Health Care

Since it is such a hot topic in the news these days, I feel it's appropriate to first discuss Health Care. Obama considers Health Care Reform as the centerpiece of his administration, and a major part of his platform of "Change".

The problem with what is being proposed (mainly HR3200) is that this change is going to turn 1/6th of the US economy into the control of the Government. There are those that will argue that having a "public health care option" does not mean the Government is taking over the health care system. Those people have not read the bill and those people have not listened and watched Obama over the past 4-5 years as he has clearly stated he (in the long run) wants a state run health care system (single payer). I have heard the tapes and I have watched the videos of him speaking to the ACLU, SEIU (his solid base) and he is crystal clear in his words and his vision. Nothing has been taken out of context. This bill helps him achieve this single payer vision as it requires (page 16) that once the legislation is enacted that no new private insurance policies can be written. Yes, it is in the bill. If you change jobs or change your coverage...you have no choice but to go onto the "public option". Over time, as more and more people lose their existing coverages due to this provision, the insurance compies begin to "dwindle on the vine" and slowly close up shop as they don't have the customer base required to stay afloat. Guess what....in the long run the only option left is the Government plan...and we have a Single-Payer Government-Run Health Care system.

The American people are beginning to wake up to the intentions of this new administration and I believe that the more the plans of this administration (not just health care either) are exposed, the more people will rise up and express their displeasure. It is not just that these new proposals are eerily socialist, it is that Obama and his followers are now just plain lying to the American people at this point and are using thuggery behind the scenes to convince opponents to see things their way. An example is that several of the ordinary citizens who spoke up at recent health care town halls are being threatened and have filed complaints to their local authorities.

So...here's some outright lies which have been floating around lately:

1. Linda Douglass, Obama Disinformation Czar, continues to state that Obama does not support a single-payer health care system. This is ridiculous as there are several (at least 3 I have seen and heard) video and audio clips where Obama states very clearly that he is in favor of, or supports, a single-payer health care system. He even goes as far as saying "we may not get there right away", but we will eventually get there.
2. HR3200 will not lead to a single-payer system. Just read page 16 of the bill. It is very clear that after the bill is passed the only insurance option which will be available to those that need new coverage will be the "public option"...the Government option.
3. The Obama administration says that this new health care system will "pay for itself" and health care will not be rationed. Give me a break. The CBO says this bill will cost between $200 billion and $1.6 trillion dollars. There's no possible way we are going to put 20-40 million new people into our health system and have it not cost more money or put pressure on providers to limit care. Many CEO's of major medical facilities (Mayo for one) have recently wrote op-eds in national newspapers condemning the Obama program.
4. Obama continues to insult doctors by claiming that they are removing limbs and other body parts (when not needed) from their patients merely because the current "pay scale" (Obama's words) will compensate them more. Gee....I wonder why most doctors are against the plan.
5. The Obama machine continues to insist that our current system is broken and is in crisis. I guess that's why in recent polls 85% of Americans are comfortable with their current medical coverage.
6. Obama supporters continue to say that 40-50 million Americans are without health insurance. What they don't tell you is that this is really misleading. Estimates are that the real number is closer to 14 million as many Americans don't have insurance by choice and over 10 million uninsured are in the U.S. illegally.

I believe that we need some changes to our current health care system, but I do not believe that our current system is in crisis or broken. Here's a few items that need to be changed...and ironically....none of these are in HR3200:

1. Tort Reform. We need to do something to eliminate the massive amounts of bogus lawsuits which are driving doctors out of business and raising the costs of health care for all of us. The Obama administraion won't touch this as one of their largest donors is the trial lawyers.
2. Interstate Policies. Insurance policies need to be able to be purchased by anyone, anywhere. Currently, their are barriers across state lines which make many policies unavailable or restrictively expensive. Any consumer should be able to select from a variety of plan options....regardless of where they live.
3. Pre-existing conditions. I believe there could be special policies designed around certain medical conditions. These policies may be a bit more expensive, but nobody could be turned down for coverage. Also, the coverage would be specialized to the pre-existing condition and would provide better care for the patient.

Obama's plan needs to be revised heavily as the more it sees the light of day....the more it is clear that this bill is not good for America...or Americans. This is truly change that we CANNOT believe in.