Obama Appoints Health Care Rationing Czar

Wait a minute! What did that title read? “Rationing Czar?” But Obama and the Democrats promised us that there wouldn’t be any rationing and that anyone who made such a claim was guilty of “fear-mongering.”

Well, let’s meet Obama’s new Rationing Czar, Donald Berwick, and see whether we were “fear-mongering” or we simply called out the Democrats’ lie earlier than they expected:

From an article by Terry Jeffrey at TownHall:

“The decision is not whether or not we will ration care,” Berwick told Biotechnology Healthcare, “the decision is whether we will ration with our eyes open.” President Obama has nominated Berwick to be administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, the federal agency that runs these two massive proto-socialist health care programs. If confirmed, he will oversee the massive cuts that Obamacare mandated in Medicare.

“Fear-mongering?” That is the term the Dems use when they want to silence critics who have correctly identified a Democrat lie.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Obama Names Rationing Czar To Run Medicare
Terry Jeffrey
TownHall.com
May 25, 2010

Democrats Admit Companies Were Right To Claim Obamacare Would Make Costs Higher Rather Than Lower

Now, before you start thinking this is some sort of right-wing Tea Party claim, look at the source:

Inquiry Says Health Care Charges Were Proper
Robert Pear
New York Times
April 26, 2010

Yes, you read that right. The New York Times. Hardly a bastion of right-wing thought.

Here is what Mr. Pear wrote:

When major companies declared that a provision of the new health care law would hurt earnings, Democrats were skeptical. But after investigating, House Democrats have concluded that the companies were right to tell investors and the government about the expected adverse effects of the law on their financial results. … Within days after President Obama signed the law on March 23, companies filed reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission, saying the tax change would have a material adverse effect on their earnings. The White House suggested that companies were exaggerating the effects of the tax change. The commerce secretary, Gary F. Locke, said the companies were being “premature and irresponsible” in taking such write-downs.

“Irresonsible?” This from a hard-core leftist administration that is squandering our grandchildren’s and great-grandchildren’s futures as we speak?

Well, it turns out that the companies were right and the Dems were wrong:

In a memorandum summarizing its investigation, the Democratic staff of the committee said, “The companies acted properly and in accordance with accounting standards in submitting filings to the S.E.C. in March and April.” Moreover, it said, “these one-time charges were required by applicable accounting rules.” The committee staff said this view was confirmed by independent experts at the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the American Academy of Actuaries.

Didn’t the Dems promise that Obamacare would make health care less expensive? This law is only going to make it more expensive and less accessible. Henry Waxman and Bart Stupak (both Democrats) were going to hold hearing on the claims these companies made until the two learned that the claims were well-founded. Those hearings have now been cancelled.

Polls Apart: Democrats Should Not Bank On Obama In November

This Congress has been under more scrutiny than any other Congress in modern history. That means that Representatives and Senators will not be able to hide their voting records behind rhetoic or spin without the general population being able to identify them as either ignorant or liars. A year ago, the Democrats didn’t seem very worried about that. But they better be worried about it now. In fact, it is a wonder that many of the freshmen Dems who won seats from traditionally Republican districts are even bothering to run for re-election after the disaster they have created for themselves by following Barack Obama off of a cliff.

And even though the next Virginia Senate race isn’t until 2012, Jim Webb is already beginning his campaign by sending out emails filled with lies about Tea Party supporters and insults towards the Republicans. Apparently Webb knows better than to highlight his own unpopular voting record. But people like me will be there to remind everyone of exactly what type of leftist Jim Webb is. Again, it is a wonder why he is even considering running for re-election since he cannot hide from his voting record which will clearly show how he has helped to run up a debt that our grand-children won’t be able to pay and how he is in favor of more unwanted government intrusion into our lives. Warner will be gone two years behind Webb.

Writing for the Weekly Standard, Jonathan V. Last tells us why:

When the president took office in January 2009, Gallup measured his overall job approval at 67 percent, with 86 percent of blacks approving. Since then, blacks have shown an increasingly favorable opinion of him. … Using Gallup’s data, blacks push Obama’s overall number up by about 5 points; using Rasmussen’s by roughly 7 points. … The median congressional district has a black population of only 6.41 percent. This uneven dispersal magnifies the disparity of approval between Obama’s base and the rest of the country. If relatively few congressional districts look like America, then in most congressional districts Obama’s job approval is likely to be lower—anywhere from 2 to 7 points lower—than the national average.

That will spell major difficulties for the Dems this November. They might want to seriously rethink that thunderous applause they gave when they shoved Nationalized Health Care down our throats.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Polls Apart: Why Imperiled Congressional Democrats Can Take No Solace From Obama’s Approval Ratings
Jonathan V. Last
The Weekly Standard
March 29, 2010

20 Ways Obamacare Will Take Away Our Freedoms

So, Obama, Pelosi and Reid said that Congress needs to pass the Health Care Bill so that America can see what’s really in it? Well, let’s get started! Below are 20 items in HR3590 as agreed to by the Senate and from the reconciliation bill as displayed by the Rules Committee. You will also read how it affects us Americans.

From Investor’s Business Daily:

1. You are young and don’t want health insurance? You are starting up a small business and need to minimize expenses, and one way to do that is to forego health insurance? Tough. You have to pay $750 annually for the “privilege.” (Section 1501) 2. You are young and healthy and want to pay for insurance that reflects that status? Tough. You’ll have to pay for premiums that cover not only you, but also the guy who smokes three packs a day, drink a gallon of whiskey and eats chicken fat off the floor. That’s because insurance companies will no longer be able to underwrite on the basis of a person’s health status. (Section 2701). 3. You would like to pay less in premiums by buying insurance with lifetime or annual limits on coverage? Tough. Health insurers will no longer be able to offer such policies, even if that is what customers prefer. (Section 2711). 4. Think you’d like a policy that is cheaper because it doesn’t cover preventive care or requires cost-sharing for such care? Tough. Health insurers will no longer be able to offer policies that do not cover preventive services or offer them with cost-sharing, even if that’s what the customer wants. (Section 2712). 5. You are an employer and you would like to offer coverage that doesn’t allow your employers’ slacker children to stay on the policy until age 26? Tough. (Section 2714). 6. You must buy a policy that covers ambulatory patient services, emergency services, hospitalization, maternity and newborn care, mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment; prescription drugs; rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices; laboratory services; preventive and wellness services; chronic disease management; and pediatric services, including oral and vision care. You’re a single guy without children? Tough, your policy must cover pediatric services. You’re a woman who can’t have children? Tough, your policy must cover maternity services. You’re a teetotaler? Tough, your policy must cover substance abuse treatment. (Add your own violation of personal freedom here.) (Section 1302). 7. Do you want a plan with lots of cost-sharing and low premiums? Well, the best you can do is a “Bronze plan,” which has benefits that provide benefits that are actuarially equivalent to 60% of the full actuarial value of the benefits provided under the plan. Anything lower than that, tough. (Section 1302 (d) (1) (A)) 8. You are an employer in the small-group insurance market and you’d like to offer policies with deductibles higher than $2,000 for individuals and $4,000 for families? Tough. (Section 1302 (c) (2) (A). 9. If you are a large employer (defined as at least 101 employees) and you do not want to provide health insurance to your employee, then you will pay a $750 fine per employee (It could be $2,000 to $3,000 under the reconciliation changes). Think you know how to better spend that money? Tough. (Section 1513). 10. You are an employer who offers health flexible spending arrangements and your employees want to deduct more than $2,500 from their salaries for it? Sorry, can’t do that. (Section 9005 (i)). 11. If you are a physician and you don’t want the government looking over your shoulder? Tough. The Secretary of Health and Human Services is authorized to use your claims data to issue you reports that measure the resources you use, provide information on the quality of care you provide, and compare the resources you use to those used by other physicians. Of course, this will all be just for informational purposes. It’s not like the government will ever use it to intervene in your practice and patients’ care. Of course not. (Section 3003 (i)) 12. If you are a physician and you want to own your own hospital, you must be an owner and have a “Medicare provider agreement” by Feb. 1, 2010. (Dec. 31, 2010 in the reconciliation changes.) If you didn’t have those by then, you are out of luck. (Section 6001 (i) (1) (A)) 13. If you are a physician owner and you want to expand your hospital? Well, you can’t (Section 6001 (i) (1) (B). Unless, it is located in a country where, over the last five years, population growth has been 150% of what it has been in the state (Section 6601 (i) (3) ( E)). And then you cannot increase your capacity by more than 200% (Section 6001 (i) (3) (C)). 14. You are a health insurer and you want to raise premiums to meet costs? Well, if that increase is deemed “unreasonable” by the Secretary of Health and Human Services it will be subject to review and can be denied. (Section 1003) 15. The government will extract a fee of $2.3 billion annually from the pharmaceutical industry. If you are a pharmaceutical company what you will pay depends on the ratio of the number of brand-name drugs you sell to the total number of brand-name drugs sold in the U.S. So, if you sell 10% of the brand-name drugs in the U.S., what you pay will be 10% multiplied by $2.3 billion, or $230,000,000. (Under reconciliation, it starts at $2.55 billion, jumps to $3 billion in 2012, then to $3.5 billion in 2017 and $4.2 billion in 2018, before settling at $2.8 billion in 2019 (Section 1404)). Think you, as a pharmaceutical executive, know how to better use that money, say for research and development? Tough. (Section 9008 (b)). 16. The government will extract a fee of $2 billion annually from medical device makers. If you are a medical device maker what you will pay depends on your share of medical device sales in the U.S. So, if you sell 10% of the medical devices in the U.S., what you pay will be 10% multiplied by $2 billion, or $200,000,000. Think you, as a medical device maker, know how to better use that money, say for R&D? Tough. (Section 9009 (b)). The reconciliation package turns that into a 2.9% excise tax for medical device makers. Think you, as a medical device maker, know how to better use that money, say for research and development? Tough. (Section 1405). 17. The government will extract a fee of $6.7 billion annually from insurance companies. If you are an insurer, what you will pay depends on your share of net premiums plus 200% of your administrative costs. So, if your net premiums and administrative costs are equal to 10% of the total, you will pay 10% of $6.7 billion, or $670,000,000. In the reconciliation bill, the fee will start at $8 billion in 2014, $11.3 billion in 2015, $1.9 billion in 2017, and $14.3 billion in 2018 (Section 1406).Think you, as an insurance executive, know how to better spend that money? Tough.(Section 9010 (b) (1) (A and B).) 18. If an insurance company board or its stockholders think the CEO is worth more than $500,000 in deferred compensation? Tough.(Section 9014). 19. You will have to pay an additional 0.5% payroll tax on any dollar you make over $250,000 if you file a joint return and $200,000 if you file an individual return. What? You think you know how to spend the money you earned better than the government? Tough. (Section 9015). That amount will rise to a 3.8% tax if reconciliation passes. It will also apply to investment income, estates, and trusts. You think you know how to spend the money you earned better than the government? Like you need to ask. (Section 1402). 20. If you go for cosmetic surgery, you will pay an additional 5% tax on the cost of the procedure. Think you know how to spend that money you earned better than the government? Tough. (Section 9017).

Now, who are those idiots claiming that this isn’t socialized medicine?

There’s more in this bill that gives the government more power to regulate your lives and spending. But items #2 and #6 are particularly galling since they essentially amount to a welfare system for people who live unhealthy lifestyles. Items #12 and #13 will eventually lead to the same shortage of services that are being experienced in Canada and Great Britain.

And here’s a real kicker: Item 14# is designed only to put insurance companies out of business thereby giving the Socialists in the Democrat Party an excuse to go to the disastrous “single payer system.”

This bill needs to get tossed out by the courts or repealed by Congress after we toss the Socialist bums out in 2010 and elect a Constitutional Conservative in 2012.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

20 Ways Obamacare Will Take Away Our Freedoms
David Hogberg
Investor’s Business Daily
March 21, 2010

Freedom Dies With Thunderous Applause: Democrats Shove Government Health Care Down Our Throats

The vote on a government takeover of Health Care last night was sickening. What was even more sickening was the fact that when the final tally was in, the Democrats stood up and gave themselves a standing ovation.

It reminded me of what Amadala said in Star Wars: Episode III: “So, this is how freedom dies. With thunderous applause.”

If this bill is not killed in the courts for it’s unconstitutionality, in addition to higher taxes, here is what we will be looking forward to:

Cruel And Neglectful Care Of One Million British Patients Exposed

Man Collapses With Ruptured Appendix … Three Weeks After It Was Removed

More Reasons Why We Do Not Want Socialized Medicine

Statement From The American College Of Surgeons Regarding Disinformation Being Spread By Barack Obama

Oregon Woman Denied Medicine, Offered Assisted Suicide Instead

Another Look At Socialized Medicine From A Canadian Doctor

A Look At Socialized Medicine Through The Eyes Of A British Oncologist

Another Example Of The Horrors That Socialized Medicine Will Bring Us

Socialized Medicine: Enforcing Your Duty To Die

Another Example Of What Awaits Us In A Socialized Medicine System: Father Dies In Waiting Room While In Intense Pain

Democrats Change The Rules, Preparing To Trash The Constitution (Slaughter Solution)

How many times did we Conservatives warn about this during the 2008 election cycle and how many times were we ignored? The Democrats are radicals who want to force the failure of European-style socialism on the United States.

The Dems are now going to try forcing Obamacare through the legislative process using a trick known as the Slaughter Solution that is clearly unconstitutional, but they don’t seem to care.

From U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader John Boehner’s Blog:

The Slaughter Solution is a plan by Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), the Democratic chair of the powerful House Rules Committee and a key ally of Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), to get the health care legislation through the House without an actual vote on the Senate-passed health care bill. You see, Democratic leaders currently lack the votes needed to pass the Senate health care bill through the House. Under Slaughter’s scheme, Democratic leaders will overcome this problem by simply “deeming” the Senate bill passed in the House – without an actual vote by members of the House.

This is referencing a Congress Daily story that states:

House Rules Chairwoman Louise Slaughter is prepping to help usher the healthcare overhaul through the House and potentially avoid a direct vote on the Senate overhaul bill, the chairwoman said Tuesday. Slaughter is weighing preparing a rule that would consider the Senate bill passed once the House approves a corrections bill that would make changes to the Senate version.

Essentially, The Dems want to “bundle” the Senate bill in with the corrections bill. No debate on the Senate bill will take place in the House at all.

This is the most brazen usurpation of our Constitution in the history of the United States. We Conservatives knew the Democrats were more than capable of pulling tricks like this, but few, if any, seemed to listen to us.

Is anyone listening now?

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Democrats Prepare “Slaughter Solution” To Ram Unpopular Health Care Takeover Through Congress Without A Vote
Dave Schnittger
Rep. John Boehner’s Blog
March 10, 2010′s

Messages To Senators Webb And Warner Regarding The Socialized Health Care Bill Vote Today

Here is the text I sent to them:

I am writing to ask you to please vote “Nay” on the upcoming cloiture vote regarding the socialized Health Care package that Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are trying to push through Congress. This bill is a disaster waiting to happen, just as similar measures became disasters in countries like Great Britain and Canada whose Health Care systems have suffered immeasuraby under similar legislation. Further, this bill will only serve to undermine the freedom of choice that we Americans enjoy in our current Health Care system and it may very well be a violation of the 4th Amendment. Under the 4th Amendment, Americans are guaranteed freedom from unwarranted searches and siezures, yet this bill authorizes the Internal Revenue Service to arbitrarily look into the private bank accounts of American citizens and even to take money out of those accounts without the accounts holder’s knowledge or permission, all without warrant or probable cause. That alone is reason enough to vote “Nay.” America does want reform for Health care, but not the currently proposed bill which will ultimately result in a government take-over. We want tort reform that will prevent ambulance chasing lawyers like John Edwards (D-NC) from becoming millionaires overnight from junk-science lawsuits which end up forcing people to pay higher incurance premiums to cover the losses. We want greater choice in health insurance by lifting the ban on inter-state insurance plans. None of this is addressed in the Reid-Pelosi versions of these bills. Further, we want to choice to “opt-out” of the government run “public option” that has been such a dismal failure in Canada and Great Britain. The current “opt-out” language is a joke as no governor of any state will ever deny benefits to his/her citizens if they still have to pay the taxes for it. The current “opt-out” language is an insult to our intelligence and again, is more than sufficient reason to vote “Nay.” Other options for Health Care reform are on the table if the Democrats would simply stop negotiating in secret behind closed doors and would instead start to allow opposing views to be brought out, considered and discussed. Remember that Harry Reid crafted this bill in secret and completely broke the 2006 Democrat promise of the “most open and transparent Congress in history.” Please follow the will of the people of the Commonwealth of Virginia and vote “Nay.” The election results of Novemeber 3, 2009 showed clearly where we stand on the issue of more government intervention in our lives. We do not want it and you should not be promoting it in any way, shape or form. Thank you.

I’ll let you know if they even respond and whether or not they address the issues of tort reform, inter-state insurance choice and transparency. My guess is they will ignore those issues and go off on some socialist tangent.

Cruel And Neglectful Care Of One Million British Patients Exposed

There must be something in the water over in the United Kingdom these days. Lately, there seems to be no end of news items exposing how poorly the socialized health care system they have is serving its intended goals. That is to say, NHS is shaping up to be a huge failure.

From Rebecca Smith of the Telegraph UK:

In the last six years, the Patients Association claims hundreds of thousands have suffered from poor standards of nursing, often with ‘neglectful, demeaning, painful and sometimes downright cruel’ treatment. The charity has disclosed a horrifying catalogue of elderly people left in pain, in soiled bed clothes, denied adequate food and drink, and suffering from repeatedly cancelled operations, missed diagnoses and dismissive staff. The Patients Association said the dossier proves that while the scale of the scandal at Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust – where up to 1,200 people died through failings in urgent care – was a one off, there are repeated examples they have uncovered of the same appalling standards throughout the NHS.

Those who read my blog on a regular basis know very well what the mention of Mid-Staffordshire refers to.

And I cannot stress enough that if this had happened here in the United States, it would be the lead story for CNN and the front-page headline for the Washington Post and New York Times for at least a month-running.

Here are some more examples of how a socialized haelth care system would treat its patients, especially those for whom care is to be rationed:

Pamela Goddard, a piano teacher from Bletchingley, in Surrey, was 82 and suffering with cancer but was left in her own excrement and her condition deteriorated due to her bed sores. Florence Weston, from Sedgley in the West Midlands, who died aged 85, had to remain without food or water for several days as her hip operation was repeatedly cancelled.

Treatment of seniors under any socialized health care sytem is especially bad, and would still be bad under a U.S. socialized health care system.

Socialized health care has been a disaster everywhere it has been tried. We do not want to bring that disaster here to America.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

‘Cruel And Neglectful’ Care Of One Million NHS Patients Exposed
Rebecca Smith
The Telegraph
August 27, 2009

More Items Found In HR3200, The Socialized Medicine Bill

Among the following items, you will find some repeats of what was noted before. But this list is even more comprehensive. It was compiled by Liberty Counsel, a Civil Liberties Law Firm.

If it seems like too long a list to read, believe me, reading the entire text of HR3200 would take longer.

You can access this listing on-line here:

Obama Administration’s Health Care Plan HR 3200 Currently Under Consideration In The House Of Representatives
Liberty Counsel
July 29, 2009

Here are the items:

• Sec. 113, Pg. 21-22 of the Health Care (HC) Bill MANDATES a government audit of the books of ALL EMPLOYERS that self-insure in order to “ensure that the law does not provide incentives for small and mid-size employers to self-insure”! • Sec. 122, Pg. 29, Lines 4-16 – YOUR HEALTH CARE WILL BE RATIONED! • Sec. 123, Pg. 30 – THERE WILL BE A GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE deciding what treatments and benefits you get. • Sec. 142, Pg. 42 – The Health Choices Commissioner will choose your benefits for you. You have no choice! • Sec. 152, Pg. 50-51 – HC will be provided to ALL NON-US citizens. • Sec. 163, Pg. 58-59 beginning at line 5 – Government will have real-time access to individual’s finances & a National ID health care card will be issued! • Sec. 163, Pg. 59, Lines 21-24 – Government will have direct access to your bank accounts for electronic funds transfer. • Sec. 164, Pg. 65 is a payoff subsidized plan for retirees and their families in unions & community organizations (ACORN). • Sec. 201, Pg. 72, Lines 8-14 – Government is creating an HC Exchange to bring private plans under government control. • Sec. 203, Pg. 84 – Government mandates ALL benefit packages for private Health Care plans in the exchange. • Sec. 203, Pg. 85, Line 7 – Specifications of benefit levels for plans means that the government will define your HC plan and has the ability to ration your health care! • Sec. 205, Pg. 95, Lines 8-18 – The government will use groups (i.e., ACORN & AmeriCorps) to “inform and educate” (sign up) individuals for government plan. • Sec. 205, Pg. 102, Lines 12-18 – Medicaid-eligible individuals will be automatically enrolled in Medicaid. No freedom to choose. • Sec. 223, Pg. 124, Lines 24-25 – No company can sue the government for price-fixing. No “administrative of judicial review” against a government monopoly. • Sec. 225, Pg. 127, Lines 1-16 – Doctors – the government will tell YOU what you can make. “The Secretary shall provide for the annual participation of physicians under the public health insurance option, for which payment may be made for services furnished during the year.” • Sec. 312, Pg. 145, Lines 15-17 – Employers MUST auto-enroll employees into public option plan. • Sec. 313, Pg. 149, Lines 16-23 – ANY employer with payroll $400,000 and above who does not provide public option pays 8% tax on all payroll. • Sec. 313, Pg. 150, Lines 9-13 – Businesses with payroll between $251,000 and $400,000 who do not provide public option pay 2-6% tax on all payroll. • Sec. 401.59B, Pg. 167, Lines 18-23 – ANY individual who does not have acceptable care, according to government, will be taxed 2.5% of income. • Sec. 59B, Pg. 170, Line 1 – Any NONRESIDENT alien is exempt from individual taxes. (Americans will pay for their health care.) • Sec. 431, Pg. 195, Lines 1-3 – Officers and employees of HC Administration (government) will have access to ALL Americans’ financial and personal records. • Sec. 441, Pg. 203, Lines 14-15 – “The tax imposed under this section shall not be treated as tax.” Yes, it says that. • Sec. 1121, Pg. 239, Lines 14-24 – The government will limit and reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors, low income and poor are the ones affected. • Sec. 1121, Pg. 241, Lines 6-8 – Doctors, it does not matter what specialty you have; you’ll all be paid the same. “Service categories established under this paragraph shall apply without regard to the specialty of the physician furnishing the service.” • Sec. 1122, Pg. 253, Lines 10-23 – The government “validates work relative value units” (sets value of doctor’s time), professional judgment, methods etc. (defining the value of humans). • Sec. 1131, Pg. 265 – Government mandates and controls productivity for private HC industries. “Incorporating Productivity Improvements into Market Basket Updates that Do Not Already Incorporate Such Improvements.” • Sec. 1141, Pg. 268 – The government regulates rental and purchase of power-driven wheelchairs. • Sec. 1145, Pg. 272 – Treatment of certain cancer hospitals: Cancer patients and their treatment are open to rationing! • Sec. 1151, Pg. 280 – The government will penalize hospitals for what government deems preventable readmissions (incentives for hospital to not treat and release). • Sec. 1151, Pg. 298, Lines 9-11 – Doctors, treat a patient during initial admission that results in a readmission and the government will penalize you for that action. • Sec. 1156, Pg. 317, Lines 13-20 – “PROHIBITION on physician ownership or Investment.” Government tells doctors what/how much they can own. • Sec. 1156, Pg. 317-318, Lines 21-25, 1-3 – “PROHIBITION on Expansion of Facility Capacity.” The government will mandate that hospitals cannot expand (“number of operating rooms or beds”). • Sec. 1156, Pg. 321, Lines 2-13 – Hospitals have opportunity to apply for exception BUT community input required. • Sec. 1162, Pg. 335-339, Lines 16-25 – The government mandates establishment of outcome-based measures. Rationing. • Sec. 1162, Pg. 341, Lines 3-9 – The government has authority to disqualify Medicare Advantage Plans (Part B), HMOs, etc. This will force people into a government plan. “The Secretary may determine not to identify a Medicare Advantage plan if the Secretary has identified deficiencies in the plan’s compliance with rules for such plans under this part.” • Sec. 1177, Pg. 354 – Government will RESTRICT enrollment of special needs people! “Extension of Authority of Special Needs Plans to Restrict Enrollment.” • Sec. 1191, Pg. 379 – Government creates more bureaucracy – “Telehealth Advisory Committee.” HC by phone or the Internet – dial 1 for your health care advice? • Sec. 1233, Pg. 425, Lines 4-12 – Government mandates Advance (Death) Care Planning consultation. Think Senior Citizens and end of life. END-OF-LIFE COUNSELING. SOME IN THE ADMINISTRATION HAVE ALREADY DISCUSSED RATIONING HEALTH CARE FOR THE ELDERLY. • Sec. 1233, Pg. 425, Lines 17-19 – Government WILL instruct and consult regarding living wills and durable powers of attorney. Mandatory end-of-life planning! • Sec. 1233, Pg. 425-426, Lines 22-25, 1-3 – Government provides approved list of end-of-life resources, guiding you in death. • Sec. 1233, Pg. 427, Lines 15-24 – Government mandates program for orders for life-sustaining treatment (i.e. end of life). The government has a say in how your life ends. • Sec. 1233, Pg. 429, Lines 1-9 – An “advanced care planning consult” will be used as patient’s health deteriorates. • Sec. 1233, Pg. 429, Lines 10-12 – “Advanced Care Consultation” may include an ORDER for end-of-life plans – from the government. • Sec. 1233, Pg. 429, Lines 13-25 – The government will specify which Doctors (professional authority under state law includes Nurse Practitioners or Physician’s Assistants) can write an end-of-life order. • Sec. 1233, Pg. 430, Lines 11-15 – The government will decide what level of treatment you will have at end of life, according to preset methods (not individually decided). • Sec. 1302, Pg. 468, Lines 16-21 – “Community-Based Home Medical Services means a nonprofit community-based or state-based organization.” • Sec. 1302, Pg. 472, Lines 14-17 – PAYMENT TO COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATION: One monthly payment to a community-based organization. Like ACORN? • Sec. 1308, Pg. 489 – The government will cover Marriage and Family therapy. This will involve government control of your marriage. • Sec. 1308, Pg. 494-498 – The government will cover Mental Health Services including defining, creating and rationing those services. • Sec. 1401, Pg. 502 – Center for Comparative Effectiveness Research Established. Big Brother is watching how your treatment works. • Sec. 1401, Pg. 503, Lines 13-19 – The government will build registries and data networks from YOUR electronic medical records. “The Center may secure directly from any department or agency of the United States information necessary to enable it to carry out this section.” • Sec. 1401, Pg. 503, Lines 21-25 – The government may secure data directly from any department or agency of the US, including your data. • Sec. 1401, Pg. 503, Lines 21-25 – The “Center” will collect data both “published and unpublished” (that means public & your private information). • Sec. 1401, Pg. 506, Lines 19-21 – An “Appointed Clinical Perspective Advisory Panel” will advise The Center and recommend policies that would allow for public access of data. • Sec. 1401, Pg. 518, Lines 21-25 – The Commission will have input from HC consumer representatives. • Sec. 1411, Pg. 524, Lines 18-22 – Establishes the “Comparative Effectiveness Research Trust Fund.” More taxes for ALL. • Sec. 1441, Pg. 621, Lines 20-25 – The government will define “NEW Quality” measures in HC. Since when does government know about quality? • Sec. 1442, Pg. 622, Lines 2-9 – To pay for the Quality Standards, government will transfer money from “qualified entities” (government Trust Funds) to other government Trust Funds. More Taxes. • Sec. 1442, Pg. 624, Lines 19-23 – Qualified Entities: “The Secretary shall ensure that the entity is a public, nonprofit or academic institution with technical expertise in the area of health quality measurement.” • Sec. 1442, Pg. 623, Lines 5-10 – “Quality” measures shall be designed to assess outcomes and functional status of patients. • Sec. 1442, Pg. 623, Lines 15-17 – “Quality” measures shall be designed to profile you, including race, age, gender, place of residence, etc. • Sec. 1443, Pg. 628 – The government will give “Multi-Stake Holders” pre-rulemaking input into selection of “quality” measures. • Sec. 1443, Pg. 630-31, Lines 9-24, 1-9 – Those Multi-Stake Holder groups include unions and groups like ACORN deciding what constitutes quality. • Sec. 1444, Pg. 632, Lines 14-25 – The government may implement any “Quality measure” of HC services that bureaucrats see fit. • Sec. 1444, Pg. 632-333, Lines 14-25, 1-9 – The Secretary may issue nonendorsed “Quality Measures” for physician and dialysis services. • Sec. 1251 (beginning), Pg. 634 to 652 – “Physician Payments Sunshine Provision” – government wants to shine sunlight on Doctors but not government. “Reports on financial relationships between manufacturers and distributors . . . and between physicians and other health care entities.” • Sec. 1501 (beginning), Pg. 659-670 – Doctors in Residency – government will tell you where your residency will be, thus where you’ll live. • Sec. 1503 (beginning), Pg. 675-685 – Government will regulate hospitals in EVERY aspect of residency programs, including teaching hospitals. • Sec. 1601 (beginning), Pg. 685-699 – Increased funding to fight waste, fraud, and abuse. (Like the government with an $18 million website?) • Sec. 1619, Pg. 700-703 – If your part of HC plan isn’t in the government’s HC Exchange but you qualify for federal aid, you don’t have to pay. • Sec. 1128G, Pg. 704-708 – If the Secretary determines there is a “significant risk of fraudulent activity,” on HC provider or supplier, the government can do a background check. • Sec. 1632, Pg. 710, Lines 8-14 – The Secretary has broad powers to deny HC providers and suppliers admittance into HC Exchange. Your doctor could be thrown out of business. • Sec. 1637, Pg. 718-719 – ANY Doctor who orders durable medical equipment or home medical services is REQUIRED to be enrolled in, or eligible for, Medicare. • Sec. 1639, Pg. 721 – Government MANDATES that Doctors must have face-to-face with patient to certify patient for home health services. • Sec. 1639, Pg. 723-24, Lines 23-25, 1-5 – The same government certifications will apply to Medicaid and CHIP (Children’s health plan: Your kids). • Sec. 1640, Pg. 723, Lines 16-22 – The government reserves right to apply face-to-face certification for patient to ANY other HC service. • Sec. 1651, Pg. 734, Lines 16-25 – Proposes, for law enforcement sake, that the Secretary of HHS will give Attorney General access to ALL medical data. • Sec. 1701 (beginning), Pg. 739-756 – The government sets guidelines for subsidizing the uninsured (and you have to pay for them). • Sec. 1704, Pg. 756-761 – The government will shift burden of payments to Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH) to states (your taxes). • Sec. 1711, Pg. 764 – The government will require preventative services – including vaccinations (no choice). • Sec. 1713, Pg. 768 – Government-determined Nurse Home Visitation Services (Hello union paybacks). • Sec. 1713, Pg. 768, Lines 3-5 – Nurse Home Visit Services – Service #1: “Improving maternal or child health and pregnancy outcomes or increasing birth intervals between pregnancies.” Compulsory ABORTIONS? • Sec. 1713, Pg. 768, Lines 11-14 – Nurse Home Visit Services include determinations of economic self-sufficiency, employment advancement and school-readiness. • Sec. 1714, Pg. 769 – Federal government mandates eligibility for State Family Planning Services. Abortion and government control intertwined. • Sec. 1733, Pg. 788-798 – Government will set and mandate drug prices, therefore controlling which drugs are brought to market. (Goodbye innovation and private research.) • Sec. 1744, Pg. 796-799 – Establishes PAYMENTS for graduate medical education. The government will now control your doctor’s education. • Sec.1751, Pg. 800 – The government will decide which Health Care conditions will be paid. Say “RATION!” • Sec. 1759, Pg. 809 – Billing Agents, clearinghouses, or other alternate payees are required to register. The government takes over private payment systems too. • Sec. 1801, Pg. 819-823 – The Government will identify individuals “likely to be ineligible” for subsidies. Will access all personal financial information. • Sec. 1802, Pg. 823-828 – Government sets up Comparative Effectiveness Research Trust Fund. Another bottomless tax pit. • Sec. 4375, Pg. 828-832, Lines 12-16 – Government will impose a fee on ALL private health insurance plans, including self-insured, to pay for Trust Fund! • Sec. 4377, Pg. 835, Lines 11-13 – Fees imposed by government for Trust Fund shall be treated as if they were taxes. • Sec. 440, Pg. 837-839 – The government will design and implement Home Visitation Program for families with young kids and families that are expecting children. • Sec. 1904, Pg. 843-844 – This Home Visitation Program includes the government coming into your house and teaching/telling you how to parent! • Sec. 2002, Pg. 858 – The government will establish a Public Health Fund at a cost of $88,800,000,000 (That’s Billions). • Sec. 2201, Pg. 864 – The government will MANDATE the establishment of a National Health Service Corps. • Sec. 2201 – “Fulfillment of Obligated Service Requirement” • Sec. 2201, Pg. 864-875 – The NHS Corps is a program where Doctors perform mandatory HC for 2 years for partial loan repayment. • Sec. 2212, Pg. 875-891 – The government takes over the education of Medical students and Doctors through education and loans. • Sec. 340L, Pg. 897 – The government will establish a Public Health Workforce Corps to ensure an adequate supply of public health professionals. • Sec. 340L, Pg. 897 – The Public Health Workforce Corps shall consist of civilian employees of the United States as Secretary deems necessary. • Sec. 340L, Pg. 897 – The Public Health Workforce Corps shall consist of officers of Regular and Reserve Corps of Service. • Sec. 340M, Pg. 899 – The Public Health Workforce Corps includes veterinarians. Will animals have heath care too? • Sec. 2233, Pg. 909 – The government will develop, build and run Public Health Training Centers. • Sec. 2241, Pg. 912-913 – Government starts a HC affirmative action program under the guise of diversity scholarships. • Sec. 2251, Pg. 915 – Government MANDATES cultural and linguistic competency training for HC professionals. • Sec. 3111, Pg. 931 – The government will establish a Preventative and Wellness Trust fund, with initial cost of $30,800,000,000 (Billions more). • Sec. 3121, Pg. 934, Lines 21-22 – Government will identify specific goals and objectives for prevention and wellness activities. More control of your life. • Sec. 3121, Pg. 935, Lines 1-2 – The government will develop “Healthy People & National Public Health Performance Standards.” They will tell us what to eat? • Sec. 3131, Pg. 942, Lines 22-25 – “Task Force on Community Preventive Services.” More government? Under the Offices of Surgeon General, Public Health Services, Minority Health and Women’s Health. • Sec. 3141, Pg. 949-979 – BIG GOVERNMENT core public health infrastructure includes workforce capacity, lab systems, health information systems, etc. • Sec. 2511, Pg. 992 – Government will establish school-based “health” clinics. Your children will be indoctrinated and your grandchildren may be aborted! • Sec. 399Z-1, Pg. 993 – School-Based Health Clinics will be integrated into the school environment. More government brainwashing in school. • Sec. 2521, Pg. 1000 – The government will establish a National Medical Device Registry. Will you be tracked?

Feel free to print this out and take it to a Town Hall meeting to ask your Congressional Reps about it. I’m certain that the Democrat members of Congress (like Arlen Specter (D-PA)) will accuse you of spreading false information.

A Preview Of Universal Health Care: Oregon Woman Denied Medicine, Offered Assisted Suicide Instead

One of the beautiful things about living in the United States is that with 50 states, we can compare and contrast varying policies to see how well they work or how miserably they fail. We can also predict how national policy will play out by observing how a similar policy affects a particular state.

Oregon is a state that has Universal Health Care. According to KVAL of Eugene, Oregon:

Barbara Wagner has one wish – for more time. “I’m not ready, I’m not ready to die,” the Springfield woman said. “I’ve got things I’d still like to do.” Her doctor offered hope in the new chemotherapy drug Tarceva, but the Oregon Health Plan sent her a letter telling her the cancer treatment was not approved. Instead, the letter said, the plan would pay for comfort care, including “physician aid in dying,” better known as assisted suicide.

So, why was it not approved by a state that promised Universal Care?

One critic of assisted suicide calls the message disturbing nonetheless. “People deserve relief of their suffering, not giving them an overdose,” said Dr. William Toffler. He said the state has a financial incentive to offer death instead of life: Chemotherapy drugs such as Tarceva cost $4,000 a month while drugs for assisted suicide cost less than $100.

And here is the real kicker:

[Dr. Som] Saha said state health officials do not consider whether it is cheaper for someone in the health plan to die than live. However, he admitted they must consider the state’s limited dollars when dealing with a case such as Wagner’s. “If we invest thousands and thousands of dollars in one person’s days to weeks, we are taking away those dollars from someone,” Saha said.

There is a sinlge word to describe the above situation: RATIONING.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Health Plan Covers Assisted Suicide But Not New Cancer Treatment
Susan Harding
KVAL.com
July 31, 2008

Nancy Pelosi And Steny Hoyer Come Out Against First Amendment Rights

Just when I thought that the Democrats couldn’t do or say anything more stupid or hypocritical than what they’ve already done or said, Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer had to open their mouths and go and prove me wrong.

First, let’s go back a few years and remember what other Dems have said about voicing opposition to Washington D.C. In 2003, Hillary Clinton (D-NY) proclaimed the following:

Dissent is patriotic!

Now, I was not aware that Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) were in disagreement with then Sen. Clinton’s sentiments. Neither one made the slightest peep about it when Clinton made her statement. (BTW, this is the same Nancy Pelosi who made the false accusation that there were swastikas at the town hall events.)

But today, when Joe and Jane Average American are protesting several facets of HR3200, the socialized medicine bill, dissent, in their eyes, has become “un-American.”

Here is their joint opinion column from USA Today:

‘Un-American’ Attacks Can’t Derail Health Care Debate
Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer
USA Today
August 10, 2009

From which you will note the following:

These disruptions are occurring because opponents are afraid not just of differing views — but of the facts themselves. Drowning out opposing views is simply un-American. Drowning out the facts is how we failed at this task for decades.

First off, the facts are the side of the protestors. We’ve shown this in the following blog entries:

A Look At Some Items In The Socialized Medicine Bill
84rules
August 5, 2009

Fact Checking Obama’s Socialized Health Care Claims
84rules
July 23, 2009

Congressional Budget Office: Nationalized Health Care Will Increase Costs, Not Reduce Them
84rules
July 17, 2009

You’ll notice that niether Pelosi nor Hoyer ever mentioned any of this. In their USA Today column, they simply repeated the same old tired talking points that have been proven to be false over the past eight months.

Second, the opposing views are not being drowned out. The American people are tired of hearing the same old lies about health care over and over and over again. When they hear those same old tired lies, they become angry and begin shouting back.

We know what it will cost and that it won’t be cheaper. It will be more expensive as the CBO has shown us.

We know that 47 million people are not covered with health insurance. But we also know that at least a third of those are illegal aliens, most of the rest are people that can afford health insurance but choose not to buy it and the rest have access to Medicare.

We know that the quality of health care will go down as it has in every other country that has adopted socialized medicine.

Here are some pictures of the people that Pelosi and Hoyer have labeled “un-American:”

Meet the Mob
Dana Loesch
The Dana Show
August 6, 2009

When we hear lies, we get mad.

And instead of admitting the facts, Pelosi and Hoyer try to hide them by calling those who would expose the facts “un-American.”

I don’t see how any Democrat could ever point with pride towards these two hypocrites and say, “They are our leaders!”.

And Speaking Of People Carrying Swastikas …

Can you identify who said the following?

“Services provided to individuals who are irreversibly prevented from being or becoming participating citizens are not basic and should not be guaranteed. An obvious example is not guaranteeing health services to patients with dementia.” “When implemented, the complete lives system produces a priority curve on which individuals aged between roughly 15 and 40 years get the most substantial chance, whereas the youngest and oldest people get chances that are attenuated.” “Strict youngest-first allocation directs scarce resources predominantly to infants. This approach seems incorrect. The death of a 20-year-old woman is intuitively worse than that of a 2-month-old girl, even though the baby has had less life. The 20-year-old has a much more developed personality than the infant, and has drawn upon the investment of others to begin as-yet-unfulfilled projects…. Adolescents have received substantial substantial education and parental care, investments that will be wasted without a complete life. Infants, by contrast, have not yet received these investments…. It is terrible when an infant dies, but worse, most people think, when a three-year-old child dies, and worse still when an adolescent does.” “Ultimately, the complete lives system does not create ‘classes of Untermenschen whose lives and well being are deemed not worth spending money on,’ but rather empowers us to decide fairly whom to save when genuine scarcity makes saving everyone impossible.” “Vague promises of savings from cutting waste, enhancing prevention and wellness, installing electronic medical records and improving quality are merely ‘lipstick’ cost control, more for show and public relations than for true change. Savings will require changing how doctors think about their patients. Doctors take the Hippocratic Oath too seriously, as an imperative to do everything for the patient regardless of the cost or effects on others.” “Unlike allocation by sex or race, allocation by age is not invidious discrimination; every person lives through different life stages rather than being a single age. Even if 25-year-olds receive priority over 65-year-olds, everyone who is 65 years now was previously 25 years.” “Every favor to a constituency should be linked to support for the health-care reform agenda. If the automakers want a bailout, then they and their suppliers have to agree to support and lobby for the administration’s health-reform effort.”

If you guess infamous Nazi Dr. Mengele, you’d be wrong. The above was originally from Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, the chief health-care policy adviser to President Obama, and the brother of Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel. It appeared in a January 31, 2009 article of The Lancet.

You can access a pdf version of this article on-line here:

Principles For Allocation Of Scarce Medical Interventions
The Lancet
January 31, 2009

Now, Nancy Pelosi leveled a false charge at the American people claiming that those who questioned Obamacare were carrying swastikas at the town hall meetings where they asked legitimate question of their Congressional delegations. No swastikas were present.

But Dr. Emanuel seems to be carrying a swastika where it counts the most: in his heart. He used the same exact arguments that Dr. Mengele used in justifying Germany’s eugenics program. Clearly, Obama and his staff want to start a similar program here using HR3200 (socialized medicine) as the vehicle to implement it.

Also, did you notice the following: “When implemented, the complete lives system produces a priority curve on which individuals aged between roughly 15 and 40 years get the most substantial chance, whereas the youngest and oldest people get chances that are attenuated.”

And:

“Even if 25-year-olds receive priority over 65-year-olds, everyone who is 65 years now was previously 25 years.”

Can you believe the AARP convinced its members to support Obama?

No, this is not a scare tactic. I don’t see how I could be any scarier than Dr. Emanuel already is.

BTW, I accurately predicted something like this last January:

Nancy Pelosi Takes A Page From Nazi Propaganda: Wants To Reduce Costs Through Contraception

Pelosi Throws More Insults At The American People

I’d like to see the videos that Nancy Pelosi was watching of Joe and Jane Average American standing up and asking legitimate questions about HR3200, the socialized medicine bill. Her claim is that those people were “carrying swastikas.” I’ve looked at the pictures and seen the videos but never once saw a single piece of Nazi symbology. Her claim is bogus and only meant to stir up the emotions of those who are gullible and naive enough to believe her.

You can view a video of her irrational, idiotic rant here:

Pelosi: Town Hall Protesters Are “Carrying Swastikas”
Real Clear Politics
August 5, 2009

This is yet another example to show exactly how disrespectful Pelosi, Reid, Obama and the Democrats in general are of the American people. There were no swastikas or anything like that at any of the town hall meetings where average Americans voiced legitimate concerns to their Congressional delegations. But, Pelosi felt she had the right to make up such a lie and the leftists in Old Media felt the need to spread what they must have certainly known was a lie.

The bigger the insults get and the larger the lies become, you can be sure it is because the Dems are getting more and more desperate to pass a bill the contents of which they would have preferred to keep secret.

A Look At Some Items In The Socialized Medicine Bill (HR3200)

Anyone who has been going around saying that HR3200 is not socialized medicine legislation is either an outright liar or incredibly ignorant. Or, they simply have not read the text of HR3200.

I happen to have a link to the text of the bill right here:

America’s Affordable Health Choices Act Of 2009 (Requires Adobe Reader)

America’s Affordable Health Choices Act Of 2009 (Text version)

The following items can be found by looking up page and line numbers in the pdf file from the first link. Go ahead and look through it. You will not believe some of the stuff you will be reading:

Pg 22 MANDATES the Govt will audit books of ALL EMPLOYERS that self insure!! Pg 30 Sec 123 – THERE WILL BE A GOVT COMMITTEE that decides what treatments/benefits you get. Pg 29 Lines 4-16 – YOUR HEALTHCARE IS RATIONED!!! You can only get so much “care” per year. Pg 42 – The Health Choices Commissioner will choose your HC Benefits for you. You have no choice! Pg 50 Section 152 – HC will be provided to ALL non US citizens, illegal or otherwise. Pg 58 – Govt will have real-time access to individuals finances & a National ID Healthcard will be issued! Pg 59 Lines 21-24 – Govt will have direct access to your bank accounts for elective funds transfer. Pg 65 Sec 164 – Payoff subsidized plan for retirees and their families in Unions & community orgs (ACORN). Pg 72 Lines 8-14 – Govt is creating an HC Exchange to bring private HC plans under Govt control. Pg 84 Sec 203 – Govt mandates ALL benefit pkgs for private HC plans in the Exchange. Pg 85 Line 7 – Specs for Benefit Levels for Plans = The Govt will ration your Healthcare! Pg 91 Lines 4-7 – Govt mandates linguistic appropriate services. Example – Translation for illegal aliens. Pg 95 Lines 8-18 – The Govt will use groups i.e., ACORN & Americorps to sign up individually for Govt HC plan. Pg 85 Line 7 – Specs of Benefit Levels for Plans. #AARP members – your Health care WILL be rationed. Pg 102 Lines 12-18 – Medicaid Eligible Indiv. will be automat.enrolled in Medicaid. No choice. Pg 124 Lines 24-25 – No company can sue GOVT on price fixing. No “judicial review” against Govt Monopoly. Pg 127 Lines 1-16 – Doctors/AMA – The Govt will tell YOU what you can make. Pg 145 Line 15-17 – An Employer MUST auto enroll employees into public opt plan. NO CHOICE. Pg 126 Lines 22-25 – Employers MUST pay for HC for part time employees AND their families. Pg 149 Lines 16-24 – ANY Employer with payroll of 400k & above who does not provide public option pays 8% tax on all payroll. Pg 150 Lines 9-13 – Businesses with payroll between 251k & 400k who doesn’t provide public option pays 2-6% tax on all payroll. Pg 167 Lines 18-23 – ANY individual who doesnt have acceptable HC accrding to Govt will be taxed 2.5%. Pg 170 Lines 1-3 – Any NONRESIDENT Alien is exempt from individual taxes. (You and I will pay for them.) Pg 195 – Officers & employees of HC Admin (GOVT) will have access to ALL Americans’ financial/personal records. Pg 203 Line 14-15 – “The tax imposed under this section shall not be treated as tax” Yes, it says that. Pg 239 Line 14-24 – Govt will reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors, low income, poor will be very affected. Pg 241 Line 6-8 – Doctors, doesn’t matter what specialty you have, you’ll all be paid the same. Pg 253 Line 10-18 – Govt sets value of Doctor’s time, professional judgments, etc. Literally value of humans. Pg 265 Sec 1131 – Govt mandates & controls productivity for private HC industries. Pg 268 Sec 1141 – Fed Govt regulates rental & purchase of power driven wheelchairs. Pg 272 Sec 1145 – TREATMENT OF CERTAIN CANCER HOSPITALS – Cancer patients. Welcome to rationing! Pg 280 Sec 1151 – The Govt will penalize hospitals for what Govt deems preventable readmissions. Pg 317 Lines 13-20 – PROHIBITION on ownership/investment. Govt tells Doctors what/how much they can own. Pg 317-318 Lines 21-25,1-3 – PROHIBITION on expansion – Govt is mandating hospitals cannot expand. Pg 321 Lines 2-13 – Hospitals have option to apply for exception BUT community input required. Can you say ACORN?!! Pg 335 Lines 16-25 Pg 336-339 – Govt mandates estab. of outcome based measures. HC the way they want. Rationing. Pg 341 Lines 3-9 – Govt has authority to disqualify Medicare Adv Plans, HMOs, etc. Forcing all into Govt HC plan. Pg 354 Sec 1177 – Govt will RESTRICT enrollment of Special needs. Pg 379 Sec 1191 – Govt creates more bureaucracy – Telehealth Advisory Committee. Can you say HC by phone? PG 425 Lines 4-12 – Govt mandates Advance Care Planning Consult. Think Senior Citizens end of life. Seniors will be interviewed every year for health issues and decisions made as to what care they can or can’t receive Pg 425 Lines 17-19 – Govt will instruct & consult regarding living wills, durable powers of attorney. Mandatory! Pg 425 Lines 22-25, 426 Lines 1-3 – Govt provides approved list of end of life resources, guiding you in death. Pg 427 Lines 15-24 – Govt mandates program for orders for end of life. The Govt has a say in how your life ends. Pg 428, 429 Lines 17-25, 1-9 – An “advanced care planning consult” will be used frequently as patients health deteriorates. Pg 429 Lines 10-12 – “Advanced care planning consultation” may include an ORDER for end of life plans. An ORDER from the government. Pg 429 Lines 13-25 – The govt will specify which Doctors can write an end of life order. Pg 430 Lines 11-15 – The Govt will decide what level of treatment you will have at end of life. Pg 469 – Community Based Home Medical Services = Non profit orgs. Hello, ACORN Medical Services here!!? Pg 472 Lines 14-17 – PAYMENT TO COMMUNITY-BASED ORG. 1 monthly payment to a community-based org. Like ACORN? Pg 489 – Sec 1308 The Govt will cover Marriage & Family therapy. Which means they will insert Govt into your marriage. Pg 494-498 – Govt will cover Mental Health Services including defining, creating, rationing those services.

I’m sure there are other outrages yet to be found in this abomination.

Are we ready to wake up yet?

This bill is a national disaster waiting to happen! Obama, Pelosi and Reid must think we are really stupid.

UPDATE: I guess someone out there is going to have to report me to the Obama White House. Although, given that I have provided links to the text of the socialized medicine bill, you cannot say that I am spreading any untruths or making anything up.

The email is: flag@whitehouse.gov

Let’s see. FISA is bad … but reporting people who exercise their First Amendment rights is good?

Good luck!

Obama Seeks To Cover His True Intentions Regarding Health Care

I honestly don’t know what is more infuriating. The fact that Obama is lying about how he wants this health care package to play out, or the fact that so many people in Old Media are willing to do or say anything to make him sound legit.

Mike Allen at the Politico has this story about Obama’s response to a video that clearly shows him saying that he will eliminate private health insurance:

The White House response features Linda Douglass, formerly an ABC News correspondent and now a White House official, showing Drudge’s homepage on the screen of her office computer. … The video begins: “Hi. I’m Linda Douglass. I’m the communications director for the White House Office of Health Reform, and one of my jobs is to keep track of all the disinformation that’s out there about health-insurance reform. And there are a lot of very deceiving headlines out there right now, such as this one — take a look at this one. This one says, ‘Uncovered Video: Obama Explains How His Health Care Plan Will Eliminate PRIVATE Insurance.’”

Now, Linda never once says that anything in the uncovered video was untrue or made up. She can’t. Because in that video, Barack Obama said everything by himself. You can access that video on-line here:

SEIU Health Care Forum 3/24/07
Breitbart.tv
August 3, 2009

And you will see and hear Barack Obama speak the following words:

“I don’t think we’re going to be able to eliminate employer coverage immediately. There’s going to be, potentially, some transition process: I can envision a decade out, or 15 years out, or 20 years out.”

Note that Obama used the words: “I don’t think we’re going to be able to eliminate …” Clearly, one of Obama’s goals is to completely get rid of private coverage through employers. Otherwise, there was absolutely no need whatsoever for him to say what he said.

And let’s not forget what Obama said back in 2003:

Obama In ‘03 (Uncut)
Breitbart.tv
August 4, 2009

You will hear and see Obama say:

“I happen to be a proponent of a single payer universal health care program. I see no reason why the United States of America, the wealthiest country in the history of the world, spending 14 percent of its Gross National Product on health care cannot provide basic health insurance to everybody. And that’s what Jim is talking about when he says everybody in, nobody out. A single payer health care plan, a universal health care plan. And that’s what I’d like to see. But as all of you know, we may not get there immediately. Because first we have to take back the White House, we have to take back the Senate, and we have to take back the House.”

Obama clearly and unambiguously says: “I happen to be a proponent of a single payer universal health care program.”

Although he claims people will be able to keep priavate coverage, he gives no explanation whatsoever as to how private insurance companies are going to be able to compete against the taxpayer-subsidized “public option.”

Obama is playing a game of smoke and mirrors here. It is the White House putting out misinformation about the health care bill and Obama’s true intentions with the program, not the people investigating it. We need to get as much information as possible out to the public about what is in this disastrous health care takeover bill and make sure that it dies the death it deserves.

You can access the orginal article on-line here:

Barack Obama vs. Drudge Report
Mike Allen
The Politico
August 4, 2009

House Panel Passes Socialized Health Care Bill In Friday Night Vote

Why did the vote have to happen after hours on a Friday night? What were the members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee afraid that people might see?

From Fox News:

The House Energy and Commerce Committee, which voted Friday, was the last of three panels to approve a health bill. The vote, 31-28, was made possible by a deal brokered earlier this week between Democratic leaders and conservative “Blue Dog” Democrats, though health reform legislation still is being held up in one Senate committee. The Blue Dogs wanted to dial back a “public option” where the government offers health care for Americans. They also sought protections for small business owners and significant cost reductions.

Watered down or not, this bill is going to be nothing short of a disaster. Just look at Medicare and Medicaid. The costs (and budgets) for both of these programs have been going up, but the benefits doled out by each have been consistently cut over the years. And now, the libs want to further expand this?

More:

All but five Democrats on the committee voted for the plan. The other Democrats, Reps. Charlie Melancon of Louisiana, Bart Stupak of Michigan, Rick Boucher of Virginia, Jim Matheson of Utah and John Barrow of Georgia joined all Republicans in opposing the legislation.

When socialized medicine wrecks the health care industry in the United States, just as it wrecked the health care industries of Great Britain, Canada and every other country it has been tried in, we will know exactly who is to blame.

We need to begin educating people on exactly what is in this bill.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

Final House Panel Approves Health Reform Bill
Chad Pergram
Fox News
July 31, 2009

Read The Bill Before Voting, Congress!

One good thing about all those AIG bonuses that caused such a major stir earlier this year was that it highlighted the fact the most (if not all) members of Congress don’t even read the bills they are voting on.

In the Stimulus package was an amendment (known as the Dodd Amendment) that allowed the AIG bonuses to be specifically exempted from any regulation. When Barack Obama put the presidential signature on that bill, it became the law of the land. Later, when the AIG bonuses became public, many of those who vote “Yea” on this measure became indignant that such bonuses would be paid out by a firm that took bailout money.

So, if those people had simply read the bill, or at least demanded a chance to see what was being inserted into the bill at 4:00 a.m., they would have known what they were voting for and wouldn’t have ended up looking like the fools they are. Well, that’s my theory anyway.

Now, with socialized health care on the horizon, it is once again looking like the Dem leadership is going to force a vote before the legislation can be thoroughly read and understood by those voting on it.

From the Washington Times:

President Obama is pushing Congress to pass health care legislation that could nationalize as much as 10 percent of the economy. Most members of Congress will vote on this bill with no idea what’s in it. Rep. John Conyers Jr., Michigan Democrat, disparaged lawmakers for even pretending to read the laws they pass. “I love these members, they get up and say, ‘Read the bill,’ ” he said last week at the National Press Club. “What good is reading the bill if it’s a thousand pages and you don’t have two days and two lawyers to find out what it means after you’ve read the bill?”

The good, Mr. Conyers, is that Senators and Representatives will know exactly what they are voting for if they happen to be voting “Yea.” Knowing what is in legislation will save Congress from being embarrassed (as in the above AIG example) and save the American people for having to admit that their Congress is a remake of the Keystone Kops.

More:

Mr. Conyers might think it’s an antiquated notion that congressmen actually read legislation, but it is the most fundamental responsibility of elected representatives to know and understand laws and how they will affect the lives of their constituents. That is especially the case with such a gargantuan bill. The House version creates 53 new federal bureaucracies with everything from a Health Choices Administration to a Health Insurance Exchange Trust Fund to a Health Benefits Advisory Committee. Thirty-three entitlement programs are created or expanded. The notion is put to rest that government might cooperate with doctors and patients to work out what is best for providing care. The health care bill uses the assertive word “shall” 1,683 times. These passages are government mandates that force doctors, consumers and others in the health care profession to do what Congress orders. The word “penalty” is used 156 times for those who don’t follow orders. “Tax” is referred to 172 times.

This legislation is so sweeping and so draconian that if it fails to produce as advertised (and I am betting it will spectacularly fail to do so), members of Congress who voted “Yea” are going to run and hide behind the tired and lame excuse that they “didn’t know what was in the bill.”

It happened with the AIG bonuses. It will happen with the socialized medicine bill.

You can access the original editorial on-line here:

Read The Bill, Congressmen
Washington Times
July 29, 2009

10 Questions For Supporters Of ObamaCare

I am actually going to write these into a letter and send them to my two Senators, Jim Webb and Mark Warner.

From Dennis Prager at Town Hall:

1. President Barack Obama repeatedly tells us that one reason national health care is needed is that we can no longer afford to pay for Medicare and Medicaid. But if Medicare and Medicaid are fiscally insolvent and gradually bankrupting our society, why is a government takeover of medical care for the rest of society a good idea? 2. President Obama reiterated this past week that “no insurance company will be allowed to deny you coverage because of a pre-existing medical condition.” This is an oft-repeated goal of the president’s and the Democrats’ health care plan. But if any individual can buy health insurance at any time, why would anyone buy health insurance while healthy? Why would I not simply wait until I got sick or injured to buy the insurance? 3. Why do supporters of nationalized medicine so often substitute the word “care” for the word “insurance?” 4. No one denies that in order to come close to staying within its budget health care will be rationed. But what is the moral justification of having the state decide what medical care to ration? 5. According to Dr. David Gratzer, health care specialist at the Manhattan Institute, “While 20 years ago pharmaceuticals were largely developed in Europe, European price controls made drug development an American enterprise. Fifteen of the 20 top-selling drugs worldwide this year were birthed in the United States.” Given how many lives — in America and throughout the world – American pharmaceutical companies save, and given how expensive it is to develop any new drug, will the price controls on drugs envisaged in the Democrats’ bill improve or impair Americans’ health? 6. Do you really believe that private insurance could survive a “public option”? Or is this really a cover for the ideal of single-payer medical care? How could a private insurance company survive a “public option” given that private companies have to show a profit and government agencies do not have to – and given that a private enterprise must raise its own money to be solvent and a government option has access to others’ money — i.e., taxes? 7. Why will hospitals, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies do nearly as superb a job as they now do if their reimbursement from the government will be severely cut? 8. Given how many needless procedures are ordered to avoid medical lawsuits and how much money doctors spend on medical malpractice insurance, shouldn’t any meaningful “reform” of health care provide some remedy for frivolous malpractice lawsuits? 9. Given how weak the U.S. economy is, given how weak the U.S. dollar is, and given how much in debt the U.S. is in, why would anyone seek to have the U.S. spend another trillion dollars? 10. Contrary to the assertion of President Obama — “we spend much more on health care than any other nation but aren’t any healthier for it” — we are healthier. We wait far less time for procedures and surgeries. Our life expectancy with virtually any major disease is longer. And if you do not count deaths from violent crime and automobile accidents, we also have the longest life expectancy. Do you think a government takeover of American medicine will enable this medical excellence to continue?

Question #2 is a great one.

I would ask one further question: If this socialized medicine package is so great, then why is Congress exempting itself from it? Shouldn’t Congress limit itself to only those choices that Joe and Jane Average American will have?

You can access the complete column on-line here:

10 Questions For Supporters Of ‘ObamaCare’
Dennis Prager
TownHall.com
July 28, 2009

Fact Checking Obama’s Socialized Health Care Claims

Again, here is something that you will not see on CNN, ABC, NBC or CBS. It is also highly unlikely that you will read anything like this in the Washington Post or the New York Times.

According to the Associated Press:

OBAMA: “We already have rough agreement” on some aspects of what a health care overhaul should involve, and one is: “It will keep government out of health care decisions, giving you the option to keep your insurance if you’re happy with it.” THE FACTS: In House legislation, a commission appointed by the government would determine what is and isn’t covered by insurance plans offered in a new purchasing pool, including a plan sponsored by the government. The bill also holds out the possibility that, over time, those standards could be imposed on all private insurance plans, not just the ones in the pool. Indeed, Obama went on to lay out other principles of reform that plainly show the government making key decisions in health care. … He addressed some of the nuances under questioning. “Can I guarantee that there are going to be no changes in the health care delivery system?” he said. “No. The whole point of this is to try to encourage changes that work for the American people and make them healthier.” He acknowledged then that the “government already is making some of these decisions.”

Whoa! If there were to be no government intervention on health care decisions, then why do we need a government appointed commission to determine what is and is not covered? And what decisions are being made by the government right now? If there is to be no government intervention, why are those decisions being made?

How much worse does this get? Pretty bad. Read on:

OBAMA: “I have also pledged that health insurance reform will not add to our deficit over the next decade, and I mean it.” THE FACTS: The president has said repeatedly that he wants “deficit-neutral” health care legislation, meaning that every dollar increase in cost is met with a dollar of new revenue or a dollar of savings. But some things are more neutral than others. White House Budget Director Peter Orszag told reporters this week that the promise does not apply to proposed spending of about $245 billion over the next decade to increase fees for doctors serving Medicare patients. Democrats and the Obama administration argue that the extra payment, designed to prevent a scheduled cut of about 21 percent in doctor fees, already was part of the administration’s policy, with or without a health care overhaul. Beyond that, budget experts have warned about various accounting gimmicks that can mask true burdens on the deficit. The bipartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget lists a variety of them, including back-loading the heaviest costs at the end of the 10-year period and beyond.

Even the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office reported that the program costs would run into the trillions and make health care more expensive, not less.

OBAMA: “You haven’t seen me out there blaming the Republicans.” THE FACTS: Obama did so in his opening statement, saying, “I’ve heard that one Republican strategist told his party that even though they may want to compromise, it’s better politics to ‘go for the kill.’ Another Republican senator said that defeating health reform is about ‘breaking’ me.”

Of course, Obama wants this to be about Obama and not about the best policies for the American people. He probably figures that the more he deflects from the real issues (like the fact that even Democrats don’t know what is in these health care proposals) the less likely the American people are going to educate themselves about the whole mess before a Congressional vote.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

FACT CHECK: Obama’s Health Care Claims Adrift?
Calvin Woodward and Jim Kuhnhenn with Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar
Associated Press via TownHall.com
July 23, 2009

Congressional Democrats ‘Baffled’ By Obamacare

This is a major reason why we must oppose Obamacare. Nobody knows what’s in the plan!

From CNN:

As the prospects for passing health reform by the time Congress leaves for its August recess look bleaker, Democratic grumbling about President Obama is growing louder. One Democratic senator tells CNN congressional Democrats are “baffled,” and another senior Democratic source tells CNN members of the president’s own party are still “frustrated” that they’re not getting more specific direction from him on health care. “We appreciate the rhetoric and his willingness to ratchet up the pressure but what most Democrats on the Hill are looking for is for the president to weigh in and make decisions on outstanding issues. Instead of sending out his people and saying the president isn’t ruling anything out, members would like a little bit of clarity on what he would support – especially on how to pay for his health reform bill,” a senior Democratic congressional source tells CNN. The Democratic leadership had hoped the work going on behind closed doors for months could bear fruit in time for the president’s news conference Wednesday night. But multiple Democratic sources tell CNN that’s looking very unlikely, and one senior Democratic source tells CNN there is some frustration among Democratic leaders that Senate negotiators have, “repeatedly missed deadlines.”

No member of Congress should ever be voting for any bill if they have not read it all the way through and completely understand what is in it.

We should also hold the Democrats to their promise of openess and transparency and demand that they stop negotiating behind closed doors.

You can access the original entry on-line here:

Senator: Democrats ‘Baffled’ By President’s Health Care Stance
Dana Bash
CNN Blogs
July 21, 2009