MikeD's Posts

The two excerpts from today’s Washington Post along with the article I have posted today to MY ALZHEIMER’S ARCHIVE entitled: COMMENTARY: HOW INSURANCE FIRMS DRIVE DEBATE describes the HEAT OF AUGUST as I call it being carried in the media this month.

Did you believe the delay of the Health Care Reform vote until after the Congressional recess for vacation had anything to do with reasoned consideration of the bill as the plea for delay was touted?

It should be evident now that the Conservative/Corporate Joint Venture needed the time to kill it. And Killing It they are doing.

The article posted in the archive speaks pointedly on the subtle agenda being fomented via the media under the false sound bite philosophy contrived to incite public paranoia and opposition to the bill with no thought whatsoever about remedy of the problem giving need to the reform.

Part D Drug coverage proposed by the Bush Administration and adopted by a Republican Congress best exemplifies this. I had better coverage at less overall cost before Part D was enacted which at the time was offered by the same carrier writing my private drug coverage. They offered their Part D coverage with substantially lower premium and no Do-Nut Hole that is equivalent to a large deductible. The insurance was no longer than 2 years in effect when the Do-Nut Hole was put in and premiums started to escalate. Every other policy of the Byzantine Bunch of them written had the same large Deductible Hole!

Is this bait and switch or what is?

THE PUBLIC OPTION IS A KEY TO CONTROL THE VAST INFLUENCE LOBBY OF THE INSURANCE AND PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES FROM THEIR CONTINUED PILLAGING OF THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE DOLLAR. WITHOUT THE PUBLIC OPTION WE ARE AGAIN AT THE MERCY OF THE BAIT AND SWITCH BUNCH!

HEADLINE

Key Feature Of Obama Health Plan May Be Out
Administration Hints That Public Option Isn't Only Way to Go

By Ceci Connolly
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, August 17, 2009

Racing to regain control of the health-care debate, two top administration officials signaled Sunday that the White House may be willing to jettison a controversial government-run insurance plan favored by liberals…

HEADLINE

More Crises Needed?
The Only Way to Start Reform

By Fareed Zakaria
Monday, August 17, 2009
Washington Post
…
...Now, to see the weakness of the American system, consider the past two weeks and the debacle of the health-care debate. Clearly the U.S. health-care system is on an unsustainable path. If current trends continue -- and there is no indication that they won't -- health care will consume 40 percent of the national economy by 2050. The problem is that this is a slow and steady decline, producing no crisis. As a result, we seem incapable of grappling with it seriously.

It's not as if the problems aren't apparent to everyone, whatever your political persuasion. Costs are rising so fast that every day more than 10,000 Americans lose their insurance coverage. In 1993, 61 percent of small businesses provided health insurance for their employees. Now only 38 percent do. Larger firms face greater health-care costs. Yet, Americans do worse on almost every health measure than most advanced industrial countries, which spend about half as much on health care per person and have proportionately more elderly people.

Meanwhile, the political debate is unreal, with conservatives suggesting that President Obama is endorsing euthanasia and murder boards, and turning America into Russia. (I guess they haven't noticed that Russia isn't communist anymore.) The lack of serious discussion is tragic, because the Democrats' proposals leave much to be desired. They include only a few, vague measures to rein in costs, and the chief one -- a medical board -- assumes (improbably) that Congress will cede massive powers to five unelected people who would have the power to deny people treatments and drugs.

The likely scenario is that expanded coverage and new benefits will be enacted, while the cuts and curbs will be pushed off to be tackled another day.

Health care is the nation's most serious long-term problem. Social Security, government pension liabilities, state-government deficits and energy dependence all pose the same issue. Each of these problems is getting worse by the day, yet the political system seems unable to take them on and make major reforms. On these critical issues, America is caught in a downward spiral. It makes you wish for a crisis.

View Entire Post

[0 VOTES]