George Bush got his FISA law and his extra war money by offering a couple of “compromises” to the spineless Dems. One of them was quick passage of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program renewal. The renewal bill would increase funding of the bill by $35 billion and cover 4.1 million children by 2012, according to OpenCongress.org.For the past 6 years the Bush Administration has agreed to renew the program as is and even lauded the fact that states have been enrolling low-income adults in the program as far back as June of this year. Now, of course, the King is changing his mind. You know, because he can.
From WaPo:
Under the new policy, a state seeking to enroll a child whose family earns more than 250 percent of the poverty level — or $51,625 for a family of four — must first ensure that the child is uninsured for at least one year. The state must also demonstrate that at least 95 percent of children from families making less than 200 percent of the poverty level have been enrolled in the children’s health insurance program or Medicaid — a sign-up rate that no state has yet managed.
So, if Dad/Mom loses his/her job and Little Billy needs the insurance that they don’t have anymore (say for Juvenile Diabetes, for instance) then Little Billy has to go for at least a YEAR with insurance before the new state insurance policy will accept him. Which puts even more burden on his parents, who don’t have the money now (thanks to job loss) and must find a way for their son to get the medication he needs to live. Compassionate? Heh.
The administrative move, announced while lawmakers are out of town during the August recess, comes after the White House has wrangled with Congress for months over the future of the $5 billion-a-year program.
The Senate and the House have passed legislation that would dramatically increase funding and make it possible to sign up millions of new children for coverage. But President Bush wants to keep the program largely unchanged and has promised to veto either bill, saying they would inappropriately increase the federal role in health care.
Ah, the ever open and honest President and Company. They make promises to get bullshit passed- bullshit that Americans are overwhelming against - and WHAM! Sorry ’bout your luck, America. But the insurance companies would suffer and we don’t want that, do we?
From the New York Times[free registration required]:
Administration officials outlined the new standards in a letter sent to state health officials on Friday evening, in the middle of a monthlong Congressional recess. In interviews, they said the changes were intended to return the Children’s Health Insurance Program to its original focus on low-income children and to make sure the program did not become a substitute for private health coverage.
After learning of the new policy, some state officials said yesterday that it could cripple their efforts to cover more children and would impose standards that could not be met.
“We are horrified at the new federal policy,†said Ann Clemency Kohler, deputy commissioner of human services in New Jersey. “It will cause havoc with our program and could jeopardize coverage for thousands of children.â€
The program is meant to help low-income, uninsured children. The same children that aren’t eligible, because of their parents’ incomes, for Medicaid. And yet the Bush Administration, under cover of ‘darkness’, says to hell with all of them. They want to make sure that 95% of all eligible children are enrolled in Medicaid, and yet no state in the union has been able to accomplish that particular goal. The Administration is worried that this program could supplant private insurance for some families. And that’s a bad thing how?
The Children’s Health Insurance Program has strong support from governors of both parties, including Republicans like Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and Sonny Perdue of Georgia. When the Senate passed a bill to expand the program this month, 18 Republican senators voted for it, in defiance of a veto threat from Mr. Bush. The House passed a more expansive bill and will try to work out differences with the Senate when Congress reconvenes next month.
Now it’s up to Congress, once again, to show this two-bit tyrant who’s really boss. They need to come back from their vacations and vote overwhelmingly for the renewal, with added benefits. They need to tell this motherfucker to shove his late-night deal making straight up his ass. Supposedly, Republicans and Democrats were coming together for this bill. They were making compromises for the good of American children. Here’s a chance for them to smack this little man down once and for all. If they all vote FOR the bill then they will have enough votes to override his threatened veto.
Yeah, who am I kidding? We’ve got the moderates and the Blue Dogs in the King’s bedroom, on their knees and kissing his ass. When it comes time to show him that he isn’t the ultimate power in this country they’ll once again roll over and play dead.
Unless I’m wrong. Here’s keeping my fingers crossed.
On a more personal note, I am a strong proponent of Universal Health Care. I don’t think that any American citizen should suffer without health care- ever. My own family is lucky because TheMan has insurance, but we’ve recently been screwed by the insurance company. From January to June of this year I spent a lot of time sitting in doctor’s offices, trying to find out what the fuck is wrong with me. Then our insurance company decided to up the premiums and the deductible. After we had already met our deductible this year, it was raised to $1,000 per person- without the previous $350 being included. I had to cancel important appointments in June and July because we didn’t have enough money for the upfront payments (to the specialists). And though we spent $6,000 on Lil’lady’s surgery, that amount wasn’t included in our family deductible. She starts over from scratch too. Obviously I would never allow her to suffer. But what of all the millions of kids who do suffer because of the insurance SCAM?
They’re left out in the cold. Again. Compassionate conservative my fat white ass.
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6 Comments
It’s HORRIBLE about the lack of medical care for our own citizens. I also think it’s time for Universal. Here’s a small example: I have a decent insurance plan and need physical therapy for my neck. Okay, I don’t “need” it in the sense I’ll die without it, but it’s getting hard to work while in so much pain every second. So I tell my doc, she writes an Rx, and off I go to PT. The copay is $30 per session for 12 sessions (2 per week). That’s a $360 unbudgeted expense, which I have, luckily. Others might not have it, and they’d just suffer on, maybe start going home early, calling in sick, eventually losing their job AND their insurance. And those are the people who can least afford a financial setback in the first place. There’s something way screwed up about this.
It’s ridiculous. The insurance companies keep raising their rates and cutting people off. They claim that it’s because of lawsuits, but since the ‘reform’ they have no excuse. Medical lawsuits in Ohio are capped now, so they’re all full of shit. It’s a SCAM, I tell ya. Universal all the way.
I have a unique perspective on this as I work for an insurance company, so I see both sides of the coin. I agree with you that some sort of universal health coverage is needed. I’m appalled that there’s people in one of the weathiest nations in the world that can’t get basic medical care.
What these people (the government that is) don’t seem to get is that the cost of universal health coverage would actually be cheaper in the long run. Why? What do low income people do when they or thier kids are sick? Go to the emergency room where they can’t be refused care. Usually when they’re sick enough so that the need a LOT of care. Much more than if they’d just seen a doctor when they were a little sick. And who pays for this? We do, in the form of higher insurance rates because the hospital has to eat the cost and raise their costs to cover the “free” care.
Why do you think so many health insurance companies (such as mine) are spending so much money on preventative care programs? Because it’s so much cheaper to pay a nurse to help a person with an illness and to get them to change lifestyle habits than it is to pay for the care that would result if nothing was done.
We need to stress and pay for preventative care. Overal medical costs would go WAY down making health care more affordable.
OK, I’ll get off my soap box now.
Exactly, spot on, Vince. Preventative care for everyone should be free.
When I didn’t have insurance I was in the ER or stat care all the time. I had no other way to receive care. So many people use the ER as their PCP and that shouldn’t be at all. Something’s just wrong with that. You know?
And get up on your soapbox whenever you want. I don’t mind.
I am sick and tired of working my ass off to support all the low life scum sucking perople that make a career of walking around with their hands out. I am self employed and the cost of insurance is astronomical and I can only affort catastrophic. We pay for these welfare rats to keep from getting pregnant, then pay their maternity care when they do. Once they deliver we pay the bill for the kid and mother again, support the kid on CHIP then free lunches, free pills for mom since she can’t keep her pants on, and the cycle starts all over again. Why not give them help with the first kid but in order to get it she gets her tubes tied and he gets whacked as well. They evidently have no reason to make preudent decisions themselves because they know we will all raise the kid anyway….oh yeah, then they file their taxes and get a refund on the paltry tax they have paid for the year. No wonder so many people live a welfare life - it is a hell of a lot easier than working and being accountable…no regard for character of course.
This has zero to do with welfare recipients. I’m not talking about the almighty welfare queen (HA!) getting rich (HAHA!) by living poor. That’s whole other subject.
The subject of THIS post is the working poor. This is about people for whatever reason have to work 70 hours a fucking week for very little money and don’t get insurance. This is about the fact that when Mom and Dad get screwed by this job or that, the insurance companies, or a low-life, scum sucking mortgage broker promising paradise and stealing them BLIND, they’re children are left without medical care.
This is about the ELDERLY of this country, that supported your ass when you were growing up, having to sell the homes they’ve lived in for 50 years because they don’t have enough money for live saving medicine. This is about AMERICAN CITIZENS dying from lack of health care, while our government spends billions of dollars to procure oil from some goddamned far away land.
This is about the insurance companies and the fucking enabling Congress critters who are lining their pockets with the health and lives of American citizens. This is about WORKING people and their kids getting left out in the cold because someone who will never have to worry about health care again (and Congress critters, Kris, get to live off of taxpayers money for the rest of their lives, essentially becoming the welfare recipients that so disgust you) taking away what little insurance they have.
Spare me the sanctimonious BULLSHIT about welfare queens. Please do two things 1. Stay on subject. and 2. Get your facts right.