Comments on: The Doc Fix: “Ponzi scheme” or Fair Pay for Medicare Docs?

By: Rob

Rob — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:39:13 +0000

Bayh is a Democrat. Come on ABC… just because he opposed the bill doesn’t mean he’s a “right-wing fascist”.

By: A. Lincoln

A. Lincoln — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:51:40 +0000

Ponzi scheme bribe to be paid up later for generations to come and a pretty slimy way to manipulate.
This is way past party affiliation (or affliction) at this point, but right & wrong.

By: Gunrunner

Gunrunner — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:09:16 +0000

Why not! None of the people that are screwing with this will actually ever have to use this Health Care System. They all have “Golden Parachute” Retirements and Health Care thay we The “Unwashed Masses” (Reids quote, not mine)can only dream about, Guess what, we voted them in, we can vote them out! DO IT!, DO IT!, DO IT!

By: Matt

Matt — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 02:39:51 +0000

This is all a joke and we have the likes of George and Charlie to thank. As they have been manipulated by the White House and refuse to be real reporters for fear of offending the Obama administration. Want to know what’s really going on then watch FOX. I’m not talking about Hannity but the 20 plus hours of real news reporting that only FOX seems to offer.
All five Democrat bills do not make health care cheaper…they each bend the costs in the wrong direction. So not only will the middle class be paying higher premiums but we have higher taxes on top of that coming at the Federal, State and local levels unless of course you live in one of those states that actually are fiscally responsible. Unfortunately I live in PA which is following the steps of CA, NY, NJ and IL that are run by tax and spend Democrats because they cater to the welfare vote.

By: Gwen

Gwen — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 02:10:25 +0000

Obama promised a deficit neutral healthcare bill. It looks like it will be harder and harder to achieve since the dems are caving to every dem constituent who whines. Therefore, they took nearly $250B out of the healthcare bill for doctors and are now making its own separate bill. Our politicians must think we’re all asleep at the wheel. The republicans pulled the same crap. We need to bury our partisan views and make all politicians accountable before they spend trillions more of our dollars to buy votes. The media needs to be as critical of Obama’s policies as they were with Bush.

By: james

james — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 01:04:08 +0000

The entire Health Care Reform is a Ponzi scheme. Medicare is going bankrupt, Medicaid is bankrupting the States and the US has a 1.8 trillion dollar deficit. Bottom, line there is no money in the pot to pay for anything much less a large new entitlement program. President Obama and the Dems in Congress need to start taking care of first things first which is bringing down the deficit and making Medicare and Medicaid whole. Not to mention, the war in Afghanistan which Obama said was a must win war until his holy grail of Health Care Reform made him blind to what is really important to the financial and physical security of the Nation.

By: Midwest Jim

Midwest Jim — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 20:59:31 +0000

Wizcat123,
Upon further reflection, I think you do make a valid point with the rates of “implicit” taxes. What these will do is what happens in every socialist system, the removal of an incentive to work harder to get ahead in life. If the government will “take” 70 cents out of every newly earned dollar – for those seeking to raise their income by a few thousand dollars a year – then obviously you remove much of the incentive for these people to try and earn that extra money.
What you will also create is a huge new incentive for those with “flexibility” in reporting their income (waiters, waitresses, and other who depend on tips) to cheat on their tax returns.

By: clr

clr — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 20:21:34 +0000

EVERYTHING this WH is doing is a ponzi scheme… I can’t wait to see them all thrown out of office.

By: marion

marion — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:46:39 +0000

Obama said he would not sign a health care bill that raised the deficit one dime. How about 247 billion dollars instead? For the doctors support of Obamacare.

By: Midwest Jim

Midwest Jim — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:35:53 +0000

Wizcat123,
One big hole in your calculation of “implicit” taxes. The word taxes assumes that the person involved is actually paying them. What you are discussing is the level of government handout or welfare that these people at various income levels would receive – it’s all “other people’s money” that you are playing with here, and as Margaret Thatcher famously said (paraphrasing) – the problem with socialism is that sooner or later you run out of other peoples money.
Instead of creating new unfunded entitlement, how about we take this approach. Increase the tax credits for teaching hospitals and university medical programs for offering full ride scholarships for increasing the number of doctors. Provide these scholarships for those willing to “serve” a predetermined number of years in clinics and hospitals dedicated to serving those unable to pay for their own healthcare. Offer additional tax credits for companies to build these facilities where needed, but in many cases, there are already unused facilities in urban areas like Detroit, Philadelphia, etc. Put them to good use, and target these services only for those who are truly in need, instead of blowing up the excellent healthcare system that 90% of the U.S. already enjoys. Giving these people without coverage a means to secure treatment will – all by iteself – lower and contain costs for those with private insurance.
All the government proposals to date will do nothing but increase the cost of insurance. Adding people with pre-existing conditions to policies at the same rates as everyone else is like allowing someone to wreck their car and then requiring State Farm to fix the damage all for the cost of a “standard” policy. Requiring everyone to buy coverage up front is one way to combat that, but since no one has the guts to put penalties with teeth into those rules – they are a joke. Passing this legislation as currently proposed will lead to hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of people dropping their coverage now – comfortable with the thought that they can always get subsidized coverage later even after they get sick or injured. It is a recipe for a healthcare and economic disaster.