CONSERVATIVE POLITICAL COMMENTARY
Pro-Constitution, Anti-Globalist, Anti-Socialist, Anti-Communist, and usually with an attempt at historical and economic context ************************13th Year ----- 2009-2021*****

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

The Coming Healthcare Insurance Showdown

Since my last post, I’ve considered renaming my blog “The Alarmist,” but I suppose that would be counterproductive. Barack Obama is strenuously pushing his agenda along, with ’way too much cooperation and indulgence from the public, many of whom still think Barack will help them get free health insurance, get back at those bad guys who’ve been cheating them, make their mortgage payments, etc. Will it be only after some of his major programs are implemented that the truth will be apparent?

The hot topic right now is health insurance. Obama denies that what he is suggesting is a Trojan horse for socialized medicine. He’s right. It is socialized medicine. How can the U.S. be in favor of any of the proposed plans? Consider:


SOME FACTS ABOUT THE CURRENT SITUATION:
1. Most Americans are content with their current healthcare. According to the CBS News-New York Times poll of June 20, 77% are satisfied with the quality of their own health care, and 50% are satisfied with the cost. [1]

2. About 15% of the 47 million uninsured in America are illegal immigrants. This would be about 7 million people. [2] They would be included in Obama's plan.

3. According to a June 20 CBS News-New York Times poll, a majority of Americans say they would be willing to pay higher taxes in order for everyone to have healthcare coverage, but when it gets to specifics, say, $500 more in taxes, or higher premiums for themselves, the numbers drop off to a minority. Most are concerned that their own health care quality could get worse with government involvement, and that access to care will be limited. So there are serious concerns, yet most people want everyone to be covered, as long as they themselves don’t have to pay too much. Throughout the poll, Republicans are much less desirous of having government participation than are Democrats. [1]

Many people could provide their own health insurance but choose not to. Also, emergency care is available whether a person can afford it or not.

SOME OBSERVATIONS:
1. Obama presents this as a “crisis.” The healthcare system is “broken.” This must be accomplished now, before the Congressional recess. In fact, it is far from being a crisis, but implementing any of the proposed Democrat plans will bring it to a crisis.

2. Democratic sponsors were startled by the Congressional Budget Office’s estimate of the cost: About $1 trillion over 10 years, while providing health insurance to only 16 million (not 47 million) additional people. This cost would supposedly be covered by new taxes on sugary beverages, income for people earning above $200K, employer-provided benefits, and Lord knows what else. Add this to the already endless debt on things already in motion. It can never be paid – not in this lifetime!

3. In the above-cited poll, a majority thought Government could do a better job of “holding costs down,” by which they must have meant costs to the new recipients of coverage, and not costs as a whole. Obama has the nerve to say this will somehow help reduce healthcare costs when in fact it will place a very heavy burden on taxpayers present and future and provide comparatively little in return.

4. The government, if a public plan is implemented, will “hold down” costs by rationing care. The result will be long delays, denials of treatment, greatly diminished healthcare quality.

ARE OBAMA AND THE DEMOCRATS BEING TRUTHFUL?
Check the following video from YouTube. It was posted on The Heritage Foundation’s website.:



This healthcare deception is so obvious it strains common sense not to understand it as another step in the great fascist program of Obama. Once the Federal Government takes charge of healthcare, we are into full-blown socialism. It’s just a matter of a few details, which may take a little time, as Obama said.

Government insurance will not “compete” fairly with private insurers, it will put them out of business. When you have a government service with unlimited demand and no need to post a profit, you have endless cost for a program that will turn out to be severe rationing. And government control of a very important aspect of our lives.

FURTHER IMPLICATIONS
And healthcare is just the beginning. Once we are on that road, it will be very hard to change course. We trust them with our healthcare? We trust them to take over more and more of the private sector? We trust them to regulate every aspect of daily life? They’re already at work, pushing individuality and private enterprise to the margins and replacing them with government plans with mandatory participation and no end to the cost. Are we ready for that? I’m not!

I’ve said before that this is the defining issue for Republicans. If they fail to solidly oppose this and filibuster it if possible, then I might have to concede that a third party is not unthinkable. But we have some good people in the GOP. God help them.

Notes:
[1] “Poll: Most Back Public Health Care Option,” CBS News.com, 06/20/2008, at
http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/opinion/polls/main500160.shtml

[2] Richard Wolf, “Rising health care costs put focus on illegal immigrants,” USA Today, 01/22/2008, at http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2008-01-21-immigrant-healthcare_N.htm

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