Rep. John Culberson squirms on MSNBC

[AndyArrow]

Lawrence O'Donnell asks Rep. Culberson: "If Medicare is not socialism, why don't we just delete the over-65 part of Medicare and make it available to everyone? What's your argument against that?"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/14/lawrence-odonnell-exposes_n_260177.html

[randym431]

The one to really watch closely is old iowa senator Grassley.
He is going around town halls saying Obama healthcare has death panels.
He actually says this to crowds.
What he doesn't tell them, is there are no death panels making life/death decisions.
But actually the reform simply pays for "consoling" at end of life situations.
"Consoling"... For God's sake.

And Snake in the grass Grassley also fails to tell his crowds that HE, GRASSLEY himself
voted for this same wording in the drug bill the Bush Admin pushed thru back in the Bush
administration. Grassley fails to mention this.

Grassley, the same snake that took money from the banks, to rewrite bankruptcy laws
so that people can no longer declare bankruptcy when devastated by healthcare bills.
Grassley wants people to lose their homes, savings, and live under a bride.

Keep you eye on this Snake Grassley...

[J.R.E.]

The one to really watch closely is old iowa senator Grassley.
He is going around town halls saying Obama healthcare has death panels.


Grassley, the same snake that took money from the banks, to rewrite bankruptcy laws
so that people can no longer declare bankruptcy when devastated by healthcare bills.
Grassley wants people to lose their homes, savings, and live under a bride.

Keep you eye on this Snake Grassley...

Hey Andy,

Yes, He's another one. I've been listening to his crap.  Time for him to retire.  Another one , is John Boehner ( Boner)  Looks like a burned out alcoholic to me. Likes to repeat things without doing any research !


Ray

[AlanBama]

I love it that people are moronic enough to 'fall for' the "Death Panel" baloney (i.e., Sarah Palin)....

Late in the game to be raising this point, but who is NOW sitting on the Death Panels?   Insurance Company employees/executives.  The healthcare debate loudmouths either don't know this or conveniently forget it.....

The problem with a lot of the healthcare reform debates is that the loudest shouters have never really been sick.   They should allow people who have actually USED the healthcare system, been hurt by it, been disappointed with it, been denied care by it, to speak.

Just my 2 cents worth for today....

[GSOgymrat]

Late in the game to be raising this point, but who is NOW sitting on the Death Panels?   Insurance Company employees/executives.  The healthcare debate loudmouths either don't know this or conveniently forget it.....

People have no idea how the system works. They like to think that doctors are calling all the shots and technically they are but 99% of the time they follow the recommendations of the insurance company. Part of my job is precertifying psychiatric care with insurance companies. Some insurance companies have a 4 hour window to complete precertification on emergency admissions or they won't pay. That means if someone brings you to the psychiatric hospital and you don't have your insurance info on you because you're psychotic and don't know what year it is much less what your insurance info is, if we can't get that info you are stuck with the bill-- and you can't get help with that bill because you have insurance. We then contact the insurance company and explain why you need to be in the hospital. If they don't agree they don't pay. They then specify which doctor you are going to have, even if we think another doctor has a specialty that would benefit you. They then specify how many days you will be in the hospital, what kind of treatment you need, which medications they will pay for and what your outpatient follow up plan will be. The doctor and hospital doesn't have to follow their recommendations but they do because otherwise they don't get paid and you get stuck with an artificially inflated bill.

Americans are being fooled that they have a choices right now. Your healthcare is already rationed. Big Brother is already calling the shots. Their goal, THE REASON INSURANCE COMPANIES EXIST is not to provide healthcare but to MAKE MONEY.

[pozniceguy]

Hey guy   Ford has it down pat...the system???  already does all that the legislation is proposing  but doesnt have the increased bureaucracy that is tied into this bill as currently proposed in House....there are already  "govmt" systems operating...some in pretty good ways  others could use improvement...Medicare..Medicaid..Federal Health system..Public Health services system.. and the VA system...all are goverment supported or run but tend to include very specific groups of people....all have issues that need resolution...why not just work on opening up those systems and work on fixing the issues they have....comes down to some sort of "singlepayer"  which is vociferously opposed by the "insurance companies  "write you representatives.....go to one of the town meetings  submit  clearly written questions and dont shout

[AlanBama]

Americans are being fooled that they have a choices right now. Your healthcare is already rationed. Big Brother is already calling the shots. Their goal, THE REASON INSURANCE COMPANIES EXIST is not to provide healthcare but to MAKE MONEY.

Testify !

[Assurbanipal]

Americans are being fooled that they have a choices right now. Your healthcare is already rationed. Big Brother is already calling the shots. Their goal, THE REASON INSURANCE COMPANIES EXIST is not to provide healthcare but to MAKE MONEY.

One of the hardest problems in figuring out health care reform is that, while the above statement feels 100% true, its only a half truth.

All the Blue Cross / Blue Shield companies started out as member-owned not for profits (What we might even describe as "co-ops" using the hot new political phrase).  Over time, for profit insurers popped up and started offering cheaper insurance -- but the insurance was mainly cheaper because they targeted young and healthy individuals or limited care.  Over time the Blues started to lose more and more young healthy members and the average costs kept going up and up, which meant the price of policies got less and less competitive with the for profit insurers.  That's when non-profit insurers started putting in pre-existing condition clauses and many Blue Cross/Blue Shield companies started going private.

It's as if having some private insurers with a profit motive is a virus that infected the whole system.  There still are not-for-profit entities in the health care system.  But to keep premiums affordable they either have to be in some isolated place where there are no for-profit insurers, or act as if they were a for-profit insurer.

That's why I don't think the new co-ops will do anything -- but if they are a trade-off for new rules that say for-profit insurers can't skim off the healthy people and there are no more abusive preconditions on health coverage that's still a worthwhile political deal.

A