Evan Thomas, in a cover article for Newsweek titled, “The Case for Killing Granny: Rethinking end-of-life care,” writes:
My mother wanted to die, but the doctors wouldn’t let her…. The hospital at my mother’s assisted-living facility was sustained by Medicare, which pays by the procedure. I don’t think the doctors were trying to be greedy by pushing more treatments on my mother. That’s just the way the system works.
“Lies and distortions,” says David Axelrod. “The 26 lies about H.R. 3200,” headlines an Annenberg report. “The Five Biggest Lies About Health Reform,” is the lead in a Newsweek article.
You would think we were living in some foreign country.
There are many contentious issues, of course. But towering above all others, THE ISSUE is denying people care. Or, if you like, health care rationing.
At the National Center for Policy Analysis we have brought this issue up frequently — but, I believe, in a responsible way. For that matter, Barack Obama has brought the issue up frequently — also in a responsible way.
Yet what is driving the defenders of Obama Care crazy is that this issue is being discussed at all. For one thing, the President is saying things most Democrats never say when they talk about health care. For another, the opponents have passed up not a single opportunity to distort and exaggerate to the hilt. To get one absurd statement out of the way, let’s admit that none of the bills before Congress contain the words “death panel.”
Still, is there something here we should be worried about? Answer: Yes. You should be very worried.
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged.
From USA Today, here is just one example:
Barry Straube, chief medical officer at the federal Centers for Medicare & Medcaid Services, says 25 million Americans have kidney disease, but Medicare benefits don't kick in until patients are at the most advanced stage. Many patients with earlier-stage kidney disease aren't treated for high blood pressure or diabetes, which cause two-thirds of kidney failures.
With no inflation, Social Security's cost-of-living adjustment next year is expected to be zero. But Part B premiums will go up (because medical inflation is positive) and those premiums are deducted from Social Security checks. So under ordinary circumstances, the elderly would be getting smaller Social Security checks next year. However, about three-fourths of Medicare beneficiaries are protected by a "hold harmless" provision, insuring that their Social Security checks never get smaller.
What, Me Worry?
As reported by CNSNews:
Section 1304 of the Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 (H.R. 3200) would raise government Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement for certified nurse midwives to the same level as the reimbursement for doctors who perform the same services. Under current law, midwives only receive 65 percent of what a doctor receives for equal services.
Heart failure death rates range from a low of 6.6% at Glendale (Calif.) Memorial Hospital to 19.8% at Otto Kaiser Memorial Hospital in Kenedy, Texas.
Price-adjusted Medicare spending varies from about $6,000 a person in low-cost hospitals to $17,000 in others, without apparent differences in quality.
The Speaker tells how she really feels about insurance companies:
Of course they’ve been immoral all along in how they have treated the people that they insure. They are the villains.
— Rep. Nancy Pelosi
Explaining why a public health plan would be like the postal service:
When you send a birthday present to a relative to – say I want to send something to one of my children in Nevada, the products that I choose can be sent by FedEx, UPS, DHL, or the United States Postal Service.
— Sen. Harry Reid
The President is participating in a "tele-town hall" at AARP headquarters in Washington, D.C. today. Here are three questions suggested by Morning Bell about his reform agenda:
Will we find it more difficult to see doctors? This is already a problem. Won't it get worse if the government reduces Medicare spending by $313 billion over the next 10 years?
Will we lose our health insurance coverage? One in five seniors is in a Medicare Advantage plan – providing much more comprehensive care than traditional Medicare. What happens to us when the federal government cuts reimbursement rates?
Will we be denied access to expensive care? A health board in Britain decides whether extra months or years of life are worth the cost. Is that what we can expect in America?
What President Barack Obama says:
"Let me be exactly clear about what health care reform means to you," the president told residents of the Garden State. "First of all, if you've got health insurance, you like your doctors, you like your plan, you can keep your doctor, you can keep your plan. Nobody is talking about taking that away from you."
— Barack Obama, ABC News, July 16, 2009.
What health care legislation on Capitol Hill says:
