Entries from December 2009 ↓

“We only hope Republicans aren’t foolish enough to fall down this trap door, though some are already tempted. A budget deficit commission is nothing more than a time-tested ploy to get Republicans to raise taxes.”

- Wall Street Journal

Which is worse: taxpayer dollars lost to medicare fraud or taxpayer dollars that go to health insurance industry profits?

3.4% of health insurance industry revenues go to profits.
3%-20% of medicare spending is fraudulent.
Therefore, if you replaced private health insurance with medicare for all, you would lose more money to fraud than is now going to profits.

A public option would not increase the amount of money spent on health care.

“The House adopted a 5.4 percent income surtax on individuals earning more than $500,000 and couples earning over $1 million to pay for its $1.05 trillion bill.

“I do find it hard to see how the kind of taxes they put in the House bill would get five, six, seven of our more conservative senators to vote for it,” Schumer said in an interview.

Senate Democrats would fund their $871 billion bill, which passed on a final vote of 60-39 yesterday, in part by placing a 40 percent excise tax on the costliest health-insurance policies. That provision is opposed by labor unions, which are among the party’s strongest backers.”

- Bloomberg

“…694,161 Canadians are on a waiting list for medical procedures.”

“On average, Canadians waited 16.1 weeks from the time their general practitioner referred them to a specialist until they actually received treatment in 2009…”

“In the United States, the average wait to see an orthopedic specialist is 16.8 days, according to a survey by medical consulting firm Merritt Hawkins and Associates. Canadians wait 17.1 weeks for the same appointment.”

- Sally Pipes

“In Canada, an eight week wait for cancer radiation.”

- Dick Morris And Eileen McGann

“The proposed board would establish a new spending target that could subject physicians to multiple cuts in a given year.”

- American Medical Association

“In short, ObamaCare doesn’t need to set up “death panels” to make retail decisions about ending the lives of individual patients. The whole “reform” scheme is one giant death panel in its own right.”

- Dick Morris And Eileen McGann

“There is no such thing as a moderate Democrat or a centrist or a conservative or a Reagan Democrat. There are only Democrats who, when the chips are down, will vote as his leaders need him to vote.”

- Dick Morris And Eileen McGann

“Independent Payment Advisory Board”:

“The proposed board would establish a new spending target that could subject physicians to multiple cuts in a given year.”

- American Medical Association

1. higher federal and state taxes
2. higher federal debt
3. higher health insurance premiums
4. higher health care waiting times

“Taxes start going up now, Medicare cuts begin after next fall’s election, and spending for subsidies commences in five years.”

- Karl Rove, 12.2009