Oct 13 2009
A Death Panel Speaks In Massachusetts: Lesser Care For The Lesser People
Where is Obamacare heading? We can look at the UK, where the rising costs of care have the death panels (cost saving panels) discussing the idea of limiting care for the poor life judgement of growing old:
Smokers, heavy drinkers, the obese and the elderly should be barred from receiving some operations, according to doctors, with most saying the health service cannot afford to provide free care to everyone.
Smokers, heavy drinkers and the obese are already barred from many treatments in the UK’s National Health System. Hospitals do it all the time. But still the costs rise. So now the list of socially unacceptable behavior could now include the sin of growing to a ripe old age.
To see the future of American health care we could look to Canada, where their people are running to America to obtain life saving care because the lines for treatment are so long.
Or we can look to government rationed health care here in the US, in the one state liberally dumb enough to try it out on its own people. The government rationed health care in Massachusetts has been running out of control financially (higher costs, lower quality). So they have called in their death panels to cut costs:
The state’s ambitious plan to shake up how providers are paid could have a hidden price for patients: Controlling Massachusetts’ soaring medical costs, many health care leaders believe, may require residents to give up their nearly unlimited freedom to go to any hospital and specialist they want.
Efforts to keep patients in a defined provider network, or direct them to lower-cost hospitals could be unpopular, especially in a state where more than 40 percent of hospital care is provided in expensive academic medical centers and where many insurance policies allow patients access to large numbers of providers.
Emphasis mine. See, the liberal myth that you can go to a one size fits all approach means everyone gets lousy service. It is naive to think everyone would get the premier care those who work hard in life can afford. It is naive to think there will be any tailoring for individual needs or challenges. Those are the things you lose when you buy into the myth that government rationed health care is better than what we have today.
And it is naive to think the pols telling us these lines will actually be using the one size fits all care they have created for the masses. They, of course, will still have a choice.
H/T Ed Morrissey, who links to an even more disturbing feature of the Massachusetts Death Panel’s cost savings efforts – bribing your doctors to skimp on your care:
What the supporters don’t mention is that it also creates a tremendous incentive for physicians and hospitals to render as little care as possible. Under the Massachusetts proposal, if your care costs less than the annual allotment, then they keep the unused portion. If your care costs more, then the difference comes out of the providers’ pockets. Such a system thus pits your doctor’s interests against your own.
Not only are we just numbers on a ledger, we are now easy targets for some unscrupulous people to get rich off of by withholding the lousy government rationed care. Borders on the criminal.
Borders? It’s probably already crossed the line.
Democrat elected officials have a very long history of ‘pay to play’ corruption. It’s understood that if you come to your Congressman with a problem (getting Social Security disability, for instance), you have to pay $500 into his campaign fund.
How much will people have to pay in bribes to access second-rate Government health care? You can be sure, it won’t come cheap.
AJ,
Sen Snowe is voting for Obama care:
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9BAB2PO1&show_article=1&catnum=0#
So much for RINOs.
And “RINOS” will continue to reject the right if they don’t stop insulting them for having different views.
AJ: I agree that insulting someone for having a different view is not proper, but when a person goes against their own political philosophy continuously, people do have a right to speak up and make their feelings heard. I am by no means a supporter of a far right agenda, but I will never support a person who says they are a moderate yet goes against the basic center-right philosophy.
AJ,
Most people prefer to get stabbed from the front.
Trent: this was only a committee vote don’t get to twisted about Ms. Snowe, when the actual scoring on this so called bill comes out the rats will be jumping ship so fast it will make the President’s head spin like Linda Blairs did in the exorcist.
On the good news of the day at least my Dolphins beat the Jets!
Speaking of Rino’s, looks like Christie could be getting set to lose to Corzine, as bad as he is. Christie has just come off as a slightly less corrupt version of Corzine, so in a state where corruption is endemic, why not.
The more openly conservative McDonnell looks to be doing very well. Don’t get me wrong, I would much prefer that Christie win. But he’s run one of the most pathetic campaigns in recent history, and it’s showing.
ama055131,
I am long time Dolphins fan, and I am getting to love the wildcat. What a game!
AJ: I was at the game yesterday and needless to say we were wowed by the wildcat. Watching the first drive while the Jet fans around us were ragging us that the Jet defense was going to shut us down and how Rex Ryan killed it last year in the playoffs was going to be a big bonus for them. I don’t know if you got to see on tv the play where Jake Long pancaked Kris Jenkins, but for us to see the Jet fans faces and their mouths drop to their feet was awesome. Now if are DB’s can make some plays we may have a chance to get to the playoffs.
“We’re going to have to, if you’re very old, we’re not going to give you all that technology and all those drugs for the last couple of years of your life to keep you maybe going for another couple of months. It’s too expensive…so we’re going to let you die.”
-Labor Secretary Robert Reich, economics adviser for Barack Obama-
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/p-j-gladnick/2009/10/13/robert-reich-reveals-brutal-health-care-truths-msm-snores
Trent:
Snowe is one person, just one…blaming the whole party or everyone in it who is not far enough on the right is just not fair.
The truth is the left does not like this bill anymore than the right does, and even Snowe said that she might very well not vote for it on the floor. It is one bill in one committee, there are something like 5 more. This moves the bill forward, a little, but not far enough. I think there is still a very good chance of killing this thing.
In fact Lieberman who is not even a Republican or a conservative, voted against it.
WWS:
Speaking of third parties, it looks like Daggett might steal enough votes to hand the election to Corzine, like a replay of Ross Perot.
And who wins? The Democrats that is who.
If the Democrats could lose New Jersey, that might actually be a bell weather.
Terrye – the only reason Daggett is taking votes is because Christie has been such a failure on the campaign trail. What are his plans for the future? Who knows, he doesn’t seem to have any!!! Also, Daggett is running as an independant but I’ve looked at his statements and, dammit, he is a far better candidate than either Christie or Corzine, and he would be a better Governor than either of them.
If Christie had run even half the campaign that Daggett has, he’d be walking away with this race. But he’s too tied in to business as usual to do any of that. If I was a New Jersey voter, I honestly do not know if I could bring myself to vote for him.
from a news article:
“But Daggett’s profile has reached new heights in recent weeks after he unveiled a bold proposal to cut property, corporate, and income taxes, and expand the sales tax to professional and household services.”
“As Corzine firms up the Democratic base, Harrison said, Daggett’s message appears to be resonating with independents. “He comes across as a straight shooter, not worrying about the political fallout,” Harrison said. “For some independents, that holds great appeal.”
(And I should add, Christie comes across as a big nothing)
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/63948072.html
Frogg: For Robert Reich, I would like to add that those terms will also apply if you’re very short. Munchkins are cute and all that, but in Obama’s Brave New World we just can’t afford ’em.
Snowe votes with the Dems more than the Repubs on just about every issue. She is, however, a descent person (no ethics issues), and a statesman (very polite when she makes a point). I don’t like her votes; but, I like her. I think she was probably just exhausted from the committee stalemate and wanted to move the process forward. She will be the first Repub to cave on the final bill (if anyone caves). But, I think it is inevitable that the final bill will be enormous, full of that liberal stuff, and public option, etc. She’ll probably not be able to vote for the final bill.
Not that it matters.
If there are 60 votes to end the debate….
it only takes a simple majority to pass it.
2010 and 2012 may end up being about repealing Obamacare.
AJ,
The other Female anamatronic wind up RINO Senator from Maine has joined Sen. Snowe in performing her usual role in stabbing Republicans in the back whenever the going gets rough.
This is why RINOs need to be defeated in the Republican primaries to preempt such behavior.
Trent,
Snowe looks brilliant to me (future post). She has the stage and the power to dictate what is out of bounds (e.g., government run health care).
Watch and learn.