Not-For-Profit Healthcare

We Must Collapse The Current For-Profit Healthcare System And Replace It With Single Payer

I have been writing about a “Not-for-profit” healthcare system (a single payer system) for years. I have shown many countries that have such systems. I have shown that they live longer, have a better quality of life, don’t go bankrupt over medical issues, have fewer dead babies, and actually see the doctors more, but are much more healthy, while spending a fraction per individual than Americans do. How can we be so stupid? How can we NOT want what these other countries (we are somewhere around Number 45 in healthcare in the world… we were once Number 2 or 3) have for their citizens?

My guess is that the answer is that most of us are too stupid to understand what I am writing about. You fall for the two party lies. You fall for the MSM’s lies. You actually like and want corporations dominating you and your life. In other words, as much as Dr. Robert S. Dotson seems to indicate that the problem is the 545 elected congress maniacs, in all actuality the problem is us. Until the current system collapses (and it will, just how long it will take is the question) his recommendations are pertinent:

In a perfect world, it is my opinion that we should have some form of single payer healthcare system and divorce ourselves from corporate medicine. In my opinion, this will not happen without the complete collapse of the present system. Since that is unlikely to occur before more seasons of national election fraud are imposed on us, a few “in-the-meantime” suggestions follow:

Avoid contact with the existing health care system as far as possible. Yes, emergencies arise that require the help of physicians, but by and large one can learn to care for one’s own minor issues. Though it is flawed, the internet has been an information leveler for the masses and permits each person to be his or her own physician to a large degree. Take advantage of it! Educate yourself about your own body and learn to fuel and maintain it as you would an expensive auto or a pet poodle. One does not need a medical degree to:

1. avoid excessive use of tobacco or alcohol or, for that matter, caffeine;
2. avoid poisons like fluoride, aspartame, high fructose corn syrup, and addictive drugs (legal or illicit);
3. avoid unnecessary and potentially lethal imaging studies (TSA’s radiation pornbooths, excessive mammography, repetitive CT scans – exposure to all significantly increases cancer risk);
4. avoid excessive cell phone use and exposure to other forms of EMR pollution where possible (the NSA is recording everything you say and text anyway);
5. avoid daily fast food use and abuse (remember: pink slime and silicone) ;
6. avoid untested GM foods (do you really want to become “Roundup Ready?”):
7. avoid most vaccinations and pharmaceutical agents promoted by the establishment;
8. avoid risky behaviors (and, we do not need a bunch of Nanny State bureaucrats to define and police these);
9. exercise moderately;
10. get plenty of sleep;
11. drink plenty of good quality water (buy a decent water filter to remove fluoride, chloride, and heavy metals);
12. wear protective gear at work and play where appropriate (helmets, eye-shields, knee and elbow pads, etc.):
13. seek out locally-grown, whole, organic foods and support your local food producers;
14. take appropriate nutritional supplements (multi-vitamins, Vitamin C, Vitamin D3);
15. switch off the TV and the mainstream media it represents;
16. educate yourself while you can;

And, lastly…

17. QUESTION AUTHORITY!

We, if we had any sense, whatsoever, would have learned the truth and done away with both faux parties and took the bull by the horns to eliminate the health insurance stranglehold over us (and those corrupt politicians who made it possible that these companies take you for everything you have). And maybe the answer is to address it at the state level, like Maryland seems to be doing.

The following series of videos presents one of the better descriptions of how a single payer system would work, how it would be paid for and how much money would be saved, how it would serve far better healthcare, longer lives, better quality of life, fewer dead babies (and an improvement in every other metric I can think of):

Also, the entire series with transcripts can be seen at the RealNews Network.

Of course, you might want to save 25% over what you pay right now?

Naaa.

h/t Paul Craig Roberts

The Video Rebel Gets Close To A Solution, Then Mimics Lamar Alexander

I have been following the Video Rebel since the inception of the blog. They do some very good work, altho they also fell for the ‘Ron Paul for God’ meme floating around the blogosphere. I called him out on the Ron Paul Plan To Restore America, suggesting that Paul’s stump rhetoric does not match his written plan. Maybe he doesn’t like the word PaulTard. I dunno.

Like most all the other “alternative” sites, this went over like a lead balloon (it amazes me how emotionally invested these people get in their favorite candidate of the two parties). No matter how much people like Video Rebel and others suggest Paul is “Independent”, Paul’s own words betray such a trust and makes these people look like lemmings unable to think thru another two-party dog and pony mindmuck.

Nevertheless, VR has written two blog posts recently that grabbed my attention. I try to comment, but he has banned me from his blog (ole B’Man must be really scary, a total dickhead, or I say shit that goes against their ideology, causing these stalwart defenders of liberty and freedom to squash any liberty or freedom for me to share with them). That is very telling. In the two posts, VR has a solution for the financial woes and in my estimation, they look as if they could work (nothing being done now is correcting any of the problems) and so I commend him for his ideas and presentation.

For instance, an interest free money… taking the trillions stolen by bankers back… debt cancellation… abolish income taxes…. etc (many very good ideas)…

However, like most Socialist Hunters (kinda like a Vampire Hunter), VR takes the same tact that my TN Senator takes and that is to continue the Health Insurance Companies’ stranglehold over healthcare. They think they offer a solution (well, I am giving VR the benefit of the doubt, cause Alexander doesn’t give a shit about anything except protecting the health insurance companies). In Alexander’s latest Newsletter he says:

The Supreme Court may have failed to declare the entire health-care law unconstitutional, but it is still an historic mistake that expanded a health-care system we already knew we couldn’t afford. Congress should repeal the law and then proceed step by step to reduce the cost of health care so more Americans can afford to buy insurance.

I Don’t Want Healthcare If Just Anyone Can Have It

I Don’t Want Healthcare If Just Anyone Can Have It

By Jocelyn Chao
March 7, 2007 | ISSUE 43•10

B’Man’s Rants: What Can Be Done To Fix The Country I Love?

Not Necessarily In Any Particular Order:

Conduct an immediate, independent investigation of 911 (all facets leading up to and after the event). Any and all conspirators and their operatives should be summarily executed upon any finding of guilt (for this would be obvious treason). Any person or organization found to have lied, misrepresented, or hid facts revolving what happened on that fateful day should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law (members of the 911 Commission, Zelikow, Bush Admin officials, etc)

“Think Tanks” and other Elitist organizations with obvious blood lust as their mantra should be dismantled and those people held to scrutiny of truth by the American public. No think tank (nor its Zionist operatives,) should be allowed to organize and write battle plans for any military endeavor. No organization or persons should be allowed to blatantly lie about rationale to invade innocent lands and those who did should be prosecuted and held responsible for those lies.

End the “War on Drugs” immediately

End The Empire immediately

End all of wars – Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya… and all proxy wars, coup attempts, and assassinations

Eliminate all off shore military (Empire) bases and bring each and every military personnel home

Eliminate all over-seas money (especially to Israel)

Allow all “Too-Big-To-Fail” banks/corporations to fail like the rest of us when we over-extend or bet away our security.

Abolish Corporate person-hood.

Never vote for a Republican or Democrat (nor any defectors from these parties when we clean house)

Re-balance the power structure of the US Government (Executive power has been increased to dictatorial levels, but to the demise of the congressional power. There should be no presidential “signing statements”. )

Enact campaign finance laws taking corporate money out of elections (heavily scrutinize and hold accountable donations sent to congress people who cater to the whims of that industry: ie; Marsha Blackburn’s heavy telecom money influences her votes regarding legislature that affects them).

Have Term Limits and use a proportional voting system (shorten Senator terms to 4 years and increase Congressional seats to 4)

Minimize congressional pay, retirement and medical benefits (none of these millionaires have done anything to deserve these huge benefits and payouts for the rest of their lives). This should be an honor to serve and no enriching, lifelong career move.

Disallow wives and family members from active participation in congressional matters (example: Max Baucus’ wife). Obvious conflict of interest.

Disallow insider trading of Congressmen (the Congress has 50 times more millionaires than regular citizens, per capita). These people can get inside information and buy/sell stocks. For you or I, this is illegal. For them, its enriching.

Stop the revolving doors of industry/government. Want to know why regulators don’t regulate? Their next employer (the one they are supposed to watch) won’t like it. Look no further than this devil to see why there needs to be no revolving doors (he is responsible for the Patriot Act, much of the Homeland Security apparatus, and untold other secret initiatives AND is an Israeli dual citizen… see next point).

Do not allow dual citizenship personnel to be in our government (there is but one allegiance to as an elected official in America and that is to AMERICA, not Israel, nor any OTHER country). Frankly, as opposed to the Senators who don’t even question such things, I don’t trust anyone who shows allegiance to two different masters. For such devotees can only hate one and love the other or be devoted to one and despise the other (Matt 6:24). They certainly cannot be trusted. Period.

Stop all foreign campaign finance and strongarming by lobbying groups whose allegiance is to another country (AIPAC, as an example). What a Zionist wants for America is NOT what is BEST for America, but is BEST for Israel and their world take-over agenda.

Mandatory disclosure of ALL personal information when running for elected office with exclusion and/or prosecution for those who refuse (never allow a dead beat draft dodger or Kenyan with a Connecticut birth certificate… having never actually lived in Connecticut… become leaders of this country).

Audit the FED… hold the thieves accountable… Close the Fed… enact a viable financial system where the government issues currency backed by precious metals (never allow a fiat currency in this country again)

Eliminate the IRS.

Eliminate personal and corporate income tax.

Eliminate the estate (death) tax.

Abolish Obama Care… implement Single Payer, Not-For-Profit healthcare. (Get the middle man insurance companies out of it.)

Immediately reduce Federal spending by 25%, minimum

Eliminate hundreds of unnecessary Federal agencies, including the FDA, Education, Dept of Agriculture, etc (not to mention all the pork and hidden payouts found deep inside bills)

Abolish the Department of Homeland Security and its entire apparatus (especially the TSA)

Repeal the Patriot Act

Prosecute, imprison or execute the ones (including George W Bush) who are responsible for torture to be conducted in our names. Prosecute and imprison any and all presidents who do not hold these murderers accountable, including Barack Obama. Obama, himself, should be held accountable for the murder of American citizens without a trial.

Balance the Budget

Secure our borders, pursue a sane immigration policy

Please add points of interest or correct anything I may have off base in comments…

Where In The World Is Universal Healthcare? France

We were supposed to take BuelahGirl to the doctor for a check-up related to a busted ear drum which was the result of ear tubes being placed in her ear canals as a means of minimizing ear infections and related sickness. Of course, at the time she had that surgery, I had a good job and good insurance (but was still out several thousands of dollars). Such is the idea of “good insurance” in America.

Since, however, I was laid off (along with the other sales people) from the company, even tho it was my efforts that was keeping them afloat and subsequently, they have made money off of my endeavors, without me being compensated, nor paid the money that I had on the books (in others words, they used me and kept the money I made them). Such is a “good job” in America.

After being ripped off, we used all of our savings and cashed out what little retirement I had accumulated and have been barely getting by on the meager unemployment compensation. But, we were able to qualify my daughter for TennCare, which is supposed to be a life saver for people put into my predicament. The problem is that almost all the doctors we were using refuse to accept Tenncare and now we find ourselves searching for a doctor that will, even though it was the previous doctor’s operation that CAUSED this problem in the first place. Again, such is “good healthcare” in America.

But let me show you what good healthcare actually is by pointing to the world’s Number 1 country… those stinky under-armed French.

Click to enlarge

 The World Health Organization (WHO) ranks the French health care system as the best in the world. The U.S. system ranks 37th. The complex details of the procedures used to determine these rankings are available on the WHO website. The WHO has hundreds of rankings on health related topics as specific as beer consumption by country. The U.S. fails to distinguish itself favorably in any of them.

Read all of that Rag Blog article to get a taste for how poorly we add up to France and then come here and tell me how we are Number 1. But let me share a quick synopsis:

• France spends $3,300 per capita, while we pay $6,400.
• Infant mortality in France is 3.9 per 1,000 live births, we are 7.0 per 1,000.
• Deaths from respiratory disease in France is 31.2 per 100,000, we are 61.5 per 100,000.
• Deaths preventable with good healthcare (amenable mortality) in France is number 1 of 19 industrialized countries, we are last.
• 65% of the French are satisfied with their healthcare, but only 40% in America are happy (and I would bet it is far lower than that).
• The French have Universal coverage, yet we have 15.4% that are not covered at all (and twice that many are UNDERinsured).
• French insurance companies MUST offer “guaranteed renewability”, so you can’t be dropped due to illness. Here, let me laugh.
• Doctors are paid far less in France, but have no student loans to pay back as we have.
• French doctors are mandated to provide preventative care, here, as my doctor recently told me, she only practices AFTER one is sick.
• French people can go to any doctor they like, even specialists (without referral) and experience no long waits. But here, I have the exact opposite experience.
• France, like us, has new mandatory “Co-Pays”, but a doctor’s visit is roughly $1.42 out of the individual’s pocket… $.71 for a prescription… and a whopping $24/day for a hospital stay. what did you pay in co-pays lately?
• Because the French take care of their citizens so well, especially early on, they live longer and have far better lives.

Yes, those filthy French are horrible, aren’t they? They pay far less than us, but have far superior health and lives. Unlike us and our crazy-assed Ayn Rand wannabes who make policy decisions based simply upon self and as much money as can possibly be made, they actually care for each other over there and are willing to help those (the poor) who can’t afford it by taxes and guaranteeing universal healthcare for everyone. Here, in the Greatest Nation In The World (trademark), however, we are so stupid to realize that our system is nothing more than a corrupt money gobbling system intent on as much profit from every avenue they can find a penny to squeeze it from.

And we continue to fall from our self-perceived perch of grandiosity.

We are truly the stupidest people on the face of the planet for allowing it.

If you like what you see here at The Revolt, please subscribe via Email subscription or by the RSS Feed button found on the upper right hand corner of this page and/or hit the Share Button at the bottom of the post to share via various means.

All posts are opinions meant to foster comment, reporting, teaching & study under the “fair use doctrine” in Sec. 107 of U.S. Code Title 17. No statement of fact is made or should be implied. Ads appearing on this blog are solely the product of the advertiser and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of BuehlahMan’s Revolt or WordPress.com

Related articles

• Proposed reimbursement rate cut for TennCare providers may mean even fewer services available (knoxnews.com)
• Why healthcare costs so much in the U.S. (dailykos.com)
• Healthcare in America (jsexton0.blogspot.com)
• ObamaCare: How Stupid Are The Sheople, Really? (buelahman.wordpress.com)
• Also Read These for more from B’Man on Universal Healthcare
• More “Where In The World Is Universal Healthcare” at B’Man’s Revolt

ObamaCare: How Stupid Are The Sheople, Really?

You Obama Maniacs fought hard to get ObamaCare implemented and the entire time I kept telling you that it was a sham. I fought hard for Single Payer, Universal HealthCare for All and many of you called me a Socialist (not even knowing what the word meant), even tho I showed you time and time again how that type of system is far superior and much cheaper to implement.

The only real justifiable complaint would be that many people would lose their jobs in the middle-man ripoff known as health insurance, but even that fear is not totally encompassing, because those very administrators and employees of Health Insurance would still be needed to carry out similar jobs from the Single Payer entity created.

The biggest issue is removing the profit driven, Corporate control of these leeches and implement a sane and socially responsible system that covers each and every American.

But, B’Man, “ObamaCare will take us where you want us to go!”

You fools!

What has anything associated with Obama done that is beneficial to the American public?

Case in point, the very health insurance rip-offs that fought so hard to get this atrocity passed, lining the pockets of many Congresspeople, including my own from Tennessee, are now fighting to take advantage of the loopholes they made possible.

10 Health Insurance Companies Get ObamaCare Waivers — for Their Own Employees

Read it to find out what I’m saying (I don’t necessarily agree with every point this website projects, but when it comes to following the money, it shows how easy it was for the insurance companies to thwart the very idea of the Sheople’s law).

Actually, there are 733 wavers issued already. Ad there will be many more.

All you sycophantic idiots who “hoped” that “change” would come are instrumental in this thievery (altho I doubt you got the nads to man up and admit it). I still find ObamaManiacs defending the Corptocracy with every breath, so this will be no different.

But I have a track record of calling this stuff right. And any sane person simply needs to go back and look at the one issue that both “sides” fought against tooth and nail for you to get the real picture. Both fought against Single Payer. Both protected health insurance and Big Meds.

That should be enough for anyone to understand, but sadly it won’t be.

If you like what you see here at The Revolt, please subscribe via Email subscription or by the RSS Feed button found on the upper right hand corner of this page and/or hit the Share Button at the bottom of the post to share via various means.

All posts are opinions meant to foster comment, reporting, teaching & study under the “fair use doctrine” in Sec. 107 of U.S. Code Title 17. No statement of fact is made or should be implied. Ads appearing on this blog are solely the product of the advertiser and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of BuehlahMan’s Revolt or WordPress.com

BuelahMan is Justin Bieber’s Newest Fan

My daughter is 6. She is “in love” with this kid and “wants to marry him”. She has MADE me sit thru each and every video of him (and Usher). For the life of me, I don’t get it, except to say that the kid is an extremely talented multi-instrumentalist and singer. He dances, too. Personally, if he did rock and roll I might be even more adoring of him.

But before I go on, I want to tell you about my day.

I have been to a foot “specialist” to confirm what I already knew: I have torn my Achilles tendon. This is no minor deal, either. This tendon is one of the worst to tear and repair and is apt to have many more problems with as I go forth. This specialist is a great guy. He was a student of my Mother-in-law and actually rode with her to school for quite some time. He also graduated high school with my wife. He understands my financial situation and is breaking a few of his business rules, but even with that, this is going to cost me alot of money that I don’t have.

Case in point, “The Boot”:

This sweet little contraption normally costs $500. Our friend (The Dr) let me have it for $300. They wanted me to use crutches with this boot and would sell me a pair for $80 (luckily I have access to a bent up pair that my wife’s Grandfather used 20 years ago… which will suffice). I can bend them back straight if it becomes too much of a problem, but they’re good for now.

They did Xrays of my foot and ankle ($150) and his charge for the visit was $100. My insurance comes with a $3500 deductible starting at the beginning of this year, so guess what… it’s all on me at my $290/week unemployment set to end the end of this month. He allowed me to pay $200, but the rest is due within 30 days. He has an order for me to go to the local hospital for an MRI on the lower leg, foot and ankle to confirm what we both know is the problem. I’m guessing somewhere around $1000 (maybe more).

Then, if true (I go back Tuesday for confirmation), he will send me to another Doctor for surgery in a town not too far from here (for he doesn’t work on anything above the ankle). It appears that most Achilles tendon tears are actually up around the calf, where the tendon is at its weakest point and not where it attaches to the heel. All of this means that I can figure to spend at least another $5,000 for the surgery and new Doctor. This is all money I don’t have and no way to get.

So, why do I now find myself a Bieber fan? Because he said this in a Rolling Stones article:

The Canadian-born (Justin) Bieber never plans on becoming an American citizen. “You guys are evil,” he jokes. “Canada’s the best country in the world.” He adds, “We go to the doctor and we don’t need to worry about paying him, but here, your whole life, you’re broke because of medical bills. My bodyguard’s baby was premature, and now he has to pay for it. In Canada, if your baby’s premature, he stays in the hospital as long as he needs to, and then you go home.”

I don’t really know if he was joking or not, but the system is evil as hell, in my opinion. If you have read here any length of time, you know how I feel about Big Meds. I was a huge advocate for Single Payer and wrote about it constantly when the debate (yeah, as IF they ever debated Single payer) was brewing.

I have tracked those corrupt Congresspeople that gain from fighting against Single Payer. And I have paid tribute to the very few who worked to get it debated (and then the ones who capitulated like the lap-dogs they are). I have called the lying liars out on several occasions, noting that Mr Soetero was once a very vocal advocate (but that only happened with certain audiences):

Poor lying bastard.

I also did a series called Where In The World Is Universal Healthcare, where one could do their own investigation into how other countries have implemented similar Single Payer systems and achieved far better results in health that we could ever achieve with a profit driven system. I highly advise you read thru those posts to see how you, as an American, are getting screwed.

Suffice it to say that I recognized that the American Sheople were being taken for a ride and most gobbled up the lies like a 750 pounder gobbles up donuts. We could have better, but the people here need to wake up and get rid of the two party criminal Corptocracy which feeds in large amounts from the health insurance industry.

Rock on, Biebes!

All posts are opinions meant to foster comment, reporting, teaching & study under the “fair use doctrine” in Sec. 107 of U.S. Code Title 17. No statement of fact is made or should be implied. Ads appearing on this blog are solely the product of the advertiser and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of BuehlahMan’s Revolt or WordPress.com

Rise Up and Say “Baaaa”

This dude reminds me of me:

Except that he knows what he is talking about.

So, when you consider and compare where our tax money goes, what is your priority? Is it education? Is it healthcare? Is it Empire continuation?

How about adding a VAT (Value added tax) to the mix? Obama is considering it (which means it WILL be implemented).

Look, whatever you do, please do not mention our military. No matter what happens to this country, let us NEVER question the mistake of Iraq or the wonderful intentions of our glorious leaders who thrive to keep this question (and many others) away from the discerning public.

You must understand just how important it is that you continue to convince yourself that America truly is the most exceptional country in the world. In this vein, it may be important that you read how we are The Number One Country in the World in many stats:

• The United States is 49th in the world in literacy (the New York Times, Dec. 12, 2004).
• The United States ranked 28th out of 40 countries in mathematical literacy (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004).
• Twenty percent of Americans think the sun orbits the earth. Seventeen percent believe the earth revolves around the sun once a day (The Week, Jan. 7, 2005).
• “The International Adult Literacy Survey…found that Americans with less than nine years of education ‘score worse than virtually all of the other countries’” (Jeremy Rifkin’s superbly documented book The European Dream: How Europe’s Vision of the Future Is Quietly Eclipsing the American Dream, p.78).
• Our workers are so ignorant and lack so many basic skills that American businesses spend $30 billion a year on remedial training (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004). No wonder they relocate elsewhere!
• “The European Union leads the U.S. in…the number of science and engineering graduates; public research and development (R&D) expenditures; and new capital raised” (The European Dream, p.70).
• “Europe surpassed the United States in the mid-1990s as the largest producer of scientific literature” (The European Dream, p.70).
• Nevertheless, Congress cut funds to the National Science Foundation. The agency will issue 1,000 fewer research grants this year (NYT, Dec. 21, 2004).
• Foreign applications to U.S. grad schools declined 28 percent last year. Foreign student enrollment on all levels fell for the first time in three decades, but increased greatly in Europe and China. Last year Chinese grad-school graduates in the U.S. dropped 56 percent, Indians 51 percent, South Koreans 28 percent (NYT, Dec. 21, 2004). We’re not the place to be anymore.
• The World Health Organization “ranked the countries of the world in terms of overall health performance, and the U.S. [was]…37th.” In the fairness of health care, we’re 54th. “The irony is that the United States spends more per capita for health care than any other nation in the world” (The European Dream, pp.79-80). Pay more, get lots, lots less.
• “The U.S. and South Africa are the only two developed countries in the world that do not provide health care for all their citizens” (The European Dream, p.80). Excuse me, but since when is South Africa a “developed” country? Anyway, that’s the company we’re keeping.
• Lack of health insurance coverage causes 18,000 unnecessary American deaths a year. (That’s six times the number of people killed on 9/11.) (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005.)
• “U.S. childhood poverty now ranks 22nd, or second to last, among the developed nations. Only Mexico scores lower” (The European Dream, p.81). Been to Mexico lately? Does it look “developed” to you? Yet it’s the only “developed” country to score lower in childhood poverty.
• Twelve million American families–more than 10 percent of all U.S. households–”continue to struggle, and not always successfully, to feed themselves.” Families that “had members who actually went hungry at some point last year” numbered 3.9 million (NYT, Nov. 22, 2004).
• The United States is 41st in the world in infant mortality. Cuba scores higher (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005).
• Women are 70 percent more likely to die in childbirth in America than in Europe (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005).
• The leading cause of death of pregnant women in this country is murder (CNN, Dec. 14, 2004).
• “Of the 20 most developed countries in the world, the U.S. was dead last in the growth rate of total compensation to its workforce in the 1980s…. In the 1990s, the U.S. average compensation growth rate grew only slightly, at an annual rate of about 0.1 percent” (The European Dream, p.39). Yet Americans work longer hours per year than any other industrialized country, and get less vacation time.
• “Sixty-one of the 140 biggest companies on the Global Fortune 500 rankings are European, while only 50 are U.S. companies” (The European Dream, p.66). “In a recent survey of the world’s 50 best companies, conducted by Global Finance, all but one were European” (The European Dream, p.69).
• “Fourteen of the 20 largest commercial banks in the world today are European…. In the chemical industry, the European company BASF is the world’s leader, and three of the top six players are European. In engineering and construction, three of the top five companies are European…. The two others are Japanese. Not a single American engineering and construction company is included among the world’s top nine competitors. In food and consumer products, Nestlé and Unilever, two European giants, rank first and second, respectively, in the world. In the food and drugstore retail trade, two European companies…are first and second, and European companies make up five of the top ten. Only four U.S. companies are on the list” (The European Dream, p.68).
• The United States has lost 1.3 million jobs to China in the last decade (CNN, Jan. 12, 2005).
• U.S. employers eliminated 1 million jobs in 2004 (The Week, Jan. 14, 2005).
• Three million six hundred thousand Americans ran out of unemployment insurance last year; 1.8 million–one in five–unemployed workers are jobless for more than six months (NYT, Jan. 9, 2005).
• Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea hold 40 percent of our government debt. (That’s why we talk nice to them.) “By helping keep mortgage rates from rising, China has come to play an enormous and little-noticed role in sustaining the American housing boom” (NYT, Dec. 4, 2004). Read that twice. We owe our housing boom to China, because they want us to keep buying all that stuff they manufacture.
• Sometime in the next 10 years Brazil will probably pass the U.S. as the world’s largest agricultural producer. Brazil is now the world’s largest exporter of chickens, orange juice, sugar, coffee, and tobacco. Last year, Brazil passed the U.S. as the world’s largest beef producer. (Hear that, you poor deluded cowboys?) As a result, while we bear record trade deficits, Brazil boasts a $30 billion trade surplus (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004).
• As of last June, the U.S. imported more food than it exported (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004).
• Bush: 62,027,582 votes. Kerry: 59,026,003 votes. Number of eligible voters who didn’t show up: 79,279,000 (NYT, Dec. 26, 2004). That’s more than a third. Way more. If more than a third of Iraqis don’t show for their election, no country in the world will think that election legitimate.
• One-third of all U.S. children are born out of wedlock. One-half of all U.S. children will live in a one-parent house (CNN, Dec. 10, 2004).
• “Americans are now spending more money on gambling than on movies, videos, DVDs, music, and books combined” (The European Dream, p.28).
• “Nearly one out of four Americans [believe] that using violence to get what they want is acceptable” (The European Dream, p.32).
• Forty-three percent of Americans think torture is sometimes justified, according to a PEW Poll (Associated Press, Aug. 19, 2004).
• “Nearly 900,000 children were abused or neglected in 2002, the last year for which such data are available” (USA Today, Dec. 21, 2004).
• “The International Association of Chiefs of Police said that cuts by the [Bush] administration in federal aid to local police agencies have left the nation more vulnerable than ever” (USA Today, Nov. 17, 2004).

h/t InformationClearinghouse

Whoa there, Partner. Sorry for such a rude awakening. Do you think I made some mistake here? Do you still want to scream at me how great this country is? How about mixing in some adoration and worship of your new Messiah, Barack Obama? Or that you now have your “party” in control, so you are still hoping that they will actually DO the things they said they would do to convince your gullible ass to vote for them?

Is your commitment and “investment” into these criminal parties keeping you from seeing what is as obvious as the ingrown hair on your ass cheek?

If Liz Were Queen, We Would Undermine The Entire Process

I read at a place called “If Liz Were Queen“. Nice blog, especially when it comes to the health care/health insurance issues/debate/giveaway. She explains why the Tea Partiers Are Clueless To What Is Really Wrong With The Health Care Legislation:

WHAT IS REALLY WRONG WITH THIS BILL?

IT FORCES 50 MILLION AMERICANS TO BUY AN INSURANCE PRODUCT FROM KNOWN CROOKS!

IT IS NOT “SOCIALIZED” MEDICINE. These people are just repeating what the Republican leadership have told them to say–people like Chuck Grassley who have done nothing but lie about the content of the bill.

IT IS WALL STREET CORPORATE PREDATOR MEDICINE.

IT HAS NO SAFEGUARD OF ANOTHER CHOICE, ANOTHER PLACE OTHER THAN WALL STREET FOR AMERICANS TO GO TO PURCHASE THEIR INSURANCE.  IT HAS NO PUBLIC OPTION.

IT IS NOT A “GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER” YOU FOOLS!  IT IS JUST ANOTHER WALL STREET TAKEOVER.

Her Highness provided a youtube clip of a young student as he interviews various partiers and gets their incoherent and erroneous responses.

Doesn’t that just say it all? Is it just me, but wouldn’t it make just a bit more sense if these people actually knew what they hell they were protesting? And let me just say right here and now, if you have the audacity to wear a GW Bush hat after those 8 years, you are totally beyond any hope. Its like a Bush bumper sticker on your car: surely you are so embarrassed by your two votes that put that imbecile (and his evil handler, Dick) in office, that you long ago scraped that off (even if the paint or the bumper, itself, had to go).

If this is what it means to be in a Tea party, ya’ll can have it.

Her Highness also points out that the Republicans May Have The Tables Turned On Them Over Health Care In November:

For certain it will be the Republicans from poor areas who don’t endorse the health care bill who will suffer the most.

Yep that’s how it’s shaping up.  Many of the Republicans who long touted that  the Democrats will lose the House and the Senate if they vote for health care reform look like they could lose out in November if they vote against the health care bill.

Virginia Foxx, a Republican Congresswoman from the 5th Congressional District of North Carolina might be ammong the Republican casualties in November…

Wouldn’t that be great, except that it could get much, MUCH better than putting Corporately owned and controlled Democrats such as Dennis Kucinich back in the office where they, like the Senate’s Bernie Sanders, can simply back off from principle and promises because standing for what is right might “Undermine The Entire Process“. Well, duh, you damned old fool. That is exactly what needs to be done. Disrupt the giveaway and make the system right. So, with this kowtowing remark, we lost the only seemingly sensible Senator we had.

They ALL suck.

Let us acknowledge that and get rid of every damned one of them next election cycle.

Simply do NOT vote another incumbent and ignore the two parties. For even the “Independent” Bernie Sanders has no spine after being in for so long.

They ALL must go.

If Democrats really get serious about real health care reform as Harry Reid has promised and pass the public option in the next couple of months, it’s all over for the Republicans in November.

The Democratic health  care reform would have the full support of 82% of the American people.

The Republican liars like Ghuck Grassley with his lies about “death panels” and other Republican poliiticians with their lies about the bill supporting abortion could very well be toast.

But if the Democrats are not careful and do not support a strong public option they can lose as well–not to Republicans, but to independents.  More and more Americans are beginning to get the ties of Congress–both Republicans and Democrats–to Wall Street.  We are not so dumb that we don’t get the connection between 50 million forced Wall Street Health Insurance customers and the stock portfolios of the 263 multimillionaires in Congress.

Stopping The Health Insurance Give-away Bill

Dennis the Chamberlain, don't forget to grab the train of the King's robe

Should we trust Dennis ever again?

Nope. He sold his soul to the devil, himself.

As Kurt Nimmo writes at Infowars:

Meanwhile, Obama managed to arm-twist one-time totalitarian care opponent Dennis Kucinich into backing the plan Democrats say they will enact without votes in Congress. Obama had summoned Kucinich to Air Force One and Dennis kissed the ring. “Even though I don’t like the bill, I’ve made a decision to support it in the hope that we can move to a more comprehensive approach once this legislation is done,” he told reporters.

Apparently Kucinich no longer consider Obama’s totalitarian care plan a sham. In October, he said the entire legislative package was “a bailout for insurance companies.” The American people are “being mandated to buy private insurance. If you read the bill, the people are going to end up paying — the insurance companies can raise rates 25 percent right off the bat, if you read the bill,” said Kucinich.

Dennis Kucinich, one of a very small number of Democrats who originally opposed Obamacare, now apparently believes it is fine and dandy for the government to force the commoners to buy health care insurance at gunpoint. He also believes large insurance corporations deserve a monopoly in partnership with the government.

Should we ever trust Dennis Kucinich again? I think not.

Dennis tried to defend his indefensible traitor action (piece of shit, lying scumbag), presented at AfterDowningStreet

Single Payer advocates explain reality to the Corporate whores, Howard Dean and John Conyers. h/t SinglePayerAction

And we also get the benefit (read as “sham”) of having the senate protect the health insurance premium double digit increases.

There may be but one way to stop this horrendous bill: Wait until the individual states sue.

Raw Story explains that Virginia will sue

(not that you would think it is a good idea from the Dem party sycophants commenting there)

Or maybe Idaho (thanks to AfterDowningStreet) for the link:

Idaho on Wednesday became the first state to pass a law saying no thanks to part of President Obama’s health care proposal.

The Idaho Health Care Freedom Act says in part, “every person within the state of Idaho is and shall be free to choose or decline to choose any mode of securing health care services without penalty or threat of penalty.”

Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter, a Republican, said Wednesday he signed it because he believes any health care laws should ensure people are “treated as an individual, rather than as an amorphous mass whose only purpose in this world is to obey federal mandates.”

Several other states may follow suit.

And of course, the obvious next step in the plan is to abolish Medicare and Medicaid. Walgreens in Washington State will stop accepting medicare payments for meds (which will be the last day my family will ever shop in their stores in TN or anywhere else, for that matter)

Effective April 16, Walgreens drugstores across the state won’t take any new Medicaid patients, saying that filling their prescriptions is a money-losing proposition — the latest development in an ongoing dispute over Medicaid reimbursement.

The company, which operates 121 stores in the state, will continue filling Medicaid prescriptions for current patients.

In a news release, Walgreens said its decision to not take new Medicaid patients stemmed from a “continued reduction in reimbursement” under the state’s Medicaid program, which reimburses it at less than the break-even point for 95 percent of brand-name medications dispensed to Medicaid patents. (h/t PrisonPlanet)

If you want to see a non-corporately owned person explain the truth in opposition to the flip-flopping Kucinich at Democracy Now. Watch as Nader says the truth about the bill and how Dennis cannot explain himself without admitting he had to kowtow to corporate pressures.

Dennis, you know that Obama is not going to help real America. Ralph knows this and is unapologetic in explaining it.

The video at the Democracy Now link is one of the most important you can see that not only tears Dennis a new asshole, but explains exactly what is happening in this bill. Dennis, however, is owned and indebted to the Corporately owned Democratic party. And as far as I am concerned, he can have them and suck on them and do whatever it is he needs to do to kiss their ass. At least Ralph didn’t.

At the end, Dennis shows his true colors and that his dedication and motivation is to protect Obama and the Dem Party.

This, in and of itself, is enough to write him off as I have.

Well, Since YOU say so…

Obama promises progressives he’ll revisit public option after bill passes

By Sahil Kapur

Progressives may be denied their overriding health care priority this time around, but according to President Barack Obama, it won’t be over with this bill.

Obama urged leading progressive Democrats in a closed-door meeting Thursday evening to back the health care bill, placating their concerns about the public option and warning them that the liberal agenda was at stake.

Obama told the group of House members he thought the public plan didn’t have the votes this time, but reportedly assured them he’ll revisit it after the bill’s passage, warning that failure would imperil the issue for a generation.

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) said after the meeting that Obama’s message was, “If this opportunity passes, much of our agenda, on the progressive side…it would be difficult, if not impossible for a generation to get back to this issue,” according to Talking Points Memo.

“To maintain a strong presidency we need to pass this bill,” Grijalva summarized Obama’s remarks.

Are you f#cking kidding me? Do you seriously believe that the majority of Americans believe you, Mr Obama (I am not talking about the complicit thieves and callous assholes who you are “acting” to convince)? I am talking about the real Americans that have heard each and every lie you told in the campaign. We remember who you are and what you said before, then how you obviously and purposefully deceived at least half of America that you care about us.

I remember your words in 2003 (and many more like me do).

more about “Obama On Single Payer Healthcare Program“, posted with vodpod

I remember how you were outraged with rendition, torture, Gitmo, the Iraq War, etc, etc, etc, (ad nauseum) but haven’t done a thing with that feigned outrage to enact any changes.

Well, since it is YOU saying so, don’t expect many to believe you. But we will expect the complicit lapdogs and health insurance money takers to fall right in line and screw us again.

Don’t make me laugh, you liar.

h/t RawStory

Dennis Kucinich: Time To Put a Stop to The Health Insurance Give-away

I don’t know why I put myself thru it, but I noticed that Dennis Kucinich was going to be on the Ed Show and wanted to hear what he had to say in regards to the POTUS’s speech and his plan for health care (not INSURANCE) reform.

View the clip here.

One thing that you won’t see in that clip (or in any clip I can find) was the very next guest that Ed brought on to totally discount Mr Kucinich. Ed gave Jonathan Alter much more and uninterrupted air time so he could offer the contrary view that just happens to go along with the POTUS. Just ram the bill thru and work from there. But as Dennis points out, the entire bill is a non-starter and a sham. It is nothing more than forcing people to buy insurance when they can’t afford it, anyway.

Jonathan Alter is nothing more than a media clown who knows where his bread gets its butter. The main point, tho, is how a Congressman, elected multiple times and ran for the presidency, is simply shrugged off by this foolish little man. Who, in their right mind, would give Alter more credence than Kucinich?

Of course you won’t hear the entire argument, for they would not allow Dennis to rebut the idiocy Jonathon (then the ass-kissing Ed Shultz) spread out for you rednecks.

Jesus Christ, I know better than to watch that shit.

Notice that you can’t find the clip of Jonathon coming in and discounting Kucinich and saying “He’s wrong.” But all those gullible assholes who gobble this shit up every night saw it.

There is no doubt in my mind that these corrupt sycophants know exactly what they are doing and who’s direction they follow. It has nothing, whatsoever, to do with what is best for this country.

For, as Mr Obama said in that clip, “show me”. How can you show someone something when they won’t open their eyes due to the money stacks that disallow it?

I’ve been screaming the answer for well over a year now. The bastard just says shit, but cares nothing for the real answers. Empty suit and a lying asshole.

BBC Starts In Tennessee…

… to see what is obvious to the rest of us.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/the_p_word/newsid_10000000/newsid_10002600/10002666.stm

Story and audio at above link…

Barack Obama was elected on 4 November 2008 after a campaign that promised change.
One year on, BBC’s Newsbeat traveled across the country to find out how people feel in Obama’s America.
In the first of five reports, Jonathan Blake travels to Tennessee where unemployment is highest among young people to see how he’s trying to fix the economy.

Marsha Blackburn Called Me To Apologize For The 71 Dead In Her District Of Lack Of Healthcare

Of course she didn’t. But she did call me and was sorry that I was unable to join in on the town hall conference call (some of the latest and greatest technology available).

Congressman Blackburn Msg

Wow, what a chipper woman. It might help had you not called my FAX line, for goodness sake. I am sure I would be interested in asking you about those 71 that will die in our district simply due to the lack of health insurance. Rep Grayson mentioned them in this series of videos starting with the following:

And speaking of which, I’d like to share the list that Chris Kromm of Facing South (written by Sue Sturgis)  sent me that shows the numbers per congressman of folks in the south that will die due to lack of health insurance. I’m sure you can shrug this off just like Jesus did:

• Alabama District 1, Joe Bonner: 114 dead
• Alabama District 3, Mike Rogers: 88 dead
• Alabama District 4, Robert Aderholt: 114 dead
• Alabama District 6, Spencer Bachus: 69 dead
• Arkansas District 3, John Boozman: 151 dead
• Florida District 1, Jeff Miller: 130 dead
• Florida District 4, Ander Crenshaw: 116 dead
• Florida District 5, Ginny Brown-Waite: 200 dead
• Florida District 6, Cliff Stearns: 152 dead
• Florida District 7, John Mica: 143 dead
• Florida District 9, Gus Bilirakis: 129 dead
• Florida District 10, Bill Young: 138 dead
• Florida District 12, Adam Putnam: 133 dead
• Florida District 13, Vern Buchanan: 160 dead
• Florida District 14, Connie Mack: 159 dead
• Florida District 15, Bill Posey: 152 dead
• Florida District 16, Thomas Rooney: 165 dead
• Florida District 18, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen: 199 dead
• Florida District 21, Lincoln Diaz-Balart: 195 dead
• Florida District 25, Mario Diaz-Balart: 195 dead
• Georgia District 1, Jack Kingston: 123 dead
• Georgia District 3, Lynn Westmoreland: 102 dead
• Georgia District 6, Tom Price: 100 dead
• Georgia District 7, John Linder: 156 dead
• Georgia District 9, Nathan Deal: 159 dead
• Georgia District 10, Paul Broun: 120 dead
• Georgia District 11, Phil Gingrey: 113 dead
• Kentucky District 1, Ed Whitfield: 113 dead
• Kentucky District 2, Brett Guthrie: 102 dead
• Kentucky District 4, Geoff Davis: 83 dead
• Kentucky District 5, Harold Rogers: 130 dead
• Louisiana District 1, Steve Scalise: 111 dead
• Louisiana District 2, Joseph Cao: 98 dead
• Louisiana District 4, John Fleming: [garbled on video]
• Louisiana District 5, Rodney Alexander: 132 dead
• Louisiana District 6, Bill Cassidy: 105 dead
• Louisiana District 7, Charles Boustany: 112 dead
• Mississippi District 3, Gregg Harper: 117 dead
• North Carolina District 3, Walter Jones: 100 dead
• North Carolina District 5, Virginia Foxx: 97 dead
• North Carolina District 6, Howard Coble: 103 dead
• North Carolina District 9, Sue Myrick: 82 dead
• North Carolina District 10, Patrick McHenry: 101 dead
• South Carolina District 1, Henry Brown: 157 dead
• South Carolina District 2. Joe Wilson: 118 dead
• South Carolina District 3, Gresham Barrett: 112 dead
• South Carolina District 4, Bob Inglis: 133 dead
• Tennessee District 1, Phil Roe: 110 dead
• Tennessee District 2, John Duncan: 85 dead
• Tennessee District 3, Zach Wamp: 94 dead
• Tennessee District 7, Marsha Blackburn: 71 dead
• Texas District 1, Louie Gohmert: 155 dead
• Texas District 2, Ted Poe: 126 dead
• Texas District 3, Sam Johnson, 144 dead
• Texas District 4, Ralph Hall: 134 dead
• Texas District 5, Jeb Hensarling: 151 dead
• Texas District 6, Joe Barton: 136 dead
• Texas District 7, John Culberson: 103 dead
• Texas District 8, Kevin Brady: 132 dead
• Texas District 10, Mike McCaul: 127 dead
• Texas District 11, Michael Conaway: 164 dead
• Texas District 12, Kay Granger: 156 dead
• Texas District 13, Mack Thornberry: 144 dead
• Texas District 14, Ron Paul: 146 dead
• Texas District 19, Randy Neugebauer: 132 dead
• Texas District 21, Lamar Smith: 119 dead
• Texas District 22, Pete Olson: 150 dead
• Texas District 24, Kenny Marchant: 138 dead
• Texas District 26, Michael Burgess: 162 dead
• Texas District 31, John Carter: 124 dead
• Texas District 32, Pete Sessions: 209 dead
• Virginia District 1, Robert Whitman: 68 dead
• Virginia District 4, Randy Forbes: 93 dead
• Virginia District 6, Bob Goodlatte: 99 dead
• Virginia District 7, Eric Cantor: 76 dead
• Virginia District 10, Frank Wolf: 81 dead
• West Virginia District 2, Shelly Moore Capito: 102 dead

I dunno bout you, but that seems like a lot of dead folk. I’m sure they are all dead beats, anyway, right?

At least we won’t starve to death (h/t A Tiny Revolution):

Nearly half of all U.S. children and 90 percent of black youngsters will be on food stamps at some point during childhood.

“The current recession is likely to generate for children in the United States the greatest level of material deprivation that we will see in our professional lifetimes,” Stanford pediatrician Dr. Paul Wise wrote.

The analysis is in line with other recent research suggesting that more than 40 percent of U.S. children will live in poverty or near-poverty by age 17.

Right. Just more dead beats, huh?

Originally found here.

Where In The World Is Universal Healthcare? Taiwan Revisited

I wrote about Taiwan here with a breakdown of how their system is implemented and who and what it covers and for how much. Today, I received a letter from my friend Doctor Sutherland, who is the TN Chair of PNHP. He expressed delight in the fact that our calls this week must have made a difference, because the Wiener Amendment is again going to be voted on (probably Saturday):

Politics are unpredictable! The Weiner amendment for Single-Payer is now back on the floor of the House thanks to calls, emails and faxes sent to the Congressional leaders this past week.
This is our last big push to get true health care reform passed this year. Please call your Congressperson tomorrow and flood their switchboard with our voices to pass Single-Payer. The public is confused and tired of the way the Congress has tried to cobble more of the same dysfunction on our broken system- give them a simple and efficient plan to vote on to get true health care reform now.
Push for “Improved and Expanded Medicare for All”! Send this out to all your colleagues and families and friends.

Health care is a human right.

I have been to this man’s house and spent time with him. He is wealthy and has a very renowned practice in Memphis. He could keep his mouth shut because he and his wife are set for life. But just like many of the other Doctors that are ready to fight for Universal Healthcare, even to the extent of going to jail for it, I believe he sees the injustices and wants change. There isn’t a dubious rationale that I can imagine and I have a great deal of respect for him and his views. He went farther to add Ida Hellander’s letter to members and activists:

Dear PNHP Board and Activists,

Quick update and “last call” for lobbying your Representative to support Medicare for All!

The latest news from Capital Hill is that there could be a vote on the Weiner amendment for single payer as soon as this Friday, although it may not come up until Saturday.  The House is expected to vote on the Democrats’ bill at 6 p.m. Saturday.  The Kucinich amendment did not make it into the final bill, and is dead.

Last minute calls to encourage your Representative to vote “yes” on the Weiner amendment for single payer are encouraged.  The Congressional Switchboard number is (202) 224-3121.

As Harvard health economist William Hsiao told the New York Times yesterday “you can have universal coverage and good quality health care while still managing to control costs. But you have to have a single-payer system to do it.”

In solidarity,

 

Ida Hellander

Its not too late to make a difference. Call.

But, also read detail about a system that was implemented in Taiwan and how, who and why they did it in this fashion (remembering that we, America, is the only industrialized wealthy nation IN THE WORLD that doesn’t implement something similar.

Health Care Abroad: Taiwan

By Anne Underwood
New York Times
Prescriptions blog
Nov. 3, 2009

William Hsiao is a professor of economics at the Harvard School of Public Health and co-author of the 2004 book “Getting Health Reform Right.” He served as a health care adviser to the Taiwan government in the 1990s, when officials decided to reform that country’s health care system and to introduce universal coverage. He spoke with Anne Underwood, a freelance writer.

Q. Taiwan instituted universal insurance in 1995. What was the health care system like before?

A. Only a portion of the people were insured, including civil servants, employees of large firms and farmers. The military had its own system of coverage. But 45 percent of the population did not have insurance, and they faced financial barriers to access to health care. President Lee Teng-hui felt strongly that he wanted to do something concrete and visible for all the citizens. He thought of introducing national health insurance to touch the lives of all the people. There was a sense in Taiwan that health care is needed by everyone and a country has to assure everyone equal access.

Q. How did you become involved in the health care reform process?

A. The government initially appointed four Taiwanese professors to lead a task force of technical experts. But the four professors all had different ideas. It was like a wagon drawn by four horses, with each going in a different direction and nobody driving. After a year of this, government officials realized there was a problem. In addition, they wanted someone who understood health systems and health care abroad and what lessons other countries could offer to Taiwan. The domestic experts did not have much international experience.

I was invited to a three-day workshop, where they tested me. At the end, I was put in charge of the task force of four professors and 16 other technical experts. It turned out to be a big advantage that I’m not Taiwanese and had no aspirations of getting a job in Taiwan. At the end of the day, our recommendations and findings were perceived as more objective and free of self-interest.

Q. What was your assignment as head of this task force?

A. We had to design a national health insurance plan for Taiwan, based on international experience. Government officials wanted to understand how other advanced countries fund and organize health care and learn from their successes and failures, so I made a study of the systems in six high-income countries – the United States, the U.K., Germany, France, Canada, Singapore and Japan.

Q. And what was your conclusion at the end of this study?

A. We adopted a single-payer system along the Canadian lines. I did not invent it. I’m just in the transfer-of-knowledge business.

Q. Why did you choose the Canadian model?

A. Canada has a single-payer system with universal insurance coverage. It offers people free choice of doctors and hospitals, and it has competition on the delivery side between public and private hospitals. The quality of health services is very high, and people were very satisfied with the system from the 1980s through the mid-1990s.

Unfortunately, in the early-to-mid 1990s, Canada went through a severe recession for four or five years. The budget became very tight. The government underfunded national health insurance, which led to long waiting lines for elective surgery, MRIs and so forth. But when Canada adequately financed its N.H.I., it was a very good system.

Q. In Taiwan, can people choose any doctor or hospital they want?

A. Yes, any provider. Americans talk about choice. But in fact, insurance plans in this country restrict what providers you can go to. Canada gives its citizens more choice of providers. So does Germany. So does England. So does Taiwan.

Q. How comprehensive is the coverage?

A. It covers prevention, primary care and hospitalization, among other things.

Q. I‘ve read that it also covers Chinese massage, acupuncture, traditional herbal medicine, mental health care, dental, vision and long-term care.

A. Yes, these services are covered. We tried to design a benefit package that would give people what they value. For many Taiwanese, that includes traditional Chinese medicine. Though Chinese medicine is not 100 percent proven to be medically effective, people believe in it. And some therapies have been proven effective. For example, when acupuncture is given in certain spots, it stimulates the brain to release opiates.

Q. The Taiwanese system also covers home care.

A. You need home care by visiting nurses for people who are chronically ill or bedridden. It’s not rocket science to recognize this. Some people argue that the patients should pay for home care themselves. But if people have to pay out of pocket, they might not ask for visiting nurse services and their illnesses may get much worse. Then they will need to be hospitalized.

Q. Is the system very expensive?

A. Expensive is a relative term. Taiwan spends 6 percent of G.D.P. on health care, compared to 16 percent in the United States.

Q. How much do people have to pay?

A. If you’re employed, your employer pays 60 percent of your premium. The employee pays 30 percent, and the government subsidizes 10 percent. The government fully subsidizes the premiums for the poor and gives partial subsidies to veterans, the self-employed and farmers.

Q. How much is the typical premium?

A. The total insurance premium for employed workers is 4.6 percent of wages. That’s much lower than in the United States, where the average is between 12 and 20 percent of wages for those who are covered by their employers.

Q. Are there co-pays, too?

A. Yes. The task force felt that service should not be totally free or else people might waste services. For example, we studied what happened in Taiwan when some insurance policies gave prescription drugs free to everyone. One-third of the drugs dispensed were never taken but thrown away. You can imagine, if you have free office visits, some people will say, “I have this little ache. I’ll go see the doctor because it’s free.” We wanted to moderate this waste.

Q. How high are co-pays?

A. The charge is $2 for a visit to a clinic and about $4 to a hospital outpatient department. The co-pay for hospitalization is now 10 percent for the first 30 days and 20 percent for the days beyond 30 days. For prescriptions, it’s 20 percent of the cost of the drug, but capped at $6 for each prescription. Taiwan also sets a ceiling on the total co-pays, so patients won’t face bankruptcy.

Q. How long did it take to implement this program?

A. Less than a year. Mr. Lee pushed through the legislation in four to five months, because an election was coming. Then he asked for the new system to be implemented six months after that – and they did it.

Q. What percent of the population is now insured?

A. Within the first year, Taiwan managed to insure 95 percent of the population. That increased that by another percent or so each year, until they reached 98 percent. They had trouble with that last 2 percent, because some were living overseas and others were homeless. The government literally sent people to find the homeless under bridges and enroll them. Now they have close to 99 percent enrollment.

Q. Has this translated into better life expectancy or lower complication rates from major diseases?

A. There is evidence of positive health results for select diseases, like cardiovascular disease and kidney failure. But overall, it’s really difficult to say that national health insurance has improved the aggregate health status, because mortality and life expectancy are crude measurements, not precise enough to pick up the impact of more health care. That said, life expectancy is improving, and mortality is dropping. And everyone now has access to good health care.

Q. What does the system do particularly well?

A. In addition to covering everyone, it has a uniform system of electronic health records. Every patient has a Smart Card. When you go in for services, the physician puts the card into his computer. You give him the code to access your records, which are all stored on the card – what medications you’ve taken, what tests, along with the results, the last time you saw another physician. With a single, unified electronic system, it improves treatment and it also vastly reduces claims processing. Hospitals and doctors get paid in a week or two. It’s a paperless system. That’s why it keeps administrative costs down to 2.3 percent of the total premium. In the United States, it’s more than 10 percent.

Taiwan was also able to control health-expenditure increases very well in the early years. Unfortunately, now that the government budget is tight, it is overdoing it.

Q. What are the system’s weaknesses?

A. In the legislative process, compromises had to be made. First, the president yielded on payment reform, so Taiwan kept its fee-for-service payment system. Unfortunately, that encourages doctors and hospitals to give more treatment in order to boost their income.

Second, the Taiwanese system doesn’t have a systematic way to monitor and improve quality of care.

Third, in the legislative process, they rejected a provision to adjust the premium automatically when the national health system depletes its reserves. In every country, health care costs are increasing faster than wages. When that happens, the premium has to go up. But that provision wasn’t incorporated into the law. As a result, the system is running a deficit. National health insurance tries to cut the fees for hospital and physician services. But eventually these fee reductions will adversely affect the quality of health care.

Q. What’s the most important lesson that Americans can learn from the Taiwanese example?

A. You can have universal coverage and good quality health care while still managing to control costs. But you have to have a single-payer system to do it.

Originally found here.