ObamaCare = Death and Taxes
The only things sure in life are death and taxes. ObamaCare increases both.
President Barack “Pants-On-Fire” Obama continued his dog and pony road show of nationalized health care with a stop to discuss his Medicare cutting health plan with members of AARP. Obviously hoping the seniors he encountered still had their deductive reasoning numbed from trying to install their digital TV converters; Obama gave them a well rehearsed histrionic explanation of his plan that was equally as confusing.
He attempted to assure those present that the massive cuts in Medicare that his ObamaCare plan calls for will in no way reduce the care provided. The current US House version of the plan calls for over $246 billion in Medicare spending cuts. Obama attempted to reassure his audience that this money could be cut by cutting out waste and limiting payments for governmentally deemed “unnecessary” hospital readmissions. But he may have lost their confidence when he followed that explanation up with a suggestion that seniors need to make plans for end-of-life care. He may as well have said funeral arrangements.
Seniors at this event and those previous have stated serious concerns about their right to choose what medical treatment will still be available to them. Things like orthopedic joint replacements, cardiac and other surgeries and advanced drug therapy are all slated for far greater governmental oversight, weighing the benefits of treatment against the overall life expectancy of patient. While it truly will come down to an actuary numbers game, Obama tried to comfort those attending by saying “Nobody is talking about cutting Medicare benefits”. Does that mean it won’t happen or just that nobody is talking about it? This attempted mollification is in direct conflict with his previous explanation that pain medicine may be the government mandated course of treatment for many seniors rather than expensive life-saving surgery.
The ObamaCare plan calls for reduced payments to doctors for Medicare patients and reducing or eliminating payments to hospitals for Medicare patients that must be readmitted after being sent home. It is reasonable to assume that doctors, who are in the business of providing healthcare, will be forced to limit their exposure to Medicare patients just to stay in business. It is also reasonable to assume that hospitals will be far less likely to allow senior patients back in after they have been discharged for fear of not getting paid at all. Even if “Nobody is talking about a reduction in Medicare benefits” the outcome of these cuts will have that exact effect.
The House plan also foolishly calls for barring private insurance companies from denying coverage to people with preexisting conditions. The obvious effect this will have is a dramatic increase in insurance premiums and reduced benefits for everybody to cover these patients. It is just another example of how this administration plans to nationalize what was once private business.
For their part, the always liberal AARP is a strong supporter of Barack Obama and his smoke and mirrors health plan, which the White House has called a milestone. But AARP was also a strong supporter of the Clinton healthcare plan in the mid 1990’s and suffered a huge backlash from their members in that failed attempt. Once more details of this ObamaCare redistribution of healthcare are made clear they will likely suffer the same fate again.
The entire H.R. 3200 bill currently under consideration in the House is 1017 pages long. The President spoke only briefly to the AARP audience considering the massive implications this $1 trillion behemoth proposes. But it is fitting that he ended his comments with suggestions to seniors about aligning proper end-of-life care and living wills. This nationalized health plan does provide consultations aimed at reducing costs for people deemed to be near death.
ObamaCare – Where the death of seniors is always an appropriate option in redistributing healthcare to the poor.
Soylent Green anyone?
