Health Care

[NinjaNick]

Discuss.

Health care protest

[NinjaNick]

Lawmakers face angry crowds on health care

LEBANON, Pa. – Jeers and taunts drowned out Democrats calling for a health care overhaul at town halls Tuesday, and one lawmaker said a swastika was spray-painted at his office as debate turned to noisy confrontation over President Barack Obama's plan. The president himself was treated more respectfully.

"You'll be gone, by God the bureaucrats will still be here," one man told Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Pa., at a town hall in Lebanon, Pa.

"If they don't let us vent our frustrations out, they will have a revolution," Mary Ann Fieser of Hillsboro, Mo., told Sen. Claire McCaskill at her Missouri health care forum.

McCaskill admonished the rowdy crowd of some 1,500.

"I don't understand this rudeness," she said. "I honestly don't get it."

The bitter sessions underscored the challenge for the administration as it tries to win over an increasingly skeptical public on the costly and far-reaching task of revamping the nation's health care system. Desperate to stop a hardening opposition, the White House created a Web site to dispel what it says are smears and House Democrats set up a health care "war room" out of Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's office to help lawmakers handle questions.

Obama answered his critics indirectly. At his town hall in Portsmouth, N.H., he urged Americans to ignore those who try to "scare and mislead the American people," telling a cordial audience, "For all the scare tactics out there, what is truly scary is if we do nothing."

Though his popularity is slipping in polls, Obama himself is repeatedly trying to make the case to the public for passage of comprehensive legislation this year to bring down costs and extend coverage to many of the 50 million uninsured.

Obama's questions bore no resemblance to what Specter got.

At a crowded community college in Pennsylvania, Specter heard from speaker after speaker who accused him of trampling on their constitutional rights, adding to the federal deficit or allowing government bureaucrats to take over health care.

"My children and grandchildren are going to pay for this," said another.

"One day God will stand before you and judge you!" shouted a man before security guards approached and he left the room.

Specter gamely tried to explain his positions — and on occasion mediate among shouting constituents — saying he wouldn't vote for a bill that adds to the deficit. He also said he wouldn't support a bill that extends coverage to illegal immigrants. None of the bills in Congress would provide health insurance to illegal immigrants.

One woman tried to make it personal for Specter, alleging that the Democrats' plan would not provide care to a man in his 70s with cancer, like Specter had.

"You're here because of the plan we have now," she said.

Specter, 79, who has battled cancer twice since 2005, showed some heat at that.

"Well, you're just not right," he said. He called her claim a "vicious, malicious" rumor.

The passions of the crowd illustrated the problems for Democratic lawmakers around the country as they try to use the monthlong August recess to promote Obama's agenda. There's not a single plan to promote, which Specter later told reporters made his job harder, along with the complexity of the issue. The House bill is more than 1,000 pages.

And, Specter said, "The objectors have gotten ahead of the curve." Asked why, he cited talk radio, among other factors.

In Georgia, Democratic Rep. David Scott's staff arrived at his Smyrna, Ga., office outside Atlanta on Tuesday morning to find a large, black swastika spray-painted on a sign out front bearing his name. The vandalism occurred roughly a week after Scott was involved in a contentious argument over health care at a community meeting.

Scott, who is black, said he also has received mail in recent days that used N-word references to him and that characterized Obama as a Marxist.

"We have got to make sure that the symbol of the swastika does not win, that the racial hatred that's bubbling up does not win this debate," Scott said in a telephone interview. "That's what is bubbling up with all of this. There's so much hatred out there for President Obama."

In Missouri, McCaskill was peppered with questions about health care for veterans, seniors and illegal immigrants and provisions funding abortions. One man was arrested after allegedly taking and ripping a sign from a woman that showed a picture of Rosa Parks sitting on a bus with the words, "First Lady of Civil Rights."

Someone shouted out that they didn't trust McCaskill.

"Beg your pardon ... you don't trust me?" McCaskill said. "I don't know what else I can do."

Specter said that in a long life in politics he hadn't seen anything like what he witnessed Tuesday and at a town hall last weekend that turned even uglier.

"There is more anger in America today than at any time I can remember," Specter said.

[Disclaimer]

Awesome, I was just saying the other day how we don't have enough threads on healthcare on here.

[Mr Anderson]

Awesome, I was just saying the other day how we don't have enough threads on healthcare on here.

O really. I thought this would cover it. I saw more commercials for the healthcare and protecting our veterans today.

[Aerik]

Awesome, I was just saying the other day how we don't have enough threads on healthcare on here.

Yes. This. A thousand times, this.

[Lost]

There is so much lying and false statements on both sides.

I would really like to know what is being proposed with out the political spin.

Do we agree that our health care system or the way it is paid for needs to change?

[Lost]

I agree with you on that.

Our government is pretty screwed up. The income tax needs straightened out for sure. I would like a flat tax, but how much, not a clue. Would you be willing to pay say 35% of your income if it included health care coverage?

I saw one estimate that in the next 10 years healthcare will take 70% of our GDP. Which will absolutely destroy our economy.

[Mr Anderson]

I'd rather see a newly structured income tax system before health care. I mean' date=' if people can't afford health care then let's stop taking 30% of their money right from the start.[/quote']

[smashweights]

"Obama answered his critics indirectly. At his town hall in Portsmouth, N.H., he urged Americans to ignore those who try to "scare and mislead the American people," telling a cordial audience, "For all the scare tactics out there, what is truly scary is if we do nothing."'

aka: don't listen to those who try to scare you away from my plan, listen to me scare you into it.

[NinjaNick]

Awesome, I was just saying the other day how we don't have enough threads on healthcare on here.

I would give you rep Justin, but you have too much already. You're the highest on the list. I'm jealous.

[NinjaNick]

That's funny IP. You know, you're 2nd on the list as of yesterday I was 3rd.

I'll rep you for helping the guy on the bottom here.

[Disclaimer]

IP is a rep socialist.

[wrillo]

IP is a rep socialist.

always tryin to spread the rep evenly!

[NinjaNick]

Did someone say........"beat'em"?

[Disclaimer]

Whistleblower: Insurance firms ‘very much’ behind town hall disruptions

http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/08/11/whistleblower-insurers-put-profits-before-care/

Health insurance companies deserve “a great deal of the blame” for the sometimes violent disruptions to town hall meetings on health care, says a former health insurance company executive turned whistleblower. Wendell Potter, a former executive with health insurer Cigna who now works as the senior fellow on health care at the Center for Media and Democracy, told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow that health insurance companies “are very much behind the town hall disruptions that you see and a lot of the deception that’s going on in terms of disinformation that many Americans, apparently, are believing.”

On her show Monday night, Maddow cited statistics from the Securities and Exchange Commission showing that profits at the US’s ten largest health insurance companies skyrocketed more than 400 percent between 2000 and 2007, from $2.4 billion in 2000 to $12.7 billion in 2007.

“Apparently while they quadrupled their profits, the number of Americans without health insurance grew by 19 percent,” Maddow said.

And she also pointed out that the average total take-home pay for the CEOs of those health insurance companies was $11.9 million each, per year, “while the number of Americans without health insurance, for whom a burst appendix can mean bankruptcy, has gone through the roof.”

Asked why health care costs are going up, Potter told Maddow: “Since 1983 … the amount of money that insurance companies take in in premiums — less and less of that is going to pay medical claims.”

Potter said that the money health insurers spend on health care for their policy-holders has dropped from 95 percent of revenue to around 80 percent. Although Potter did not elaborate on why that is, presumably it has to do with higher bureaucratic costs, increased advertising budgets, other tangential activities not directly related to health care — and higher profit margins.

“Another thing is they kick people off the rolls when they do get sick or injured,” Potter said. “Also, they’re paying fewer claims.”

Potter suggested that health insurers’ fears of a public health alternative are unfounded, because they can still make money with a public plan in place.

“They could [turn a profit], absolutely. I’ve seen the health insurance industry change its business models many times. The insurance companies who operate now are very different from the companies that operated a few years ago and the one thing they know how to do is make money.”

This video is from MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show, broadcast Aug. 10, 2009.

Click link for video.

[ChickOn2]

I'd rather see a newly structured income tax system before health care. I mean' date=' if people can't afford health care then let's stop taking 30% of their money right from the start.[/quote']

Hard to disagree there...

[shittygsxr]

"Obama answered his critics indirectly. At his town hall in Portsmouth, N.H., he urged Americans to ignore those who try to "scare and mislead the American people," telling a cordial audience, "For all the scare tactics out there, what is truly scary is if we do nothing."'

aka: don't listen to those who try to scare you away from my plan, listen to me scare you into it.

I wonder why he would hold a "town hall" style meeting in a liberal hippie town?

[InyaAzz]

Did DJ Isle pay his chicken wing debt off yet?

[NinjaNick]

Somebody repped me, but didn't leave their name asking how I knew the rep ranks.

Here's the link that Casper sent me.

http://www.ohio-riders.com/memberlist.php?order=DESC&sort=reputation&pp=30

[ChickOn2]

Somebody repped me, but didn't leave their name asking how I knew the rep ranks.

Here's the link that Casper sent me.

http://www.ohio-riders.com/memberlist.php?order=DESC&sort=reputation&pp=30

I didn't know how to do this either, so thanks for the information... but why is mine so short and stubby and inadequate?

[PrincessPratt]

I didn't know how to do this either, so thanks for the information... but why is mine so short and stubby and inadequate?

so is mine and i've been on here a LONG time. "somebody" gave me negative rep for wishing bornsinner a happy birthday. hahaha. freakin hilarious!

[crf69]

think healthcare is expensive now?....wait till it's free

[Rod38um]

Whistleblower: Insurance firms ‘very much’ behind town hall disruptions

http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/08/11/whistleblower-insurers-put-profits-before-care/

Click link for video.

I'm not sure I believe this story. I've been watching the news this morning and all morning has been a discussion why the insurance companies have not only been quiet on the matter but have sent representatives to help sculpt the legislation in question. and since this has come out, CIGNA stock has gone up 17%...... So the question is what part they will play?........ Wall street wont run the stock up if they dont see them profiting from it. The gues is the tax payer would pay for basic care and if you have insurance, it would pay for limited choice.... creating a dual class system.... one for the little worthless people and one for the important upper class.

http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=CI#chart1:symbol=ci;range=3m;indicator=volume;charttype=line;crosshair=on;ohlcvalues=0;logscale=on;source=undefined

So in effect we'd be taxed for health care and then if you want any choice you would still need insurance which probably would still be expensive even tho the tax payer would bare the most cost.... making profits go thru the roof for companies like CIGNA

Edited August 12, 2009 by Rod38um

[Lost]

Here is the problem with our current health.

My son has asthma, lots of kids have it. We understand it, we know most of the triggers and we can treat him.

We were at camp with my son in July and the campfire started an asthma attack. Well we did our routine to deal with it. It didn't work and we ended up in the ER at Childrens Hospital. We were their for 4 hours and they straightened him out. He had 3 breathing treatments. They sent us home.

Well to day I got the bill. it is $1799.93 after the insurance company paid their portion. I say Bull shit. I pay $500 a month for family coverage and that doesn't include dental and optical because they are extra and separate.

I opened the bill and was immediately pissed beyond speaking. I call the wonderful folks at Humana who told me yep thats the deal. I had hit the out of pocket hole in my coverage.

Great, I have about 5 days to pay it before childrens sic the collection agencys on me. For those who haven't experienced it Childrens hospital wants their money now. They misbilled my insurance a couple of years ago and they rebuilded and before it cleared the insurance I was getting calls from a collection agency.

[cgrubbe]

Here is the problem with our current health.

My son has asthma, lots of kids have it. We understand it, we know most of the triggers and we can treat him.

We were at camp with my son in July and the campfire started an asthma attack. Well we did our routine to deal with it. It didn't work and we ended up in the ER at Childrens Hospital. We were their for 4 hours and they straightened him out. He had 3 breathing treatments. They sent us home.

Well to day I got the bill. it is $1799.93 after the insurance company paid their portion. I say Bull shit. I pay $500 a month for family coverage and that doesn't include dental and optical because they are extra and separate.

I opened the bill and was immediately pissed beyond speaking. I call the wonderful folks at Humana who told me yep thats the deal. I had hit the out of pocket hole in my coverage.

Great, I have about 5 days to pay it before childrens sic the collection agencys on me. For those who haven't experienced it Childrens hospital wants their money now. They misbilled my insurance a couple of years ago and they rebuilded and before it cleared the insurance I was getting calls from a collection agency.

You might want to call over there to see if they will reduce the bill. Not sure how they do it at Childrens, but a guy I work with owed a bunch of money to Riverside and based on his income and the number of children they have Riverside reduced the bill a ton. This was all after his insurance had paid its part. They wanted to get what they could from him, because even after discounting it they end up getting more than if they sold the debt to a collections agency.