Politics Blog

Category: Health care

A Thumbs Up for the Senate Reform Bill

While I've been pushing for major reform of our health care system, I admit that I don't know how well any of the proposals will work. The only point I'm certain of is that doing nothing is not an option. Our current process is simply inhumane and unsustainable. So I was greatly relieved by this review of the current Senate bill by Jonathan Gruber, a leading expert from MIT, who is reviewing it page by page and very much likes what he sees.

"I'm sort of a known skeptic on this stuff," Gruber told me. "My summary is it's really hard to figure out how to bend the cost curve, but I can't think of a thing to try that they didn't try. They really make the best effort anyone has ever made. Everything is in here....I can't think of anything I'd do that they are not doing in the bill. You couldn't have done better than they are doing."

This is the best reporting on the bill I've seen yet. It focuses solely on what the bill does without getting into the horserace politics of the process. It's a must read if you want to understand what this bill will do. I admit, I've been worried that the bill will make things worse. After reading this, I'm very encouraged that we're headed in the right direction for true reform that will improve our health care.

Category: Health care

U.S. panel recommends rationed health care for women

OK, the headline above is a stretch. But if you think the federal government has no interest in rationed health care, take a look at the recent recommendations downplaying mammograms for women under 50.

Says the panel: The "net benefit" of mammograms for women under 50 is small. I would add: Unless, of course, you happen to be 45 years old and a mammogram spots cancer.

The committee's work is only a recommendation. But if government gets more power over health care, such recommendations could/will become policy. The seeds of rationed care are planted, waiting for Congress to sprinkle a little water on them.

Here for Sarah Palin, bestselling author-chick.

And here for health care.

Category: Health care

Our Health Insurance System Doesn't Care

The must read of the day is this account of the NOLA free health care clinic. Over a thousand people were treated. Most of them hold jobs that don't offer health care benefits and can't afford the premiums in the individual policy market. The article notes just in Louisiana over 700-thousand people have no health care, and most of them are the working poor. One could say they are uninsured "by choice" if you consider deciding between food and rent and health insurance, a real choice. And they're not all clerks at the convenience store. Take this man:

I spoke with a nurse who was there not as a volunteer, but as a patient. He works two part time jobs at hospitals providing quality care to those who have the one thing he doesn't. Many of his patients share his condition of high blood pressure, but they are fortunate to have insurance to pay for him to care for them while he goes without.

His situation is not uncommon, he has tried for years to get more hours at one of his jobs so he will be eligible for benefits, but it hasn't happened yet. Our system of for-profit health care can't afford to give him and others benefits - might make the stock price drop a penny or two.

Read it all and then tell me again how our current system is "working."

Category: Health care

RNC Insurer Promotes 'Death Panels'

The Republican National Committee's insurance plan gets more interesting every day. It's not just that their policies covered elective abortions for 18 years, it now turns out that their insurer Cigna also promotes end of life counseling. This would be the exact same counseling that the Republicans were fearmongering about all last August, claiming they were "death panels" intent on killing your grammy. So if this end of life counseling is so awful that they used it as a basis to kill health reform efforts, do you suppose the RNC is going to cancel their policies with the company or even complain to Cigna that they're trying to kill their seniors with this policy?

To be fair, it's unclear whether Cigna covers the cost of these sessions, and neither the insurer or RNC is willing to make that clear for the record. What is clear is that end of life counseling is a standard feature of health care services. But the real irony is, anyone who has contributed any money to the RNC in the last 18 years has in effect been subsidizing both abortions and the use of so-called "death panels" with their own money.

Category: Health care

Where will Canadians go when PelosiCare is enacted?

Nothing like having your government recognize that health care is a right. Sounds great. No need to pay. Except even governments run out of money, so they find ways to keep you from getting the care you need. Waiting lists. Bureaucratic hoops to jump through. And you thought dealing with your insurance company was tough.

You've no doubt heard stories about rationing and waiting lists in the Canadian provinces.

Oddly enough, Canadian health care has opened up an unusual business opportunity for some people. One such example is Timely Medical Alternatives.

The company, says "875,000 Canadians [are] currently on the waiting list for referrals to specialists or for medical procedures." It helps them shorten their wait from months to weeks--sometimes by getting care in the U.S.

Unfortunately, the customers of the company end up paying twice for treatment--once in taxes and once in direct payments for their private-care alternative.

Category: Health care

Health Care Reform Passes First Hurdle - Updated

Of course you've heard that after a marathon Saturday session, the House passed a health care reform bill on a vote of 220 to 215, with 39 Democrats jumping over to the No side. One truly courageous Republican, Joseph Cao crossed over to vote in favor. And I say it was brave because the immediate backlash from the unhinged element of the far right has been ugly and no doubt will still get worse.

The defectors on the Democratic side were all so-called "Blue Dog Democrats" but they've consistently proved with numerous votes against their own party that they don't really deserve the "D" after their name. As Atrios pointed out on Twitter this morning, the lesson of this vote is 39 Democrats don't matter.

The irony is they come from conservative districts, mainly in the south, that largely went for John McCain in 08. They think they can protect their positions by voting with the GOP, but they're in for a rude awakening. Southern conservatives are in a decidedly anti-incumbent state of mind. They will vote for Republicans in the next round. The only hope these Blue Dogs had to get Democratic votes was to vote with the party that brung 'em and they threw that away yesterday. Obviously, they didn't take the right lesson from Creigh Deeds loss in Virginia last week.

As for the passing of the bill, I have mixed emotions. It was truly a historic moment and politically it was a huge accomplishment. I thought I would feel happier about it, but the passage of the Stupak amendment took most of the joy out of the moment for me. And on a practical level, it's just the first step and it's not at all clear what we "won" with this bill. This was just the first lap of the race. We're a long way from the finish line yet.

Update: In case our politicians need any further proof of public sentiment, this just off the twitter feed of John Robinson, editor of the Greensboro News & Record in North Carolina. He says, "I'm getting flooded with letters to the editor applauding health reform passage and trashing Rep. Coble for voting against it." I'd note that Coble won election in 08 with 63% of the vote.

Category: Health care

Donut Hole: Hour 8.

While I missed a good portion during the dinner rush, I always love when Democrats continue to use "Donut Hole" in their remarks.

What I'd like to hear from GOP opposition is a solemn pledge to commit to being not only opposed to the ideas put forth tonight, but also to be stewards of responsibility in watching this legislation. Mako out.

Category: Health care

Donut Hole Lobby

I can't figure out where the GOP stands (past Stupak's rather ingenious strategy).

Currently, GOP Reps are complaining about Medicare funding, while complaining that Medicare is bankrupt, and the Dems are talking about Donut Holes being filled, which was the GOP's 2005 Medicare Part D.

Let's all go to La Puente, CA, because I think this is all a secret plan of the donut lobby, who obviously are hurt by comprehensive health care reform. Heck, it's a more logical reason than anything coming out of Congress right now. Mako out.

Category: Health care

Bart Stupak's Waterloo

Most people outside of Michigan hadn't heard of Bart Stupak until today when they found out what he's trying to do to women's rights. He succeeded in forcing a vote on his Stupak/Pitts amendment that could kill health care reform altogether. The amendment will effectively ban even private insurers from paying for medically necessary abortions for everyone but the rich. So much for the "government interference" in your health care argument.

The thing is, this amendment isn't even necessary. There is already a compromise amendment in the bill that addresses the concerns of anti-choice proponents. The Capps Amendment contains these provisions:

* It stipulates that health plans cannot be mandated to cover abortion, but they can choose to.

* If a plan chooses to cover abortion, the compromise stipulates that no federal funds can go towards abortion, consistent with current federal policy.

* It ensures state laws regarding abortion coverage are not pre-empted, so if states want to pass further restrictions on abortion coverage, they can. This a significant win for anti-choice organizations.

* Protects conscience rights of health care providers and facilities.

Stupak's amendment won't ban abortion altogether, but it will force poor and moderate income women into either back alley abortions or to bear children that ironically, they may not to able to afford to raise without government assistance programs. Further, if it passes, pro-choice Congresspeople are likely not to vote for the bill, destroying months of good-faith negotiations between the various factions in Congress. The internets are buzzing with vows from progressives to fund any pro-choice primary challenger that will run against him and they're coming from people who put their money where their mouth is.

Mr. Stupak should remember the lesson of Rick Santorum. Not many knew who he was either before he took a high profile on sodomy laws and the Schiavo case. He's no longer in Congress, nor does his political comeback look imminent -- ever.

Category: Health care

Fact checking the GOP on health care reform

Marathon hearing session going on in Congress about the Health Care Reform bill this weekend. They were at it until past midnight yesterday and they're still going strong right now. You can watch live online at CSPAN. I'm hearing they expect to take a vote around 2:00 this afternoon - now saying 10:30pm. Not that I expect any minds will be changed by all the talk. Predicting not a single Republican will vote for it.

Meanwhile, and there's no nice to say this, the hearings give the GOP another chance to repeat outright lies about what the bill will do. But don't take my word for it, listen to FactCheck.org. I urge you to read the whole thing, but here's one highlight:

"The claim that the House bill would amount to 'government-run health care' suffered a blow last week, when the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the so-called 'public plan' in the revised bill wouldn't offer much in the way of competition to private insurers. But that hasn't stopped Republicans from repeating the claim. ...Republicans are still recycling 'government-run' claims and old analyses that don't pertain to the bill."

As for the GOP's "alternate" bill, let's go to Ezra Klein at the Washington Post:

"The Democratic bill, in other words, covers 12 times as many people and saves $36 billion more than the Republican plan. And amazingly, the Democratic bill has already been through three committees and a merger process. It's already been shown to interest groups and advocacy organizations and industry stakeholders. It's already made its compromises with reality. It's already been through the legislative sausage grinder. And yet it saves more money and covers more people than the blank-slate alternative proposed by John Boehner and the House Republicans. The Democrats, constrained by reality, produced a far better plan than Boehner, who was constrained solely by his political imagination and legislative skill."

And by the way, for all those complaining about the length of the bill, the Republicans have 121 amendments in there. Seems to me if the size of the bill is such a problem, we can shorten it considerably by removing every one of those amendments. Don't see why they should be in there at all if the GOP is going to vote against it anyway.