Comments on: Waxman: Blue Dogs Trying To “Eviscerate” Health Care

By: jonerik

jonerik — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 02:34:26 +0000

Amen!

By: Sonny

Sonny — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 22:23:55 +0000

“Fuck ‘em” is exactly right, Ms. Hamsher. The time for civilized back and forth has passed us by. Your directness and heart is to be admired. Thanks.

By: Gitcheegumee

Gitcheegumee — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 22:10:57 +0000

Bill Moyers had a story last year about a FORMER insurance exec who “saw the light,and testified before Congress that coding of a medical claims by non medical insurance personnel caused the death of a policy holder.

Imdeed,this ability to save the corporation money,at the expense of a policyholder’s life,was what merited her advancement in the company.

I always wondered why CEO’s are paid so much.

When you get them before a Congressional committee they are deaf,dumb and blind as to what transpires on their watch.

What I finally realized is they are often paid commensurate with their willingness to check any vestige of humanity at the Boardroom door.

By: PJEvans

PJEvans — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 20:13:07 +0000

It ain’t free and the decisions are made by insurance company non-medical personnel, not by anyone with your best interests in mind.

You must mean ‘unfettered’, like all the other ‘Publicans put it.

By: PJEvans

PJEvans — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 20:11:01 +0000

PW, I have his contact page for e-mail bookmarked too; I hit that even before posting the numbers. (I’m in his district. The boundaries are convoluted enough they ask for zip-plus-four on that page.)

By: paz3

paz3 — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 19:33:26 +0000

As far as physician reimbursement. I think I’ve heard that the House bill contains language pegging reimbursement to Medicare rates + 5 percent. If that’s correct, it should be enough for physicians to remain profitable.

I heard Rep. Peter deFazio D-OR, a true progressive who represents one of the most liberal non-urban districts in the House, say on the radio just a couple of days ago that the Blue Dogs did raise a valid point about the true disparity in Medicare reimbursement rates over the country, and how those rates were locked into Medicare when the legislation was passed all those years ago. I don’t want to slow down the dialogue in this thread, but I trust deFazio and his point was that unless the public option, basing reimbursement rates on the regional Medicare rates, made some some regional disparity adjustments then those of us in semi-rural areas on the west coast could wind up with no physicians who would take the public option.

No one has discussed that here as far as I know. Why not? Blue Dog hate? What if they have a point?

@73:

Incidentally, the “pork” in question is Medicare rates in poor areas, at least according to AP.

By: paz3

paz3 — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 19:13:01 +0000

The FREE market unencumbered by government meddling.

And what mythological bus did you ride in on?

The same one that we all rode to the soaring economy at the end of the Bush years, that has us all in clover now?

???

By: NAVDOC3rdMAR

NAVDOC3rdMAR — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 18:59:03 +0000

Follow the Money… Link
Call Congress and demand,

SINGLE-PAYER HEALTH CARE FOR ALL NOW!

SEMPER FI!

By: zeabow

zeabow — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 18:58:38 +0000

The rahmbama drama is going thru a familiar phase: negotiating with the blue dogs. Mind you that the blue dogs didn’t even start barking until rahm got shouted down on his contention that a public option wasn’t necessary. Then, of course, the dlc dem’s best friends started snarling and growling and now rahm is negotiating with them like he always does when big business is unhappy with a bill. At the end of the day, the blue dogs will likely be given some nice pork bones to gnaw on for essentially keeping big business happy and giving rahm, and likely obama despite his theatrics, cover to betray the American people and keep their big corporate donors happy. The way that the bill is that is supposed to be coming out of the house, which doesn’t bring universal healthcare to the american people until the inexcusable date of 2013!!!!!!, obama can’t lose becoz if the bill goes thru, he gets to hold the country’s health hostage for the next election by the threat of a republican president repealing it, or he looks good for trying so hard to bring universal healthcare to the American people all the while his chief of staff and the dlc’s master of deceit, emanuel, works behind the scenes to fuck us. That’s how the dynamic duo of deceit work: everything is angled to benefit them no matter what the outcome and, more disgustingly, no matter what the American people want.

By: clemensol

clemensol — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 18:45:51 +0000

According to roll call, negotiations between waxman and energy and commerce blue dogs just collapsed.