other specialty groups are opposed.
The plan's most tangible efforts to restrain medical costs are through its controls on specialist physicians. Based on the government's premise that they often make wasteful treatment decisions, the health-care legislation in Congress will subject doctors to a mix of financial penalties and regulations to constrain their use of the most costly clinical options. The penalties and regulations are aimed first and foremost at surgeons and the medical devices that they use, largely because that's where the bulk of spending is.
It all starts with the sweeping power that the Senate bill gives to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The agency will be given the authority to unilaterally write new rules on when medical devices and drugs can be used, and how they should be priced. In particular, the Obama team wants to give the agency the power to decide when a cheaper medical option will suffice for a given problem and, in turn, when Medicare only has to pay for the least costly alternative.
Now the Obama team will use murky provisions embedded in the Senate bill to subtly attain in law those powers they couldn't more artfully acquire in court. In fact, the bill lets Medicare seek almost any restrictive payment authority it wants from a Medicare Commission established for the purposes of cost control....
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 13:02:06 GMT

Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- The Congressional Budget Office challenged claims by health-care overhaul proponents that Medicare savings in Senate legislation would help finance expanded coverage and postpone the bankruptcy of the medical program for the elderly.
The nonpartisan agency said the $246 billion it projected the legislation would save Medicare can’t both finance new programs and help pay future expenses for elderly covered under the federal program.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ackCRQU57HhY&pos=9

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:03:09 GMT

This vote is indeed historic. This Congress will be remembered for its arrogance, corruption and stupidity. In the year of 2009, a Congress ignored the coming economic storm and impending bankruptcy of our entitlement programs and embarked on an ideological crusade to bring our nation as close to single-payer, government-run health care as possible. If this bill becomes law, future generations will rue this day and I will do everything in my power to work toward its repeal. This bill will ration care, cut Medicare, increase premiums, fund abortion and bury our children in debt.

This process was not compromise. This process was corruption. This bill passed because votes were bought and sold using the issue of abortion as a bargaining chip. The abortion provision alone makes this bill the most arrogant piece of legislation I have seen in Congress. Only the most condescending politician can believe it is appropriate to force Americans to pay for other people's abortions and to coerce medical professional to take the lives of unborn children.

(Excerpt) Read more at realclearpolitics.com

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 15:39:23 GMT

For taxpayers, health tab may not end It's impossible to accurately assess price tag
December 25, 2009 TERRY SAVAGE savage@suntimes.com
The new health-care legislation that passed the Senate on Christmas Eve is known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. A different version of health-care reform passed the House last month. There will most likely be a "conference committee" of both chambers named to work out a compromise.
But if the Democrats in the House can muster enough votes, they could simply agree on the Senate version -- thereby ensuring quick action to enact the legislation before the president's State of the Union address Jan. 20.
Any legislation that passes is bound to be costly -- but no one knows how costly it will be. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the Senate version will cost $1 trillion over the next decade.
But then, when Medicare was originally passed in 1967, it was estimated that the hospital insurance (Part A) would cost about $9 billion annually by 1990. By 1990 the actual cost to the government was $67 billion! Since then, Medicare has been expanded to include catastrophic coverage and also Part D, prescription drug benefits.
The point is simply that it's impossible to estimate future costs of such broad legislation with any reliability. And this type of legislation typically is expanded upon over the years.
There's a second price that taxpayers will pay for this legislation -- and it has nothing to do with the actual changes in health insurance. These costs are hidden inside the 2,000-page bill: the amount of taxpayers' money legislators promised each other in exchange for the votes needed to pass the bill in the Senate.
The most public example was the promise that taxpayers of other states will ante up $100 million to pay for Nebraska's state Medicaid bill. That's what it took to buy the vote of Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson. And Vermont will get $600 million over 10 years, while Massachusetts will get $500 million in the next decade. Remember, that's not the cost of the new health-care plan; it's simply the steep price the Senate had to pay to get their bill passed. Health-care changes
Here are some of the actual provisions in the two versions of health-care reform:
• Required insurance purchase -- Both Senate and House versions require Americans to buy health insurance, and they impose fines for noncompliance. But both plans also create a "hardship subsidy" for those below certain income levels, such as a family of four making up to roughly $88,000 annually, or 400 percent of the federal poverty level. Vouchers will be issued either by employers or by the federal government.
• Health insurance exchanges -- Slightly different versions of this plan passed the Senate (which calls for exchanges in each state) and the House (a national insurance exchange), where individuals and small businesses could compare and purchase coverage from private insurers and where vouchers would be accepted.
• Pre-existing conditions -- The Senate version says coverage cannot be denied for pre-existing conditions beginning in 2014 -- it's 2013 in the House version -- but within six months of enactment for children.
• Immediate coverage for uninsured with pre-existing conditions: The bill provides $5 billion in immediate federal support for a new program to provide affordable coverage to uninsured Americans with pre-existing conditions. This provision is effective 90 days after enactment, and coverage under this program will continue until new exchanges are operational in 2014.
• Dependent coverage for young adults -- Requires insurers to permit children to stay on family policies until age 26. This provision takes effect six months after enactment and applies to all new plans.
• Closing the "doughnut hole" in Medicare Part D -- The uncovered "gap" will be lowered by $500, and the Senate bill provides guarantees of a 50 percent price discount on drugs for lower income seniors caught in the gap.
• No lifetime coverage limits -- Senate bill says you cannot "run out" of insurance coverage. This provision takes effect six months after enactment and applies to all new plans. Impact for employers
• Excise tax on employer health plans -- Beginning in 2013, a 40 percent excise tax is placed on the cost of health plans above a threshold of $8,500 for single coverage and $23,000 for family coverage. Thus, if an employer offers "too much" in the way of coverage, the employee would pay a tax. (Higher limits are set for those in high-risk professions, whose insurance would be more expensive.) Limits are to be adjusted for inflation, plus 1 percent annually.
• Free choice voucher -- An employer that offers the required minimum qualifying coverage, but whose employees choose not to take advantage of the employer's plan, must offer a voucher to qualifying employees (based on the federal poverty level) that is equal to what the employer's payment for the plan would cost.
• Large employer penalties -- If the employer has more than 50 employees, it must offer affordable health insurance or pay a penalty for each employee. Those who do offer health insurance must pay a penalty if a worker chooses to enroll in the insurance exchange purchase plan through use of a voucher. Tax increases
• Senate bill: An additional Medicare tax of 0.9 percent on those who earn in excess of $200,000 ($250,000 on a joint return), to be paid by the employee.
• House bill: A 5.4 percent income tax surcharge on individuals with annual incomes over $500,000, as well as families earning more than $1 million.
Several sticky issues remain to be considered. They include coverage for illegal aliens, the issue of funding abortions and the issue of a so-called "public option," which was passed by the House but not the Senate.
So this bill is a long way from being signed into law. Then again, the whole concept of health-care legislation has come a long way in the last two months. Now that the final version is headed down to the wire, you can expect a lot more horse-trading of your tax dollars in the days ahead. And that's The Savage Truth.

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 16:48:10 GMT

McConnell: Democrats 'all joined hands and walked of the cliff together' By Kim Hart - 12/27/09 10:19 AM ET
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Sunday that "the new administration and Congress has squandered their political good will" in passing "Obamacare" and that it will be a political thorn in the sides of Democrats in 2010.
"They all joined hands and walked of the cliff together," McConnell said of Democrats. "There is no question that this bill will be a big if not central issue in 2010....Every single Republican opposed the measure."
McConnell also indicated that Republicans would likely campaign on repealing any healthcare reform measure.
He added, "This administration has run up more debt in its first year than the previous administration did in the past 4 years."
The Hill

RE: House health care bill

kicked out gris — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 19:43:49 GMT

Yeah, Yeah Dawgie we all know McConnell prayed hard for Senator Byrd to die immediately on the command of Durbin... and ticked off the corporate "healthcare" fiends for more of your money.. but hey, the tax idea came from the repub side..

Matthew Yglesias » McCain's Health Care Tax Hike

Then there are the goodies the corporates will lose when the controls come into effect... they will actually have to do some actions to lower their prices to keep the lower paid accounts.. No more upping the cost 25 percent every 6 months.. no more dropping coverage of those who happen to get sick and be hospitalized.. no more high death count for them to wish for.. but they can still do their abortion coverage to the hilt.. just will not cover pregnancy as usual..

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 19:49:02 GMT

How can one explain this incredibly bizarre performance by Max Baucus on the Senate floor? Was Baucus so intoxicated by the sound of his own voice that he went off the deep end? Or perhaps he was so drunk with power over shaping the Senate health care bill that it explains his strange rant. In any event, if a conservative such as Jim DeMint or Jeff Sessions had acted this way in the Senate, the mainstream media would have featured the video over and over and over again. Instead, since this was Democrat Max Baucus, this video was almost completely ignored by the MSM.
Since the MSM has provided no information on the Baucus performance, your humble correspondent has searched the blogosphere for answers. Here is anobservation from Susan Flowers at Examiner.Com:

Is this acceptable, NO. Is this behavior and lack of leadership acceptable to U.S. Citizens who are paying his salary?

Have all rules established over hundreds of years being thrown out and disregarded by the Democrat party? He should be brought before his peers and punished, if they don't, should Voters, as employers, write him up for inappropriate behavior and disorderly conduct?

Americans are paying taxes to support his career. If you disapprove, call and write the other Senators and request he be charged with disorderly conduct. No one in the Congress or Senate should be allowed to be intoxicated when officially representing the Citizens of the USA.

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 03:23:21 GMT

Healthcare horror due to socialized healthcare.

CHILD cancer patients with damaged immune systems are being placed in filthy, rundown isolation rooms at one of the State's premier hospitals.

In some rooms in the oncology ward of Sydney Children's Hospital at Randwick, airconditioning vents are filled with thick dust, mould is growing in bathrooms and meals are placed in the same cupboard as bedpans.

Todd Leach, the father of six-year-old Hailey Ryan Leach, who has just undergone a bone-marrow transplant for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, took photographs in Ward 2 West, where Hailey was supposed to be in isolation for 100 days to protect her compromised immune system.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailytelegraph.com.au

RE: House health care bill

kicked out gris — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 23:37:59 GMT

George W. Bush on Austria

Lies lies lies!

Austria, "The land of Kangaroos", was so named by Australia during the years when Austria was used for kangaroo storage by the first Australian settlers. It is the birthplace of several famous people, including Arnold Schwarzenegger, a mediocre Nigerian soccer player, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the first man to circle the world on the back of a kangaroo and the inventor of muzak. It was also the foundation of inbred monarchs, Turks, incest, mailbox letter bombs, and fathers locking their daughters in cellars.

Austria's economy is hugely dependent on kangaroos, for their labour (in "Kanga-Kampen" - Arbeit Macht Salami), their meat (the perennially popular "Skippy Salami"), fur (as sound-proofing for cellars) and especially their ears (worn on heads in place of feathered hats for certain festivals such as the yearly "Mickey-Mausfest"), all of which nearly two thirds of the national GNP contribute (please Germanic sentence construction excuse - Ed). It is probably for this reason that the tiny nation houses the headquarters of United Nations Organisation. It is also known for exporting ski equipment and Red Bull and for once manufacturing the extremely controversial Adolf Hitler robots. Because of the danger from rampaging kangaroos and their edelweiss-scented droppings, an estimated 78% of the human population of Austria live underground in specially constructed cellars.

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 02:34:24 GMT

Unhealthy Arrogance.

The only thing healthy about Congress' health insurance legislation is the healthy skepticism about it by most of the public, as revealed by polls. What is most unhealthy about this legislation is the raw arrogance in the way it was conceived and passed.

Supporters of government health insurance call its passage "historic." Past attempts to pass such legislation — going back for decades — failed repeatedly. But now both houses of Congress have passed government health care legislation and it is just a question of reconciling their respective bills and presenting President Obama with a political "victory."

In short, this is not about improving the health of the American people. It is about passing something — anything — to keep the Obama administration from ending up with egg on its face by being unable to pass a bill, after so much hype and hoopla. Politically, looking impotent is a formula for disaster at election time. Far better to pass even bad legislation that will not actually go into effect until after the 2012 presidential election, so that the public will not know whether it makes medical care better or worse until it is too late for the voters to hold the administration accountable.

The utter cynicism of this has been apparent from the outset, in the rush to pass a health care bill in a hurry, in order to meet wholly arbitrary, self-imposed deadlines. First it was supposed to be passed before the August 2009 Congressional recess. Then it was supposed to be passed before Labor Day. When that didn't happen, it was supposed to be rushed to passage before Christmas.

Why — especially since the legislation would not take effect until years from now?

(Excerpt) Read more at jewishworldreview.com

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 16:41:18 GMT

Ah, the wages of pork:
The good news for Senator Ben Nelson is that he doesn’t have to face Nebraska voters until 2012.
If Governor Dave Heineman challenges Nelson for the Senate job, a new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey shows that Heineman would get 61% of the vote while Nelson would get just 30%.
The health care vote is clearly dragging Nelson’s numbers down. Just 17% of Nebrasaka voters approve of the deal their Senator made on Medicaid in exchange for his vote. Overall, 64% oppose the health care legislation, including 53% who are Strongly Opposed. Fifty-six percent (56%) believe that passage of the legislation will hurt the quality of care and 62% believe it will raise costs.
(Excerpt) Read more at hotair.com

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:17:15 GMT

Tea-party leaders are delivering a bold ultimatum to all congressional candidates in 2010: Pledge to repeal the health-care reform bill in its entirety if it passes – or you will be booted from office.

FreedomWorks Press Secretary Adam Brandon told WND the message couldn't be any clearer. Asked whether he believes the tea party movement will seek to oust politicians who refuse to repeal the legislation, he emphatically declared, "Absolutely." ...

(Excerpt) Read more at wnd.com

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 14:32:24 GMT

Democrats know Americans will hate government care

President Obama and Democratic leaders say they are counting on a health care victory to buoy their electoral prospects in 2010. Not even House Speaker Nancy Pelosi can believe that baloney. That's why they are trying to make it impossible to undo the damage they now are doing.

Democratic actions suggest they know they are in big trouble when Americans go to vote in November. For example, congressional leaders hid the content of the health bills until the last moment so that it would be difficult to read and discuss what was in them. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid held votes at 1 a.m. on Dec. 21. Voting in the dead of night is hardly the action of a party proud of what it is foisting on the public.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com

RE: House health care bill

kicked out gris — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 01:16:16 GMT

Awwwwwwwwwwww Dawgie.. you paid copy and paste for money right wingers have become the ignore as much as possible twits.. Heck, every forum is filled with your propaganda to push fear and hatred..

By the way how is your repukist hero, the Lumpy Limplard Limbaugh doing for a probable drug overuse in Hawaii? Ah the hero of repukist heroism.. drug and Viagra uses to rape little black boys in the Dominion Republican... Pervertism is a "pure white" moral and patriot thing to do, ain't it?

RE: House health care bill

WeimMom — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 20:22:22 GMT

Bad, here is a good example.

Mayo Clinic in Arizona to Stop Treating Some Medicare Patients - BusinessWeek

“Many physicians have said, ‘I simply cannot afford to keep taking care of Medicare patients,’” said Heim, a family doctor who practices in Laurinburg, North Carolina. “If you truly know your business costs and you are losing money, it doesn’t make sense to do more of it.”

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2009-12-31/mayo-clinic-in-arizona-to-stop-treating-some-medicare-patients.html

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 00:59:07 GMT

President Obama's health-care bill is now moving toward final passage. The policy issues may be coming to an end, but the legal issues are certain to continue because key provisions of this dangerous legislation are unconstitutional. Legally speaking, this legislation creates a target-rich environment. We will focus on three of its more glaring constitutional defects.

(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com

RE: House health care bill

kicked out gris — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 01:59:17 GMT

Ahhhhhh those "honest" republicans have figured out how to sucker the "Teabaggers"..

Tempest in the Tea Party

Wed Dec. 30, 2009 8:47 AM PST

Would a true Tea Party patriot drop nearly $1,600 in donor money for a small meal at a fancy steakhouse? Robin Stublen says no, and he's mad as hell about the profligate expenditures of a GOP political organization that has glommed on to his grassroots movement. Stublen is the organizer of the Punta Gorda, Florida, Tea Party and a member of Tea Party Patriots, a national grassroots organization that has no offices, no president, raises virtually no money, operates largely on volunteer efforts, and, most important, doesn't endorse candidates. But unbeknownst to many, there's another outfit claiming ownership of this conservative movement. It's called the Tea Party Express, and it has dominated Fox News coverage over the past year with its multistate bus tours and political rallies.

Behind it is a well-established Republican political action committee that has raked in tons of money fundraising under the "Tea Party" banner—and it has also spent a lot of that money in a fashion unbecoming a supposedly grassroots insurrection. For instance, according to recent filings with the Federal Election Commission, the PAC that created Tea Party Express dropped $1,597.29 over the summer for a meal for six at a tony Sacramento Chops restaurant, an expenditure that has Stublen seeing red.

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 08:05:32 GMT

Opponents Of A Health Insurance Mandate Mobilize
Both healthcare proposals approved by Congress require that all Americans get health insurance. That's now under fire from liberals, Republicans and even some in the insurance industry.
James Oliphant January 2, 2010
Reporting from Washington - If there is one thing in the proposed congressional healthcare overhaul that sets Michael Cannon's libertarian teeth on edge, it's the requirement that all Americans get health insurance.
"The federal government does not have the power to force you to purchase a private product," said Cannon, a health policy analyst at the Cato Institute, a free-market think tank in Washington.
But with Congress poised to do just that, the mandate for near-universal coverage is generating opposition not only from libertarians like Cannon, who object to the guiding hand of government regulation in almost any form, but from some liberals -- and even from some members of the insurance industry, which stands to gain millions of customers.
Both the House and Senate versions of the healthcare revamp contain a requirement that everyone have health insurance, through a job, the government or the private market.
In theory, the justification seems simple: A large number of people pay relatively modest premiums, creating a pool of money big enough to take care of those who need help.
Having people of all ages participate is especially important with healthcare, analysts note, because the major medical problems that result in big claims are found disproportionately in middle-aged and older Americans. If younger, healthier people go without insurance, premiums for the others would be driven higher.
But even as right-wing critics talk of legal challenges, critics on the left complain that Americans will be locked into buying a product that threatens to become ever more expensive --
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 01:13:56 GMT

Health Reform: President Obama suggested last summer that the Mayo Clinic was the model for government medical care. On Monday, the Mayo Clinic in Arizona stopped taking Medicare patients. Now what?

If the nonprofit Mayo Clinic is "what works," as the president believes, then it's clear that government health care doesn't. If Washington can't manage a system with fewer than 50 million participants well enough for those who paid for it to get care, then it sure can't run a program that will eventually include every person in the country.

Obama's comment didn't go unnoticed at the Mayo Clinic. While it supports some elements of health reform, the famed practice known for its high-quality care said that under the Democrats' reforms the "real losers will be the citizens of the United States."

Though the Democrats' plans for medical care haven't become law, the losing has already begun for the roughly 3,000 Medicare patients served by the Mayo Clinic in Glendale, Ariz.

They will either have to pay cash for medical services or find other doctors who still accept patients in the government's health care program for the elderly. Those aren't enviable choices.

One, no American who has paid into the Medicare system for his or her entire working life wants to begin paying for health care out of his or her own pocket. It's cruel to force workers to fund a system they can't draw benefits from.

Two, doctors everywhere, not just at the Arizona Mayo Clinic, are dropping Medicare patients because of the government's meager reimbursements. And the pace of doctors opting out of the system will only pick up if $500 billion is slashed from Medicare funding, as is planned in Washington's health care reform, putting even more elderly Americans at risk.

(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com

RE: House health care bill

kicked out gris — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 07:22:24 GMT

Limbaugh Lauds (Socialist) Medical Care in Hawaii

but I think the most likely reason of all was the Grinch had a heart two sizes too small" ("How the Grinch Stole Christmas," Dr. Seuss).

According to Rush Limbaugh, the health care reform that may be passed by Congress is socialism. Yet, it bears a striking resemblance to the universal healthcare system that just treated him in Hawaii that prompted his remark: "there is nothing wrong with the American health care system. I received no special treatment."

Yes, Rush. That's the point! American medicine is superb--for those who can get it. And, in Hawaii, no one gets special treatment, because everyone can get it.

[Er, by the way, just to help you out, Rush, a fair percentage of your listeners do not know Hawaii is part of the United States, so clarify that for them...otherwise, they will wonder about you]

By accepting socialist medical treatment in Hawaii, therefore, Rush Limbaugh has shown that, when one is ill, what matters is the availability of quality health care, even if it is socialist.

Rush follows a long litany of conservatives, such as all Members of Congress that have a medical office paid for by taxpayers available in the Capitol, by Dick Cheney who had socialist pacemakers implanted paid for by the government, and George W who had a government-paid socialist colonoscopy while in office. Members of Congress over 65 get single-payer socialist medical care from Medicare.

Hawaii has had nearly-universal employer-mandated health insurance since 1974. Although its Pacific Island location makes the costs of everything--from gasoline to milk to ice cream to housing--the highest in the nation, health care premiums in Hawaii, for comprehensive care with small co-pays and deductibles, are nearly the lowest and their costs per medicare beneficiary are the lowest in the nation.

Why? There are a variety of reasons, most traceable to universality. With everyone covered by primary care, emergency room visits tend to be for real emergencies, not the non-emergent care mainland ERs dispense for people without coverage. That reduces the costs of ERs and the costs of non-emergent medicine since patients can be handled less expensively and more effectively by their primary docs. Hospitals have not overbuilt, acquiring expensive machines to compete with their neighbors for patients. Insurance companies have instituted screening and other measures to improve wellness among their covered populations.

We can all be pleased that Rush appears to have survived his encounter with socialist medical care. He seems to be very happy himself, commenting on the results of a socialist angiogram that showed no disease in the arteries that feed his heart muscle.

Now, of course, Rush does not live in Hawaii and so his costs are not covered by the Hawaiian insurance system, but having that "socialist" system for more than 3 decades has not reduced the quality of the care he received. Who would have thunk it!

If Hawaii-style medical care is good enough for Rush Limbaugh, it is good enough for me.

Thanks Rush, and with it my hopes that your medical insurance covers all your costs and that the greatest country in the world can make that same care available to everyone.

MMMMMMM was the real reason Lumpy went to Hawaii was to get President Obama's "real" birth certificate for the goddess, the Orly.. and the birther gang? Weird ain't it.. that communist hospital is where President Obama was born?

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 11:48:45 GMT

January 05, 2010

Why the health care bill's benefits don't go into effect until 2014

Joseph Ashby

10. Canadian health boards wanted four more years of having somewhere to send their citizens to get medical care.

9. The benefits were supposed to start sooner but Senator Baucus had a few too many before writing the bill.

8. Harry Reid doesn’t care that 20.5 million people will lose health insurance between now and then.

7. To ensure Obama can run for reelection before the health care disaster hits (oh wait…not a joke).

6. To give the Democrats time to reinstall the inheritance tax before the death panels get going.

5. “To do it right.” -- Barack Obama (Good one Mr. President, who says you don’t have a sense of humor?)

4. Obama wants to acclimatize Americans to long wait times.

3. Because members of Congress know Chuck Norris is waiting for them.

2. The government needs a few extra years to cover the bribes used to get the bill passed.

1. Because 2014 is when the Stimulus spending will really start working.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2010/01/why_the_health_care_bills_bene.html

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 17:10:25 GMT

C-SPAN DARE TO DEMS: OPEN HEALTH TALKS!

RE: House health care bill

Au Contraire... — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 22:51:37 GMT

Reality checks:

.....for decades and decades, the American health care system has had unconscionable gaps in coverage

.....those gaps have widened and widened to become open, yawning graves, as many as 45,000 Americans dying per year because of lack or inadequate health care access

....hundreds of thousands of people have been forced into bankruptcy because of medical bills..

.....the costs of the current health care is strangling the country, taking up to 18 per cent of every dollar earned.

....in less than ten years, the average family insurance coverage rose from 5,800 to 13.400....

....the average Medicare beneficiary went from 5,500 to 11,900...

....in western Europe, most primary-care practices now use electronic health records and off after-hours care. In the U.S., most don't.

....at the current rate of increase, the cost of family insurance will reach 27,000 or more in a decade, taking more than 1/5 of every dollar that people earn. Businesses will see their health-care-coverage expenses rise from ten per cent of total labor costs to seventeen per cent...

....health-care spending will devour all our future wage increased and economic growth

....state buget costs for health care will more than double, and Medicare will run out of funds in just eight years....

------------------------------

Compound those facts with the facts that:

.....American ranks around 38th in health care access and service

....life longevity is in the 48 percentage range

...infant mortality is around the 30 percent range....

....America pays twice as much as any other nation on earth for its health care system

....America in the ONLY industrialized nation on earth without universal health care for all of its citizens..

RE: House health care bill

Dawg — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 22:57:15 GMT

The Problems with Socialized Health Care

Australia
Australia's universal health care scheme is relatively new (introduced in 1983, which built on the 1974 Medibank program). As with all socialized health care systems, there is a mixture of public versus private care (approximately 30% of Australians also retain private health insurance). As a result, the private patients receive better care than their medicare counterparts.

The salary caps and artificial increase in demand for care that always occur in a national health care system are resulting in predictable physician shortages.

Mental patients face bed shortage
- Clara Pirani, July 4, 2005 [News.com.au]

Public patients wait longer for surgery
- June 29, 2005 [The Sydney Morning Herald]

Painful wait for care
- Luke McIlveen, February 17, 2005 [Herald Sun (Australia)]

Hospitals crippled by poor planning
- Ruth Pollard, December 1, 2004 [Sydney Morning Herald]

Operating theatres shut to save cash as thousands wait for surgery
- Nick O'Malley, November 23, 2004 [Sydney Morning Herald]

Private funds creating 'two-tier' health system
- David Uren, November 3, 2004 [The Australian]