Comments on: House Puts Forward Unified Health Care Plan

By: Jimmy the Dhimmi

Jimmy the Dhimmi — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 23:21:12 +0000

Starting in 2011, a family making $500,000 would have to pay $1,500 in additional income tax to help subsidize coverage for the uninsured.

Does the family making $500,000 recieve a monthly letter updating them about the particular underprivaledged family that they are supporting? At least with UNICEF or the Christian Children’s Fund, you get a crayon drawing from one of the kids.

By: Tully

Tully — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 17:36:58 +0000

The more I dig into the details of this bill, the more I think it was DESIGNED to go down in flames, written just so that Democrats could point at it and blame the GOP and centrist/Blue Dog Dems for killing it. You can access the full text (all 1018 pages) here.

By: kranky kritter

kranky kritter — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:58:44 +0000

Dude, I think “spinola special” should be a coined term. Brilliant.

By: Simon

Simon — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:15:11 +0000

It's a simple plan, too. Everyone follow?

By: Tully

Tully — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:00:54 +0000

Color me skeptical about this plan being â€œpaid forâ€ to the tune of $500 billion in Medicare â€œsavings.â€

Color me MORE than just skeptical. The “savings” are explicitly going to just be cost-shifted back onto the private-payer side of the system, cut off one side just to be pasted back on the other, as we have seen continuously with MCD/MCR “savings” previously imposed by the government. It’s one of the prime drivers in cost increases NOW, and has been for decades. More of the same! The assumption that the tax revenues will materialize is likewise highly questionable.

Snake oil, and low-grade at that.

(Appropriately enough, the captcha words I’m seeing right now are SPINOLA SPECIAL.)

By: Tony Lambiris

Tony Lambiris — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:00:39 +0000

OH NOEZ, MY FREEDOMS! HOW CAN I FEEL LIKE A UNIQUE SNOWFLAKE IF EVERYONE HAS THE SAME BASE LEVEL OF COVERAGE. THE SKY IS FALLING, THE SKY IS FALLING!!!!!1

Sound about right?

By: michael reynolds

michael reynolds — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:44:05 +0000

I see no Republicans have commented yet, so let me do it for them:

Oh, sweet Jesus, a tax increase! Nooooooo! Help us Lord, help us we’re all gonna dieeeee!

And that’s just from the ones who won’t actually be affected by the tax increase. Average Republicans are very solicitous of the incomes of their superiors. Like serfs looking out for the baron’s stags.

Speaking for myself: eh. 1% or 1.5%, I’ll survive.

By: John Burke

John Burke — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:40:55 +0000

Color me skeptical about this plan being “paid for” to the tune of $500 billion in Medicare “savings.”

These are highly speculative paper “savings” the are likely to evaporate as this plan takes effect (if it ever does). Either we’ll find that they cannot be achieved or, in the unlikely event that they are, Medicare beneficiaries wil find that THEIR coverage is being stripped and made more costly (it’s NOT free), in which case Congress will havwe to find another source of revenue to offset the unachieved savings (look out for future tax increases!).

More prudent heads in the Senate hopefully understand this scam and will preclude it from happening — but you never know.