Tuesday, September 1, 2009
For Government Run Health Care
Some people think we need to let the government run health care. You know, like they do the Post Office, the IRS, Cars for Clunkers . . .
Rebuttal appears here.
Rebuttal appears here.
Mass Gov. Patrick Flip-Flops
[Welcome New York Times readers!]
Gov. Deval Patrick is playing peek-a-boo with immigrants in the Bay State.
You know the game.
"Where's health insurance?"
"Where's health insurance?"
"Boo! There it is."
It is important to note these are LEGAL immigrants. Foreign nationals here on certain types of visa's are required to have proof of health insurance. Why are the citizens of Massachusetts paying taxes to cover immigrants health insurance?
I am sure Georgia is not alone in covering immigrants, legal or otherwise, who don't have health insurance but have babies in our hospitals and Medicaid picks up the tab.
I see Ca-lee-forn-ya is on the list of those providing health coverage for immigrants. Are they still handing out IOU's and Arnie bucks to pay their bills?
Isn't Gov. Patrick the same one who wants to change the law, the one imposed when Republican Gov. Romney was in office, to allow him to appoint an interim U.S. Senator to replace Sen. Kennedy?
And let's not overlook the fact that MA can't fund the cost of their white elephant health care plan so they want the rest of the U.S. taxpayers to help them pay for it.
And they don't have a clue why the plan is running out of money.
What are they smoking in Massachusetts?
Gov. Deval Patrick is playing peek-a-boo with immigrants in the Bay State.
You know the game.
"Where's health insurance?"
"Where's health insurance?"
"Boo! There it is."
State-subsidized health insurance for 31,000 legal immigrants here will no longer cover dental, hospice or skilled-nursing care under a scaled-back plan that Gov. Deval Patrick announced Monday.Only a politician could make cutting benefits sound like he is doing you a favor.
Mr. Patrick said his administration had struggled to find a solution “that preserves the promise of health care reform” after the state legislature cut most of the $130 million it had previously allotted immigrants, to help close a budget deficit. Although their health benefits will be sharply curtailed in some cases, Mr. Patrick portrayed the new program as a victory, saying the services that the affected group tends to use the most will still be covered.
It is important to note these are LEGAL immigrants. Foreign nationals here on certain types of visa's are required to have proof of health insurance. Why are the citizens of Massachusetts paying taxes to cover immigrants health insurance?
Mr. Patrick described the new coverage as comprehensive and said it could be a model for less expensive state-subsidized benefits as health care costs continue to rise. Under the 1996 federal law that overhauled the nation’s welfare system, the 31,000 affected immigrants do not qualify for Medicaid or other federal aid. Massachusetts is one of the few states — others are California, New York and Pennsylvania — that provide at least some health coverage for such immigrants.They don't qualify for Medicaid? Wanna bet?
I am sure Georgia is not alone in covering immigrants, legal or otherwise, who don't have health insurance but have babies in our hospitals and Medicaid picks up the tab.
I see Ca-lee-forn-ya is on the list of those providing health coverage for immigrants. Are they still handing out IOU's and Arnie bucks to pay their bills?
Because of its three-year-old law requiring universal health coverage, Massachusetts has the country’s lowest percentage of uninsured residents: 2.6 percent, compared with a national average of 15 percent.That's nice, but . . .
All of the affected immigrants will be covered under the new plan by Dec. 1, Mr. Patrick said; in the meantime they will have to rely on hospitals that provide free emergency care to the poor.Seems like a step back to me.
Isn't Gov. Patrick the same one who wants to change the law, the one imposed when Republican Gov. Romney was in office, to allow him to appoint an interim U.S. Senator to replace Sen. Kennedy?
"Massachusetts needs two voices in the United States Senate at any time but particularly now with the gravity of the issues," Patrick said.So it is OK to take the power of appointment away from a Republican governor and then restore the law under a Democratic governor . . . but only if it serves to benefit you.
Republicans charge that the Democrats are trying to make a political power play. In 2004, the Democratically controlled Legislature took the power to fill a vacant Senate away from then-governor Mitt Romney, because lawmakers did not want him to have the chance, in the event Senator John F. Kerry won the presidency, to fill his seat with a Republican.
And let's not overlook the fact that MA can't fund the cost of their white elephant health care plan so they want the rest of the U.S. taxpayers to help them pay for it.
Eva Millona, executive director of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, said she was worried about immigrants’ having to find new primary care doctors at a time when the state is suffering from a shortage of such providers. She also said that the new coverage would in some cases require a much higher co-payment — $50 instead of between $1 and $3 — for non-generic prescription drugs, and that enrollment would be capped at the 31,000 current enrollees.$1 copay's for brand name drugs.
And they don't have a clue why the plan is running out of money.
What are they smoking in Massachusetts?
Paging Dr John Galt
Unless you're a senior, you may not be aware that many providers don't accept Medicare; this means that, perhaps by design, the Medicare (MC) provider "network" is limited. This can be an issue if, when you turn 65, your family doc for the past 20 years is no longer (easily) accessible.
"So what's new, Henry," you may ask, "why bring that up now?"
Because one of the "solutions" currently on the table is the so-called Public Option, and a lot of providers are beginning to say that they're not going to accept PO patients, either. Dr. Alfred Bonati, who heads up the American Society of Medical Doctors, says:
That's a lot of doc's who'll be refusing new patients. It may also throw cold water on the gummint's projected numbers regarding how many folks will actually sign up for such plans.
Of course, the fed's could just pass a law that requires doc's to take on PO patients. Think it can't happen? Of course it can. After all, is it such a great leap from requiring health insurers to take on anyone and everyone that applies, regardless of health, to mandating that physician's treat whomever shows up on their practice's doorstep?
Of course it's not.
Now why would these doc's dig in their (collective) heels on this issue? It's simple, really:
Just sub in "doctor" for auto dealer, and you begin to get the picture.
If enough physicians (and, of course, other providers) publicly state from the outset that they're not signing on, what do you think happens to the PO? And if the PO is an integral part of the "reform" (which, who knows, it may or may not actually be), then how's that Hope and Change going to work out?
Grand Rounds
Medical safety and technology is the theme of this week's Grand Rounds, hosted by Dr Joseph Kim. Do stop by.
Mega Ban
This just in . . . Mega health insurance banned for 5 years by the state of Massachusetts.
Texas-based Health insurer HealthMarkets Inc. and two subsidiaries have agreed to pay $17 million to settle allegations of unfair and deceptive marketing in Massachusetts.
Attorney General Martha Coakley said on Monday that the firm and its units — Oklahoma-based MEGA Life and Health Insurance and Tennessee-based Mid-West National Life Insurance — will be banned for at least five years from selling their products in Massachusetts. They're allowed to renew existing plans with individuals and small businesses through 2012.
Coakley says the companies used deceptive marketing to convince self-employed people and small businesses to buy health plans with limited benefits, failed to provide benefits mandated by state law and denied health plan membership based on existing conditions.
