at least there’s hope

How it irks me to say this, but Go Rocky!
*ouch*

hope (TM)

I wonder whether Jello Jay is paying penance for his being, well… Jello.

Maybe he’s sincere – maybe he knows that there isn’t a chance in hell….

and yes – I *have* begun to realize that the members of the U.S. Senate whom I trust can be counted on the fingers of one hand – and still leave the middle finger free.

It irks me not one whit to say this, Schumer is such a tool.

Hey, Chuckie was just trying to submit a proposal that would undermine all the good Feinstein could get behind.

This is intentional battering of the left. So that, when they stop, we’ll say thank you for ending it.

None of these is robust enough for me. We need to add immediate access to millions more people, and the use of the Treasury instead of reserves.

The level playing field is just silly.

Thanks for the summary, Jon. Rockefeller’s public option is called the Consumer Choice Health Plan. One small correction: looks like the tie in Medicare rate is 2 years:

At a minimum, the Consumer Choice Health Plan would be required to follow the same insurance regulations as private plans operating in the exchange. CCHP would also be required to offer the same type of plans as private plans participating in the exchange. Minimum benefit
requirements for children would be based on the pediatric care guidelines provided by Bright Futures, which offers evidenced-based direction on the provision of well-child and other primary health care services. The provider payment rates for the first two years of CCHP would be based
on Medicare provider payment rates, . . .

“The three public options run the gambit…”
Gamut
‘Running a gambit’ is something a con man does.

Oops — there is another Rockefeller Amendment, also to create a “public option,” and that one does have a 3-year tie-in to Medicare payment rates.

Sec. 223. Payment rates for items and services. The Secretary of HHS establishes geographically-adjusted provider payment rates for the public option. For the first three years, those rates are based on Medicare rates with a 5% add-on for practitioners who also participate in the Medicare program. This increase also applies to practitioners, like pediatricians, who do not typically participate in Medicare. After the first three years, the Secretary is granted greater flexibility in setting rates, but the general rule is that overall spending should remain consistent
with the initial levels.

Rockefeller Amendment C7

The size of the public option depends on the rules for eligibility for the exchange. That’s covered in other sections. IIRC, Baucus actually expands eligibilty to larger businesses faster than HELP, but I haven’t found the section yet.

The more I see about a “Public Option” that will start in four years, the more I dislike it. It seems to be another bright shiny object that will merely enrich the”Medical Industrial Complex” more. Only a “Single Payer” will fix this sick system.

Rep. John Murtha is too “corrupt” for some of the Dee Cee vilagers. But Murtha has co-sponsored HR 676 for a Single Payer system. I am willing to give Murtha credit, because he is trying to do something for me. The Village Idiots, such as Sally Quinn can go to Cokie Robert’s Weenie roasts as much as they want. But they never have and never will do anything for us.

President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid must at least allow a vote for Single Payer. Thank you John Murtha, Dennis Kucinich and John Conyers. The Villagers can go to hell, and when they get there there will be no health care for them.

I think Rockefeller wants to really leave a legacy. Seems like he must have really been hit by Kennedy’s death.

Here he is on Ed Schultz discussing the public option.

I agree with Wyden, it should be open to anyone. Just because a certain company or school district is already signed up with an insurance company shouldn’t preclude them from the public system.

Why do Schumer and Rockefeller offer two amendments? Are they schizoid?

I think Rockefeller said he has 18 amendments.

tom hartmann has a great proposal for a public option

to get the exact figure each new member will cost medicare and charge that fee plus administration.

seems simple enough right there and it pays for itself

I have a proposal myself and it’s not “government run” it’s “private industry run”;

“whoever cannot afford health care has it anyway and it is funded by the health industry from a pool much like the asigned risk pool”

bing, private industry BEG for a public option

here’s another pretty good idea;

“health care for top program cannot exceed 5 percent anual wages, this includes those out of work

no person can be turned down they will be asigned from a pool like “asigned risk” are asigned from a pool

no recognized health proceedure can be denyed accept those specifically excluded”

I like that plan right there tons

the “5%” figure isn’t set in stone, I think according to the economy that figure could go up or down

McJoan does an excellent job with the amendments.

Marcy Wheeler is upstairs!
Poppy Bush Not Joining Other DCIs Opposing Investigation of W Bush’s Torture

Unfortunately for the Public Option–and for democracy–finance committee Dems suggested they will apply a 60-vote criteria to each of the amendments, effectively filibustering themselves before a bill even gets to the floor.

From Politico: “the group decided during an afternoon session that the strategy of the markup is to produce legislation that can get 60 votes, according to Baucus and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).”

COMPETITION with Private & Public Options = Lower COST Health Care for ALL

100% of Citizens use a Nationwide Internet Health Care Exchange showing Private and Public Plans ranked by cost, benefits, deductibles, or co-pays to select best plan for them!

Exchange offers Real Competition including Medicare Public Option for FAIR PRICING!

NO Rejections of any kind!

Agree that the Optimal Solution is Single-Payer!

But if NOT We need COMPETITION with Private & Public Options = Lower COST Health Care for ALL:

100% of Citizens use a Nationwide Internet Health Care Exchange showing Private and Public Plans ranked by cost, benefits, deductibles, or co-pays to select best plan for them!

Exchange offers Real Competition including Medicare Public Option for FAIR PRICING!

NO Rejections of any kind!

Schumer’s two bites at the apple, especially his third, indicates he’s almost as dedicated as MaxTax to gouging the public option. His requirement that the public option’s operations mimic those of the privates – does that mean their CEO’s can collect tens of millions for NOT providing medical care and increasing profits? – seems guaranteed to raise costs, not contain them, and to avoid subjecting privates to any meaningful competition.

In many cases, privates already have state- or region-wide monopolies. A start-up that is limited to mimicking their methods would have little opportunity to compete unless there is also considerable new and better nationwide regulation of insurance practices and the contracts they sell. In essence, what they sell now should be outlawed. Unless that happens, Schumer’s plan, like Baucus’, is designed to maintain the status quo for the insuresters. What else would one expect from the Senator Schemer (D-Bankster)?

ditto.

what happened to the Prewar intelligence investigation? Phase I and Phase II of the SSCI seemed to go no where. Feith and the war team walking the streets while so many have died.

And now we have a war profiteer as the head of that committee. DiFI

As each day goes by it becomes more and more apparent that creating a public plan from scratch is beyond stupid. How can these senators justify reinventing the wheel when all we have to do is expand Medicare or piggyback on the Medicare infrastructure?

Every senator should have to explain why this is a good idea to his/her constituents.

If only we could get more people to see this. There should be a national strike. I think there would be a national strike if people really realized what was going on.

Before the Baucus bill, I already thought this whole thing had gotten overly complicated — purposely complicated. Now it’s a lot worse. Sausage making or not, this is ridiculously overly complicated. I was hopeful before all these amendments were thrown in. Now I’m really wondering if we’re going to get this done in any kind of reasonable way. The SFC bill and all of its amendments should be ditched.

The Congress is back in session and doing the dirty work for the Medical Industrial Complex.

mcconnell $3.3M, hatch $2.9M, baucus $2.8M, grassley $2.7M,
lieberman $2.6M, burr $2.4M, ensign $2.4M, cornyn $2.2M, kyl $2.1M,
conrad $2.1M, cantor $1.8M boehner $1.7M, coburn $1.2M, j wilson 800K
were paid by the Medical Industrial Complex to kill Health Care Reform.
(Source: OpenSecrets.org)

Researchers from Harvard Medical School say the lack of coverage can be tied to about 45,000 deaths a year in the United States. 12 Million Americans were denied health care coverage by the Medical Industrial Complex because they had a pre-existing medical condition. 12K Americans are denied insurance coverage everyday by a for-profit Insurance bureaucrat. (Source: WaPo Article 05′ by Harvard Prof. E. Warren)

Medical malpractice lawsuits are a hot topic but, are they? Tort Reform is such a “red herring” and is easily disproved. A 2004 report by the Congressional Budget Office said medical malpractice makes up only 2 percent of U.S. health spending. Even “significant reductions” would do little to curb health-care expenses, it concluded.

Citizens for Tax Justice pointed this out. The tax legislation enacted under President George W. Bush from 2001 through 2006 will cost $2.48 trillion over the 2001-2010 period. This includes the revenue loss of $2.11 trillion that results directly from the cheney/bush tax cuts as well as the $379 billion in additional interest payments on the national debt that we must make since the tax cuts were deficit-financed. Over the upcoming decade (2010-2019), the costs of the health care proposals approved by three committees in the U.S. House of Representatives are projected to be around $1 trillion and deficit neutral(that means they’re paid for). In 2010, when all the cheney/bush tax cuts are finally phased in, a staggering 52.5 percent of the benefits will go to the richest 5 percent of taxpayers. The cheney/bush tax cuts were deficit-financed, which increased the national debt and resulted in greater interest payments on that debt. cheney/bush administration never even tried to pay for their tax-cuts. So, for the price of cheney/bush’s tax-cuts for the wealthiest 5%, we could have had Health Care for every American. Instead Americans got bupkus and cheney/bush’s republican campaign contributors/golf buddies got filthy rich off of the Blood Money from No-Bid, Cost-Plus Federal Contracts.

Follow the Money: Link

Call Congress and demand, Single-Payer Health Care for All!

(Toll Free # House and Senate)
1-866-338-1015_______________1-866-220-0044
1-800-473-6711_______________1-866-311-3405

Sign Single-Payer Petition: Link

Don’t let the Medical Industrial Complex steal your Health Care from you and your family by donating huge sums of money to Crooked Politicians in order to maintain the Status Quo. Keep up the good fight.

SEMPER FI!

Scarecrow, That was Rockefeller original public option he submitted as a bill three months ago. The public option he submitted last Friday as an amendment to the Baucus’ bill was different. from the description:

“For the first three years, those rates are based on Medicare rates with a 5% add-on for practitioners who also participate in the Medicare program.”

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