My resignation letter. Well, maybe.

(me? stop ranting? nah)

Dear followers, lurkers, and anonymous commenters from Japan:

Good news! I have discovered how to make money blogging. Here's how you do it: you stop blogging, and get a job.

Yes, somebody actually offered me a real, full-time job. I start next week. I'm very excited. It's not a blogging job, but it is a writing job with a wonderful company.

Of course, the bad news is that I will have less time for blogging. And I had SO many things to rant about!

I was going to look into genetically modified organisms, which I hate to tell you but you probably eat these mutated food-like undigestable substances for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. Truly scary stuff.

I was going to cover the upcoming health reform summit in great detail, which I'm sure will be very amusing. Maybe President Obama will propose a tax credit for surgically removing sneers from the faces of certain Republican leaders *cough*Boehner*cough*.

And of course I was going to follow Sarah Palin's run for the presidency in 2012, which you betcha is coming and which will provide ENDLESS fodder for bloggers like me. And since I am satirical, just like Rush Limbaugh, I can say whatever I want without worrying about offending Ms. Palin. What a relief!

Clearly I can't let these opportunities completely pass me by. So I'll be around! I just won't be ranting quite as frequently.

Have a great day, my friends! But put down that muffin. Trust me, you don't want to eat that. I'll tell you why later.

~~~

What's wrong with Massachusettsians?

(hey doc, my heart starts pounding whenever i watch the news. what should i do?)

Oh, the drama! Oh, the angst! The health care broohaha is keeping me on the edge. In fact, my primary care physician, the self-serve blood pressure machine at WalMart, has given me a stern warning to consult a real physician if my readings continue to rise. Then it printed out an advertisement for Lipitor and a coupon for $1 off a bag of dog food. Which is what I will end up eating if I start doing silly things like consulting real physicians.

Anyway.

Today will be another exciting episode in ... (dramatic soap opera music) ... The Edge Of Health Reform. Will Massachusetts vote for a Democrat (Coakley) to fill Ted Kennedy's Senate seat? Or will it be an upset by the Republican (Brown) who is suddenly, dramatically leading in the polls?

Here's my prediction: Brown will win.

And here's why: Massachusetts health care sucks.

As you may know, Massachusetts passed health reform several years ago. They call it RomneyCare, because Mitt Romney was Governor at the time. Yes, a Republican came up with this brilliant plan.

RomneyCare mandates that everyone must buy insurance or pay a fine. It provides subsidies for lower-income people. It specifies minimum standards for policies. But oopsie, it forgot to include cost controls, so Massachusettsians are now burdened with some of the highest medical and insurance costs in the country.

This all sounds familiar. Where have we heard these ideas before? Hmm...

Today's vote will be an indication of how people feel about ObamaCare. It will be a clear message, sent by people who know exactly what it's like to choose between Lipitor and dog food.

Don't get me wrong. The message is not "keep your hands off my health care." The message is "get this right." Stop compromising away all of the reform ideas that will make a real difference. Make the insurance companies cut costs and compete in a meaningful way, or get rid of them altogether. Give us health CARE, not health insurance.

I hope somebody in Washington will be listening.

~~~

Bumblehead Geniuses of the Week

(duh ... hey ... i have an idea)

This week, our Bumbleheads are all Geniuses! Funny how that happens sometimes.

I found our 3 brilliant idiots in today's headlines. Here are the headlines, along with a brief decription of the bumbleheads:

Headline # 1:
Man Arrested In Newark Airport Security Breach
(from news.yahoo.com)
NEWARK, N.J. – A man believed to have breached security to bid his girlfriend goodbye, triggering the shutdown of a busy Newark Airport terminal that led to snarled flights worldwide, was arrested in New Jersey and faces a trespassing charge and a fine of up to $500.

Ok, so who was this dummy? Who would be stupid enough to slip under a security rope and walk down the terminal with his girlfriend? (I'll ignore the obvious question about the dummies who think a security rope makes us secure in the first place - not to mention the dummies who think $500 is an appropriate punishment)

Was he a teenager? A senile old person like me? An idiot? Not quite. He's a Chinese doctoral student in a joint molecular biosciences program at Rutgers University. A genius. And yet, clearly, a bumblehead.

Moving on ...

Headline # 2:
Supreme Court Ruling Expected To End Limits On Political Contributions From Corporations, Unions
(from Huffington Post/NY Times)
Many legal experts say they expect the court ... to eliminate the remaining restrictions on advertisements for or against candidates paid for by corporations, unions and advocacy organizations.

Come on, genius bumbleheaded black-robed guys and gals. Do the American people really need further proof that our entire political system is owned and operated by corporations? The good news, I suppose, is that non-stop 24/7 political ads just might mean we'll stop seeing those annoying Ten Questions To Ask Your Doctor ads over and over and over and over and over and over. And over.

And last but not least, I'm afraid to say ...

Headline # 3:
Obama Highlights Benefits Of Health Care Bill
(from news.yahoo.com)
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama, eager to sign a health care overhaul bill into law, on Saturday highlighted some of the changes that would come in the first year and permanently ban "the worst practices of the insurance industry."

Sadly, Mr. President, I must include you in my list of bumbleheads this week. In spite of your happy-happy-joy-joy speeches lately, I am not excited in the least about the health care bill. I think it benefits the insurance companies more than anyone else. Certainly more than me.

I am fed up with the whole thing.

And if I hear one more person claim that subsidies will make insurance "affordable" I'm going to scream. I'd rather hear about the ten questions I should ask my doctor. I'm sure the first question is "why is my blood pressure so high?" ... but then, I already know the answer to that one.

~~~

What took them so long?

(i *heart* credit card reform)

February 22nd is just around the corner! Woo hoo! We're all excited, right?

No, the 22nd is not my birthday. It's the day when the Credit Card Reform Act goes into effect. This is good news! It's a good Act. It's about time.

Here's what the credit card companies can no longer do:

- They cannot increase your interest rate just because you made a late payment to a totally different, unrelated company that has nothing to do with your credit card.

- They cannot charge you interest on a balance that you have already paid off.

- They cannot charge multiple over-limit fees on a single transaction.

- They cannot charge you a fee for making a payment online.

And on and on and on.

My number one question is, why were they allowed to do this stuff in the first place? This is crazy stuff. You pay off a balance, and they charge interest on it anyway? You pay your phone bill late, so they raise the interest rate on your credit card? What the heck?

My number two question is, which of our fine politicians voted against this obviously-much-needed reform bill? Just wondering. So I did a little research.

In the House, the bill passed 357 - 70.
Here's who voted no:
69 Republicans, including Bachmann, Boehner and Cantor
One Democrat, Herseth Sandlin from South Dakota

In the Senate, the bill passed 90 - 5.
Here's who voted no:
4 Republicans including John Thune from South Dakota
One Democrat, Tim Johnson from South Dakota

My third and final question for today is, what's up with South Dakota? Why would all of their politicians be against credit card reform?

Well, if you have a credit card you may have noticed that your payments go to a mailing address in South Dakota. That's because there are no state usury laws in SD, so financial companies based in SD can basically charge you as much as they want.

Hmm. I wonder why the credit card companies would want to be based in that state?

Just think: the Republicans are now arguing that the health insurance companies should have the same freedom to operate across state lines. They make it sound like a good idea. "More competition" - "Open up the marketplace" - "Yada yada yada" ... but the insurance companies clearly would move their headquarters to whatever state has the loosest regulations, and then continue to charge as much as they want.

Argh.

My dream is that one day we will all look back at the ridiculous arguments going on about health reform. We will have a clear picture of the abuses the insurance companies have gotten away with for years and years. We will appreciate the new protections set up by our fine, upstanding politicians.

And we will wonder - "What took them so long?"

~~~

Bumblehead of the Week

(rush limbaugh - bumblehead of every week)

Rush was rushed to the hospital last week! Goodness! I'm sure you have all been on pins and needles, wondering how he's going.

Fortunately, the big fella is just fine. His chest pains were apparently caused by a vacant spot in his chest that would normally be occupied by a heart. Kind of similar to those headaches he often gets, if you know what I mean.

Anyway.

Rush is now home and doing great. Here's what he had to say about the experience:

(From Politico.com)
"The treatment I received here was the best that the world has to offer,” Limbaugh said. “Based on what happened here to me, I don't think there's one thing wrong with the American health care system. It is working just fine, just dandy."


No kidding, Brainless One. You're a wealthy, famous American with, I'm sure, ample health insurance. Of course your treatment was "just dandy."

Grrr.

In a somewhat related story, a friend of mine who is totally not a bumblehead recently posted some pictures of her new grandbaby on Facebook. One of the photos showed the hospital lobby. It looks just fine, just dandy. But it struck me a little odd ...




... tell me, do we perhaps, slightly, maybe have our priorities a little out of whack in this country, when hospital lobbies look like luxurious 5-star hotels but middle class people go bankrupt every day from medical expenses? Hmmm?

Is our system really the best the world has to offer?
Are we doing fine?
Dandy?
Really?

~~~

Huh?

Some Republican Senators just put out this video.

I'm confused.

Could somebody please tell me

please tell me

please tell me

what these people people people

are talking about???

Why are these guys still pretending to be upset about a health reform bill that now has not a smidgen of government-run health care whatsoever??

They've got what they wanted.

No public option. No medicare buy-in. A watered down, ineffective version of reform that I guarantee you will increase costs for consumers and make everyone hopping mad at the Democrats, who had the bright idea of caving in to right-wing demands by stripping out the provisions one by one that could have had a positive impact on the whole sad, sorry state of affairs.

Listen, Mr. Senators. Why don't you guys just go on over to the offices of Aetna, UnitedHealth and Blue Cross, and join their holiday parties? I'm sure they are whooping it up. They just got a giant gift from the U.S Congress, tied up in a pretty red bow.

sigh.

~~~

Speechless. Well, almost.

(RIP, any chance for real health reform ...
it was nice knowing ya)

That was quick. The public option was here, then it was gone. Same for the Medicare buy-in.

sigh.

I had high hopes for that Medicare idea.

In fact, even Joe Lieberman had high hopes for that Medicare idea. Yes, the person who killed the idea has actually supported it for years. How ironic and wry and completely bumble-headed. Lieberman says he is opposed now because it would be too expensive. But the CBO hasn't even estimated the expense yet.

I'm glad I am not a skeptical person, because it would be awfully tempting to assume that Joe's position has something to do with all those insurance companies headquartered in his state.

And now, everybody is trying to make it sound like what's left will be GREAT! WONDERFUL! The BEST legislation EVER! Even Jay Rockefeller and Ron Wyden. What the heck? Do they think we're not paying attention?

Here's what Rockefeller said yesterday:

"Can you just simply fail to govern because you couldn't get everything you wanted so you just opt out of it? And then there's no bill. And that is not why we're here. We're here to make progress."

I'm not buying it. What's left is crap. What's left is a mandate to buy expensive private insurance that is guaranteed to become even more expensive. Quickly.

Where's the choice? Don't even tell me about the "Exchange." We have an exchange right now. It's called ehealthinsurance.com. You can go there and "choose" from umpteen extremely expensive plans. Whoopie.

Where's the affordability? Where's the repeal of the anti-trust exemption? Where's the competition?

I'm going to write my right-wing Congresspeople today, which is the only type of Congressperson we have down here in Texas. I'm going to encourage them to vote no.

I'm sure they will be happy to hear from me. But don't get complacent, guys. I'll be voting "no" on every one of you, every chance I get.

~~~

The Nightmare Before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas, in the Senate and House
Not a creature was stirring, 'cept Lieberman the louse.
The health bill was hanging by its fingernails with care
In hopes that a miracle soon would be there.

The taxpayers were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of a public option danced in their heads.
My hubby in blue jeans and I in my cap,
Had just opened our 2010 premium statement and uttered, "oh crap."

Just then on the news there arose such a clatter
We turned up the volume to see what was the matter.
Ried, Baucus and Lieberman appeared in a flash
Waving pieces of paper and bundles of cash.

We did it, they yelled. We came up with the answer!
We'll take care of health care and maybe cure cancer!
It's really quite simple, said Senator Max.
We just sold the country to Goldman Sachs.

They'll fix up our problems lickity-split
Don't worry my friends, it won't hurt a bit.
The smart guys at Sachs will come to the rescue
And if things fall apart, well, they'll profit from that, too.

They'll short sell your health, and they'll bundle the risk
So they'll be just fine, even if you get sick.
They'll make money on ups - even more when you're down
And when we're all broke that's when they'll go to town.

And with that, the three Senators ran for their lives
Stuffing dough in their pockets and giving high fives.
But I heard them exclaim as they ran out of sight,
Merry Christmas to Goldman, and to Sachs a good night!

Not totally ranting

(RIP, public option)

Ok. So the public option is dead. Even if Harry Reid says it's kind of still alive, in a zombie-meets-alternate-universe kind of way.

My friends have been sending condolence emails. But really, I'm ok.

I'm not even ranting about it.

Because instead of the stupid, trigger-happy-opt-in-opt-out-wishy-washy public option that was never going to happen, we just might get 2 things:

1. The chance for those of us over 55 to buy into Medicare, and

2. An Exchange that mimics the health care options available to Congress.

Now, I'm not all that excited about # 2. Everybody thinks Congress gets this sweet deal, but it's really just private insurance plans saying "Buy me! Buy me!" Big deal.

On the other hand, # 1 has me not-ranting for a change.

~ I find it reassuring that I could possibly have another choice for health insurance, other than the pathetic and extremely expensive Texas High-Risk Health Insurance Pool.

~ I see the potential for further expansion of Medicare, a (gasp) single-payer system, down the road.

~ And I can't wait to hear the protests from the Republicans, who were against Medicare before they were for it, before they were against it again.

Nothing is set in stone yet. But the current compromise has tentative support from Anthony Weiner, Jay Rockefeller and Howard Dean. Olympia Snowe hates it.

That's good enough for me.

~~~

Would you trust this guy with health care reform?

Why was Max Baucus ever put in charge of the Senate health care bill? Somehow, his face just does not inspire confidence ...




Even when he smiles, he's kind of creepy looking ...



Oh god, please stop smiling Max ...



Most of the time, he looks perplexed ...




... or confused ...




Or like he has just been stricken with lock-jaw ...



Or some sort of digestive disorder ...




But on the other hand, maybe he's the perfect guy for the job ...

I *heart* insurance companies

(who says insurance companies don't have a heart?)

Sometimes big corporations get a bad rap. But hey, this is the season of love and peace. I think we should give them a break! Surely they have good reasons for doing what they do.

So, in the spirit of love and peace, I looked up the mission statements for the country's 3 largest health insurance companies.

Wow. Golly gee. I had no idea they were so compassionate and idealistic.

Brought a little tear to my eye.

Here are the 3 mission statements. Each one is followed by an actual news story that demonstrates just exactly how compassionate and idealistic these companies are.


Gigantic Insurance Company # 1: UnitedHealth
2008 profits: $2.997 billion (this was, amazingly, a 36% DROP from 2007)
(Link to profit information)

Heart-warming mission statement:
"Our mission is to help people live healthier lives. We seek to enhance the performance of the health system and improve the overall health and well-being of the people we serve and their communities."

News story:
January 16, 2009
UnitedHealth Settles Lawsuit Over Insurance Claims
(Link)

Investigators found that UnitedHealth subsidiary Ingenix was providing faulty data which helped the giant insurer under-pay medical claims, thus shifting costs unfairly to the customers. UnitedHealth admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to pay $350 million.

($350 million? Heck, they have more than that stuffed between the couch cushions in the employee lunch room.)



Gigantic Insurance Company # 2: WellPoint
2008 profits: $2.490 billion

Heart-warming mission statement:
"To improve the lives of the people we serve and the health of our communities."

News story:
April, 2009
Biggest Health Insurer Admits: We Put Profits Before People
(Link)

WellPoint CEO Angela Brady told investors during a conference call: "We will not sacrifice profitability for membership."

(In other words, money counts. People don't. Plus, you guys appear to have stolen UnitedHealth's mission statement. Come on, you could at least make up your own crap.)



Gigantic Insurance Company # 3: Aetna
2008 profits: $1.384 billion

Mission statement:
"We help people achieve health and financial security by providing easy access to cost-effective, high-quality health care"

News story:
December 4, 2009
Aetna Forcing 600,000-Plus To Lose Coverage In Effort To Raise Profits
(Link)

Just in time for the holidays, Aetna has announced that it will be raising rates in 2010. Because of the higher rates, the company expects to lose between 600,000 and 650,000 customers. Chairman and CEO Ron Williams explained that the price hikes instituted in 2009 simply were not high enough. "The pricing we put in place for 2009 turned out to not really be what we needed to achieve the results and margins that we had historically been delivering," he said.

(Excuse me Ron, but I'm a little confused. Where is the "financial security" for the 600,000 people who can no longer afford your "cost-effective health care"?)




You really have to hand it to these benevolent, kindly health insurance companies. They obviously have someone's best interests at heart.

Can you guess whose?

~~~

Magical math

(i need a little cheering up. i think i'll go visit my other blog)

I was just over at the Health Care For America NOW Blog, where I learned that - yippee - the CBO has confirmed that the Senate Bill will, in fact, lower health insurance premiums!

Birds are singing. The flowers are in bloom. All is well with the -

Wait a second. What is that hidden in the middle of the blog post?

It's magical math!

The post quotes Ezra Klein from the Washington Post. Here is the quote. See if you can spot the magic. I'll highlight it for you to make it easier to spot.

~~~

The CBO estimates that 57 percent of people in the individual market will receive subsidies to help them purchase health-care insurance (folks on the individual market tend to be much lower-income, with much less stable employment). Those subsidies will reduce premium costs by between 56 to 59 percent for the average beneficiary. So in the final analysis, the effect of reform on your typical individual market purchasers is to give them insurance that's about 30 percent better but only 10 to 12 percent more expensive, and then assure them subsidies that will lower their payments by more than 50 percent. And if you're in the small group or large group markets, your premiums are expected to fall a bit.

~~~

Why oh why do people keep insisting that subsidies will decrease costs?? Subsidies will not lower health insurance premiums. They will simply shift the expense to the taxpayers.

Furthermore, are we seriously supposed to believe that if we're in the small group or large group markets, our premiums will "fall a bit"? I love the way Ezra threw that in at the end. Very funny. When was the last time the insurance companies lowered premiums for anyone??

There really is no hope for cost containment if the Senate plan does not include:

a) Repealing the anti-trust exemption for insurance companies

b) A public option that is open to everyone

and c) Brain transplants for all of the health insurance company executives who think their job is to generate profits regardless of the health of their customers. Oh wait. That IS their job. Never mind.

There really is no hope for cost containment. (I'm getting a little discouraged about the whole thing, can you tell?)

Interestingly enough, on the same Health Care For America NOW blog, there is a link to this story:

~~

Aetna Prepares For Loss Of 600,000 Members As It Raises 2010 Prices

Chair and CEO Ron Williams told analysts, "The pricing we put in place for 2009 turned out to not really be what we needed to achieve the results and margins that we had historically been delivering."

~~~

Let me get this straight. A big insurance company raises its prices, deliberately driving hundreds of thousands of customers away, in order to achieve a bigger profit margin.

Now THERE is some math I can believe in.

~~~

More odd news!

(so many odd things to talk about - so little time)

Gee, the news just keeps getting odder and odder!

Let's see, first there are the endless Sarah Palin interviews. Barbara Walters actually asked her with a straight face who she might consider for her Vice President, and managed to keep that straight face when Sarah went on to praise Glenn Beck. Good lord.

Very odd.

Then, there's the endless process of health reform. I heard yesterday that there are 4 members of the Democratic Caucus who are threatening to filibuster THEIR OWN PARTY'S BILL. Has this happened before? Aren't they supposed to filibuster bills from THE OPPOSITION??

Very odd.

As a little side note, I heard that Mary Landrieu sold her "yes" vote for $300 million. I definitely need to get into politics. I would sell my votes for way less than that.

And last but not least, there is the question of where on earth our President has gone?

I mean, sure, we all saw him bowing in Tokyo the other day. And we hear that he's working on Afghanistan and global warming. But look. When was the last time you saw the guy? Where did all those inspiring speeches go? And why does he look all fuzzy and far away in photographs these days?

Surely the real Barack Obama wouldn't let the health reform debate flounder like this. Surely he wouldn't allow Wall Street to continue its reckless ways while Main Street suffers. Surely the guy that I voted for wouldn't sit back in silence while the critics have a field day with the decisions being made about the Guantanamo prisoners.

Barack? Is that you?

Very odd.

~~~

I'm so confused

(forgive me lord, but i hate his guts)

I got another email today from Senator John Cornyn, here in Texas. He is very confusing.

His emails consistently contradict everything else I read. Perhaps, giving him the benefit of the doubt, he has different, official, Senatorial sources. Or perhaps, as I suspect, he is a dunderhead.

Here are some of the points in his email, followed by some points from an article on CNN.com on the exact same subject. Draw your own conclusions.

Senator Cornyn:
Last night, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid released his 2,074-page health care bill, which Senate Budget Committee analysis shows will cost American taxpayers $2.5 trillion when fully implemented over ten years.

CNN:
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid unveiled a sweeping health care bill Wednesday that would expand health insurance coverage to 30 million more Americans at an estimated cost of $849 billion over 10 years.

Senator Cornyn:
The bill will increase taxes on all Americans by nearly half a trillion dollars and breaks the President’s pledge not to raise taxes on working families earning less than $250,000.

CNN:
The Medicare payroll tax on individuals earning $200,000 a year and couples earning $250,000 a year would increase by half a percentage point, from the current 1.45 percent to 1.95 percent.

Senator Cornyn:
The Reid bill increases taxpayer spending and liability for health care over the next ten years—instead of reforming our already insolvent entitlement programs.

CNN:
The budget office estimated that the proposal would reduce the federal deficit by $127 billion over the next 10 years and by more than $600 billion in the following decade.

Senator Cornyn:
I am a complete dunderhead who loves to make up stuff and email it to people.

Me:
That is the first accurate thing I have ever heard from you.

Senator Cornyn:
But hey, who cares? I have great health insurance and nice white hair and I get to be on TV saying whatever the heck I want. I'm a Senator, you know.

Me:
Not for long, buddy. Not if I have anything to say about it.

~~~

Orrin Hatch promises "Holy War" over health reform.

(denying health care to your fellow Americans ... there's a cause we can all get behind)

Now that the Senate has unveiled its health reform plan, Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) has promised a "Holy War" during the final long, agonizing, and at this point extremely pointless process of coming up with a final bill.

From the L.A. Times:

Republicans, who have criticized the Democrats' initiative as a step toward government control of the healthcare system, are already planning a series of delaying tactics, including forcing the entire bill to be read aloud on the Senate floor.

"It's going to be a holy war," Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) said Wednesday evening.

~~~

I was curious about Senator Hatch's choice of words, so I called his office last night. Here is an official transcript of our fictional conversation:

Me: Holy Health Reform, Senator Hatch! You seem to feel very strongly about this issue.

SH: I certainly do, young lady! It is preposterous to allow the government to take over health care. The insurance companies are doing a fine job.

Me: So, those checks from PhRMA are still coming through for you?

SH: Yes indeedy. Flowing like a river.

Me: Holy Handouts! That's great for you. But I'm curious about this "Holy War" you have promised. Don't you think that's a little inflammatory and right-wingy?

SH: I'm just telling it like it is. Health reform is wrong. Abortions are wrong except under certain conditions like for instance when nobody realizes they are in your health coverage for, like, 2o years, at which point they become extra emphatically wrong. And anything the Democrats propose is, of course, wrong.

Me: Holy HowBullheadedCanYouBe! This whole health reform thing has been so totally watered down and compromised, at this point even Republicans should be able to find things in there that they like! Come on. How about promoting unity and charity and health care for everyone? Wouldn't those be Holy ideas we could all get behind?

SH: No. No. No no. Nononononono. That is the official Republican Holier Than Thou position. And we're sticking together. Come Holy Hell or high water.

Me: .... sigh ...

~~~

Breaking News: 85% of Americans exempt from health reform

(i've got email - again.)

Hey! Good news for Tea Partiers! 85% of Americans will be exempt from President Obama's health reform plan.

How do I know? I read it in an email.

Well, kind of.

My husband got an email from a right-wing friend, with this picture in it:




Since I am a concerned blogger, I am dedicated to the truth, and I was extremely bored at the time, I looked up the page and line in question, from the Senate finance committee bill.

Sure enough! Page 114 Line 22 says that the Public Health Insurance Option will not be available to anyone who is covered under the Federal employees health benefits program.

So, Barack, Michelle, Sasha, Malia, Puppy Bo, Congress, and Senators will be unable to choose that option. Or, if you want to put it that way, they will be "exempt."

And guess what?? The VERY NEXT paragraph (Page 115, Line 1) says that anyone with "employer-sponsored coverage" is ALSO unable to choose the public option - I mean, "exempt from health care reform."

Think about this.

The right-wingers should be delighted! The 85% of Americans who are supposedly happy with their insurance coverage are EXEMPT from health care reform! Happy day!

There is no need to send any more emails. No reason to wear your baseball caps and accost your congress-people at Tea Parties. If you have insurance through your employer, the public option will not affect you. You are exempt.

Now please shut up and let the rest of us have a choice.

~~~

Dear Congressman Burgess:

(a tort reform a day keeps the doctor away)

The Republicans have ideas for health care reform. Just ask them. They'll tell ya. Tort reform, tort reform, tort reform. They have been tort reform telling us about their tort reform ideas for tort reform months. Tort reform.

I got an email from my Congressman, Dr. Michael Burgess, yesterday. Dr. Burgess reminded me that tort reform was sadly lacking from the House health reform bill. On his Congressional Health Care Caucus blog, he made this very interesting statement about the House bill:

"Medical liability reform, which has greatly improved access to health care and lowered costs in Texas, is completely missing."

Dr. Burgess also complained about the length of the House bill, which is a hefty 2000 pages.

I left a comment, but for some reason my comments never seem to appear on his blog. hmm. So just in case you stop by, Dr. Burgess, here are my thoughts:

Surely you know that Texas has the highest level of uninsured residents in the country. More than 25% of the people here have no insurance.

The Dallas Morning News recently did a comprehensive story on health care in the area. They summed it up like this:

"Medical care in Dallas is delivered in a broken market where doctors, hospitals and other providers shower patients with services of diminishing value but staggering cost."

In Texas, those of us who are self-employed are completely on our own to buy individual policies. If we have pre-existing conditions, the only fall-back option is a statewide high risk pool that costs twice as much as an already-expensive individual policy.

Tort reform may be a dandy idea for you and your doctor friends. But it has done diddly-squat for people like me here in Texas. Shame on you for implying otherwise.

As far as the length of the House bill, I do apologize. I realize it is many many pages long. But Dr. Burgess, there is a simple explanation. It includes more than one idea.

~~~

What's in the House bill?

The health reform bill that passed the House is not perfect. But in my opinion, it includes lots of good stuff! If this version becomes law (big "if" - there is still a long way to go) - the following things would happen:

Insurance companies would not be allowed to turn you down or charge you more because of a pre-existing condition.

There would be caps on annual out-of-pocket expenses - $5,000 for an individual or $10,000 for a family. Just think - an accident or illness would not necessarily result in bankruptcy. What a concept.

Insurance companies could not say "Sorry, we have spent too much on you. We're not paying any more." There would be no lifetime caps on the amount they would have to cover.

A temporary national high-risk pool would help cover the uninsured right away.

In 2013, an Insurance Exchange would help individuals and very small businesses obtain coverage.

In 2013, a public option would be available as one choice in the Exchange.

There would also be new insurance co-ops to help provide choice and competition.

There would be a new tax credit for small businesses that provide insurance for employees.

The anti-trust exemption for health insurance companies would be repealed.

There would be federal subsidies for lower-income people to help them buy insurance.

About 96% of Americans would be covered.

There's more. A lot more. Some good, some not so great. But overall, there's a lot to like here. Let's see what happens in the Senate.

Click here for the official summary of the House bill, or here for the entire bill. Here is another good summary.

~~~

YAY!!! Health reform passes the House

The House of Representatives did it!!! They passed their version of health care reform last night, 220 - 215. They even got one Republican vote, from Joseph Cao (R-New Orleans) so they can call it a bipartisan bill, which I really don't care about except that it pissed off Eric Cantor, which only adds to my glee.

The House bill has some really, really good things in it. I will detail them later.

For now, if you have been listening to the scary voices telling you the Big Bad Government is going to take over your health care, I just have one thing to say:

Don't be afraid.

The bill that just passed the House will make things better. Even for you.

For the Democrats who decided to vote "no" on this bill, I have another thing to say:

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Here are their names:

Adler
Altmire
Baird
Barrow
Boccieri
Boren
Boucher
Boyd
Bright
Chandler
Childers
Artur Davis
Lincoln Davis
Chet Edwards
Gordon
Griffith
Herseth-sandlin
Holden

Kissell
Kosmas
Kratovil
Kucinich
Betsy Markey
Marshall
Massa
Matheson
McIntyre
McMahon
Melancon
Minnick
Scott Murphy
Nye
Peterson
Ross
Shuler
Skelton
Tanner
Taylor
Teague

~~~

Unemployment hits 10%

(smile. it might keep you from screaming.)

I found a funny Odd News story for you! This will make you smile. Unless you just lost your job. Which is highly possible, since the unemployment rate is now officially over 10%.

In fact, if you include the long-term unemployed who for some reason have dropped off the radar, the rate is closer to 18%.

Think about this for a minute. These cold statistics represent people. American families. Your friends and neighbors, who have suddenly realized that, number one, their job is gone and number two, their health insurance is teetering on the brink.

Maybe they can afford COBRA for a while. Maybe they have a spouse who is still working.

But maybe, God forbid, they will come down with the sniffles or a pesky rash.

Maybe they will try to buy insurance on their own, with a "pre-existing condition" now on their record. Good luck with that.

Maybe they will find a job that doesn't include benefits and doesn't pay all that well. If they are "lucky" enough to find an insurance company that will cover them, they may very well have to choose between making a mortgage payment and making an insurance payment. Good luck with that, too.

Oh, you're waiting for the funny story, aren't you? Sorry about that! Here it is:

Dick Armey, Mr. Teabagger himself, is featured in an interview with the New York Times magazine in which he says, I kid you not:

"The largest empirical problem we have in health care today is too many people are too overinsured."

Oh my gosh Dick, you are so funny! Stop! My sides are hurting!

Why are all the funny people from Texas? Kinda makes me want to move.

~~~