Health Care Hurdles

The biggest hurdle is that they have not read it and evidently dont even know whats in the bill, send a senator to a T.V. show and she embarasses the whole democratic party buy her inept understanding of the bill she voted for.

I am waiting to hear how those who currently are insured benefit from this
healthcare package. More taxes, less
care and higher premiums. How is this
a good deal for the majority of Americans?
The general public is getting screwed again.

The ban on pre-existing conditions must be fixed. Today, everyone with health insurance is only a bad test, perhaps a blood sugar a bit high, and losing their job away from being uninsurable at any cost. Adult children are scared of donating a kidney to save a sibling’s life because if they do they will have that pre-existing condition for life and be uninsurable if they are ever with out a job.
And only a fool thinks that American businesses can continue to provide the current level of health insurance at the rate costs are shooting up. The US spends TWICE as much per person for health care as the average first world nation, smokes less, yet has a life expectancy that is lower. The US economy cannot afford the status quo, which is spending a trillion dollars a year – a year – more than everyone else on health care for no measurable return.

Group insurance reform would allow individuals to band together without being an employment-based group to buy group health policies.
Is it in the bill? Um, no.
Joe White | Nov 23, 2009 9:20:38 AM
Um, YES. Group health policies, aka health care exchanges that allow individuals to band together without an employer to buy group health policies IS THE CENTER PIECE OF EVERY BILL PROPOSED. This is perhaps the only feature every single proposal has had in common for the last year!
Once again, opposition to health care is showing itself to be based on complete ignorance of reality.

30 million more people.
Elimination of pre-existent conditions
AND cut costs?
If you believe that, you are out of your mind. Completely out of your mind.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Monday shows that 28% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty-one percent (41%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -13.

They should help the Congress pass a decent bill that will TAX us all– and more importantly our children (and grandchildren).
“The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries.”
I’d rather give my grandchildren a shot at blessings rather than guaranteed misery, but the Dems are in charge and they OWN this health insurance/health care fiasco.

If you believe that, you are out of your mind. Completely out of your mind.
drjohn | Nov 23, 2009 10:00:50 AM
Yet every other first world nation in existence has universal health care AND spends on average half as much per person AND has equal or better life expectancy (and most have higher smoking rates).
drjohn – is every other first world nation on earth just inherently more efficient and better at health care then?

Seems like the news that those hackers
that found that our lovely global warming
scientists fudging the numbers to conform
to the political will has fallen by the
wayside. When you talk about eliminating
the way the American people live for
a green cause with an enormous price tacked on ( and given to the likes of
Al Gore who reaps the benefit of this
sham)you would think that would be big
news. Just kind of faded away over the
weekend. Come on ABC news, you could
be doing some good for the citizens of
this country if you would get off the
dime and investigate the fraud involved
with the stimulus package and now this.
Your bias is showing !!!!!!

Yes, we can have 30 million more people insured and cut costs (i.e. cost to the taxpayer).
If they pay for their own insurance.
But not if the government pays for or subsidizes it thru taxation.
Overregulation is one of the main things that make insurance unaffordable for many.
More overregulation won’t fix it, it will get worse.
Examples of overregulation:
–only allowing employment based groups to purchase group health
–cost shifting, i.e. forcing those with private insurance to pay what Medicare and Medicaid refuse to pay

A little history…
The 2nd worst stock market crash occured in 1937. Why did we have the second crash during the depression? In 1936, the first Social Security taxes were withdrawn from paychecks.
In 1936, people had less money to spend, the economy shrank and unemployment rose to 22%. The money taken from the taxpayers and triggering the 2nd crash did not reenter the economy until 1940.
From Fact Check on “Gimmicks in the Health Care Bill?”:
“Revenue measures, such as a surcharge on the wealthy, kick in right away (in 2011), but major cost components, like subsidies to help people buy coverage, aren’t implemented until 2013 (the Senate bill pushes it to 2014). That means that the 2010-2019 period, during which CBO found the bill would decrease the deficit by a net $109 billion, includes a few more years of revenue-making measures than spending.
The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget calls this a “timing gimmick,” writing in a report on the bills that the House “front-loads offsets, before the new spending begins.”
Does this remind anyone of anything?
What might happen to a weakened economy already fighting off a recession when there is less money to spend? This isn’t even taking into account the fact that the Bush tax cuts — individual rates, capital gains, dividends, estate tax — are set to expire after 2010 which will affect the middle class, too, as tax rates of 10, 15, 25, 28, 33, and 35 percent will revert to 15, 28, 31, 36, and 39.6 percent. And, now there is talk of a tax surcharge for the war in Afghanistan.
Do you see where this is going? Less disposable income for everyone will not bring this economy back.

correction 11/23/09

With the national debt now topping $12 trillion, the White House estimates that the government’s tab for servicing the debt will exceed $700 billion a year in 2019, up from $202 billion this year, even if annual budget deficits shrink drastically. Other forecasters say the figure could be much higher.
Take note: ten years from now, the annual cost of servicing the national debt will be greater than the cost of the Iraq war and roughly equal to the cost of the failed stimulus package.
Where on earth will that money come from? My concern for my grandchildren is not the rising costs of healthcare (which will be made worse, not better, by Obamacare) nor the “global warming” hooey, now exposed as a fraud. It is the national debt.

With the national debt now topping $12 trillion, the White House estimates that the government’s tab for servicing the debt will exceed $700 billion a year in 2019, up from $202 billion this year, even if annual budget deficits shrink drastically. Other forecasters say the figure could be much higher.
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | Nov 23, 2009 12:06:52 PM
From:
Wave of Debt Payments Facing U.S. Government
By EDMUND L. ANDREWS
Published: November 22, 2009
New York Times
Not to be confused with Fascists’ own words.

Not to be confused with Fascists’ own words.
Posted by: Copyright Police |
The number two Democrat is a plagiarist.

Not to be confused with Fascists’ own words.
Posted by: Copyright Police |
The number two Democrat is a plagiarist.
Posted by: Foghorn Leghorn | Nov 23, 2009 12:40:19 PM
That’s funny. I plan on stealing that line later!

AP: Employers already are squeezed by tight credit, rising health care costs, wary consumers and a higher minimum wage. Now, the surging jobless rate is imposing another cost. It’s forcing higher state taxes on companies to pay for unemployment insurance claims.
Some employers say the extra costs make them less likely to hire. That could be a worrisome sign for the economic recovery, because small businesses create about 60 percent of new jobs. Other employers say they’ll cut or freeze pay.

Dr. Jeffrey Flier, Dean of the Harvard Medical School:
Our health-care system suffers from problems of cost, access and quality, and needs major reform. Tax policy drives employment-based insurance; this begets overinsurance and drives costs upward while creating inequities for the unemployed and self-employed. A regulatory morass limits innovation. And deep flaws in Medicare and Medicaid drive spending without optimizing care.
Speeches and news reports can lead you to believe that proposed congressional legislation would tackle the problems of cost, access and quality. But that’s not true. The various bills do deal with access by expanding Medicaid and mandating subsidized insurance at substantial cost—and thus addresses an important social goal. However, there are no provisions to substantively control the growth of costs or raise the quality of care. So the overall effort will fail to qualify as reform.

Some employers say the extra costs make them less likely to hire. That could be a worrisome sign for the economic recovery, because small businesses create about 60 percent of new jobs. Other employers say they’ll cut or freeze pay.
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | Nov 23, 2009 1:22:48 PM
Without a consistently strong message from the administration, which in spite of its claim that it does not respond to the 24-hour news cycle does just that, businesses – those who make the hiring decisions – will continue to be wary about investing capital into new ventures and new jobs (unless they are funded by the government itself).
Add to that, the upcoming government cuts for 2010 in state and local employees (looks like 10′s of thousands) and I personally see no reason to HOPE things will change in 2010. Apparently, the NABE disagrees:
New Survey Shows Improving Business Conditions, with Pickup in Hiring and Capital Spending Planned over Next Six Months
“NABE’s October 2009 Industry Survey provides new evidence that the U.S. recovery is underway,” said William Strauss, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. “Industry demand expanded for the first time in five quarters and all panelists are expecting growth next year. While input costs have been increasing, prices have also been moving higher, allowing profits to improve. Job losses have been moderating with an improved outlook for hiring over the next six months. Capital spending was positive for the first time in a year. Improving credit conditions might be part of the explanation, with respondents indicating that credit remains tight but less so than earlier in the year.” -NABE, 10/26/09

You can purchase your own insurance now, if you wish. We bought our own because it was more cost effective than through our employer.
That is just a bogus arguement.
Posted by: wow |
Surely you can see that the employment based system artificially inflates the price and distorts the relationship between consumers and providers.

RCP average Obama approval among voters: 46.7%.
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | Nov 23, 2009 1:23:48 PM
___________________________________
Actual Published RCP Poll:
Obama approval rating: 50.4%
Spread: +6.8
Ronald Reagan’s first term low: 40% approval rating

Circular logic doesn’t work anymore tierra. That comparison is really embarassing.

tierra: so what would you call the payment of $300,000 to LA Marie Landrieu a bribe or payment for her vote??????????

What I am saying is government doesn’t have to control the entire system to bring about needed change
___________________________________
Do insurance companies currently ‘control the entire system’?

Octavia wrote:
“untethering health insurance from employment ”
Do you mean outlawing it?
Why should we make it illegal for employers to purchase insurance for their employees?
Allow those that want to obtain insurance this way to continue to do so, and those who don’t can buy it themselves.
Freedom. That’s the American way.

Why should we make it illegal for employers to purchase insurance for their employees?
_________________________________
No, she means making insurance more independent and portable . . .

they can hold down the cost of those free government abortions they seem to want.
_____________________________________
If you had paid ANY attention to the debate over the health care bill in Congress you would know this is exactly the OPPOSITE of what is in the bill.
Being uninformed is ignornance.

WRITE YOUR CONGRESSMAN AND TELL THEM THAT FOR CHANGE WE CAN REALLY BELIVE IN TO SUPPORT PROPOSED SENATE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT COE09E33. You can Google COE09E33 to read the simple TWO page bill which is written in simple to understand plain English.

Offer Free Health Care to illegals, and I expect fully that the Aids Epidemic will be solved — Upon Our Backs!!!
Think about it. Ship all infected HIV people here for free care. You can’t get that if you are not a citizen of Canada in Canada, or Great Britain in England, but special interest Groups are already *demanding* this as *their fair share*
PURE B.S. You really don’t want to find out what the Second Amendment was really about, or do you?
Keep illegals going to the E.R. — Sorry, but I can’t afford the “Pelosi Option” much less funding every pet procedure such as abortion. You want an abortion? You pay for it, or get Planned Parenthood to foot the bill. You want to give money to Planned Parenthood? Go for it! I expect the new taxes may make it impossible for you to afford, though. Speaking of which, I wonder how our prison system will do overloaded with people in jail because they can’t afford mandated medical insurance?
The Democrats are going CRAZY with all these insane ideas! We need to get them OUT NOW!!! Circulate petitions for Recall Elections. Most States have laws that specifically allow this. IF ONE STUPID LEGISLATOR was even close to being recalled, they might take notice!

To give you a timetable in the Senate, we spent four weeks last Congress on a farm bill. Within the last 10 years, we’ve spent eight weeks on an energy bill. This will be a multi-week, many-amendment process in the United States Senate on a bill of this magnitude, which seeks to reorganize one sixth of our economy.