Patti W.'s Comments
Page 1 of 74  first | prev | next 
Nov 22, 2009 | rating: 8.6 | comments: 9
in reply to a comment by Leo Lemmer
Patti W. Nov 22, 2009, 12:46pm EST
I care about others too,but I also care about more job losses,our economy and my wallet.Many states wont be able to afford the burden that will be stuck on them.And we will all be paying higher taxes when this costs way more than they are projecting and those insured higher premiums.
Oct 28, 2009 | rating: 9 | comments: 26
in reply to a comment by Rory M.
Patti W. Oct 28, 2009, 8:36pm EDT
I was not a fan of Bush. And we all screamed about the debt he was creating.Which has tripled in the short time Obama has been president.
This is a democracy it should not be mandatory to carry anything.You can at least choose to not drive or own a car.
Oct 24, 2009 | rating: 8.5 | comments: 19
in reply to a comment by micky d.
Patti W. Oct 24, 2009, 1:36pm EDT
Most of the people I know are saying the same thing Linda.The majority are democrats and have now realized they cant afford to be anymore.
Oct 24, 2009 | rating: 8.5 | comments: 19
in reply to a comment by Tim Nelson
Patti W. Oct 24, 2009, 1:35pm EDT
The woman I know who is an obgyn doesnt make a whole lot after paying her insurance.She is not poor,but also not rich person.
Oct 15, 2009 | rating: 10 | comments: 4
Patti W. Oct 15, 2009, 6:55pm EDT
No! I was logged in a half hour early.Every time I clicked for the first ten minutes I kept getting website not responding,or website is down etc.When I finally got in everything was gone
Aug 31, 2009 | comments: 40
Patti W. Aug 31, 2009, 10:02pm EDT
countries with universal health insurance, waiting times for elective surgery are used as a mechanism to restrict access and control costs. But they also have the potential to lead to poorer health status and reduced ability to benefit from surgery once it is provided.
Author(s): Sharon Willcox, Dr.P.H., Mary Seddon, M.B., Ch.B., M.P.H., Stephen Dunn, Ph.D. et al
Britain fares rather badly in international comparisons of cancer patients' survival rates. Relative survival rates in England and Wales1 are generally lower than in Europe,2 which in turn are lower than rates in the United States.3 The differences between England and Wales and the rest of Western Europe in survival rates for colon cancer and female breast cancer arise primarily in the first six months after diagnosis, suggesting that these differences may relate to later presentation or delays in treatment for British patients
BMJ-David Kerr, professor of clinical oncology
Aug 31, 2009 | comments: 40
Patti W. Aug 31, 2009, 9:49pm EDT
Government Medicine Should Horrify Americans
By Deroy Murdock

Things don't look much better up north, under Canadian socialized medicine.

* Canada has one-third fewer doctors per capita than the OECD average. "The doctor shortage is a direct result of government rationing, since provinces intervened to restrict class sizes in major Canadian medical schools in the 1990s," Dr. David Gratzer, a Canadian physician and Manhattan Institute scholar, told the U.S. House Ways & Means Committee on June 24. Some towns address the doctor dearth with lotteries in which citizens compete for rare medical appointments.

* "In 2008, the average Canadian waited 17.3 weeks from the time his general practitioner referred him to a specialist until he actually received treatment," Pacific Research Institute president Sally Pipes, a Canadian native, wrote in the July 2 Investor's Business Daily. "That's 86 percent longer than the wait in 1993, when the [Fraser] Institute first started quantifying the problem."

* Such sloth includes a median 9.7-week wait for an MRI exam, 31.7 weeks to see a neurosurgeon, and 36.7 weeks - nearly nine months - to visit an orthopedic surgeon.

* Thus, Canadian supreme court justice Marie Deschamps wrote in her 2005 majority opinion in Chaoulli v. Quebec, "This case shows that delays in the public health care system are widespread, and that, in some cases, patients die as a result of waiting lists for public health care."
Aug 31, 2009 | comments: 40
Patti W. Aug 31, 2009, 9:48pm EDT
The frasier institutes 18th annual waiting list survey for Canada.

Total waiting time between referral from a general practitioner and treatment, averaged across all 12 specialties and 10 provinces surveyed was 17.3 weeks in 2008.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
in reply to a comment by Susanne N.
Patti W. Aug 10, 2009, 11:13pm EDT
I have listened to a number of people from Canada and England who have said you do NOT want the kind of health care we have.You have to wait a very long time just to see a doctor.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 10, 2009, 1:27pm EDT
Another point I dont understand is the name calling of the people at the town hall meetings. The mob,plant,activist stuff.
Even if they were all activists,and I dont know what they are,wouldnt that mean they were still concerned ? Maybe extra concerned to have taken the time to get motivated to try to do something about the situation? There are a lot of us,me included who might call or send an email but dont go out and try to get our opinions listened to in a public forum.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 10, 2009, 1:22pm EDT
The Census Bureau says that there are only 35.92 million uninsured Americans and that this number includes 9.1 million people who earn more than $75,000 a year and simply choose not to purchase insurance also 9.73 million foreigners.
The Census Bureau also said that the number of uninsured people was declining.
“Both the percentage and number of people without health insurance decreased in 2007,” said the Census Bureau report.

Yes that still leaves a lot of people without insurance which is a shame.But the percentage is a very small amount compared to the number of people in this country.I think many are angry that they are changing the whole system and maybe messing up what they have for a small percentage of the population.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 10, 2009, 1:14pm EDT
Congressman Kirk maintained that federal census estimates of 45.7 million uninsured Americans in 2007 were overstated, saying it included 9.5 million “non-citizens,” 12 million who were eligible for existing public health care coverage and another 16.4 million who were either in higher income brackets and didn’t purchase insurance or were temporarily uninsured. The real number, he said, was 7.8 million uninsured.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 8, 2009, 5:58am EDT
Healthcare reform can have a devastating affect on small business in a number of ways. To begin with small business owners will be forced to provide health insurance for their employees of face fines for not providing it. This comes at a time that small businesses are struggling with a weak economy and the inability to get amll business loans.

According to the National Federation of Independent Business, approximately 20% of business owners surveyed indicated they would simply shut down rather than try to comply. Others indicated they would go to part time workers to avoid the new rules
According to NFIB, a typical member employs five people and reports median gross sales of $350,000.

For many of these employers, the option of paying for insurance instead of paying the government penalty would result in paying more in health premiums for each worker than for the employer's portion of the Social Security tax.

Many employers earn relatively little from their businesses, not only making the proposed new fee a problem, but the difference between breaking even or going under.

Built-in unfairness

According to NFIB, 14 percent of small employers have household incomes of $50,000 or less. And 34 percent have a household income of $75,000 or less. For these businesses in particular there is a built-in unfairness in asking owners to subsidize employees who earn close to the same amount as the owner.

And for households that earn $350,000 or more, there is a double whammy in the legislation if they own a small business. The House Democratic bill proposes a surtax on their personal earnings, in addition to payments to cover health insurance that would have to come all or in part from profits.

Do we really need to lose more jobs?
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 8, 2009, 5:49am EDT
The $156 billion in Medicare Advantage cuts over the next decade proposed by Mr. Obama will force many seniors to go back to traditional Medicare at greater expense. A new study for the Florida Association of Health Plans found that because Medicare Advantage plans have richer benefits and lower deductibles and copayments than traditional Medicare, seniors in that state would face dramatically higher payments if forced to give up their Medicare Advantage plans. Cost increases would range from $2,214 a year in Jacksonville to $3,714 a year in Miami.
Wall Street Journal
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 8, 2009, 5:43am EDT
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a report late Monday estimating the cost of a leading healthcare reform proposal at more than $1 trillion, but that figure looked only at a portion of the bill.


The analysis falls just within the most expensive cost scenario sketched out by Democratic leaders in recent days, but does not include an estimate for a highly contentious government-run insurance plan that would compete with private insurers
The estimate, however, is less than the price tag some liberal policy experts had initially affixed to reform.


One liberal policy expert pegged the cost at between $1.25 trillion and $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years.


The 10-year cost of reform could approach $2 trillion if the projections are made from the date that proposals are fully implemented. While the projected cost for a new system may reach $1.5 trillion for 2010-2019, it could run significantly higher for 2013-2022, as healthcare costs rise steadily each year.


The Hill
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 8, 2009, 5:40am EDT
Apparently somebody around here does watch the conservative talk show hosts as they know all of their talking points.I can read and listen and think for myself.Try listening with an open mind and get over the Obama is the messiah syndrome.Do you think the congressional budget office are right wing nuts?
Under questioning by members of the Senate Budget Committee, Douglas Elmendorf, director of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, said bills crafted by House leaders and the Senate health committee do not propose "the sort of fundamental changes" necessary to rein in the skyrocketing cost of government health programs, particularly Medicare. On the contrary, Elmendorf said, the measures would pile on an expensive new program to cover the uninsured.
The chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), also has taken a leading role in the Finance Committee negotiations. Yesterday, when Elmendorf appeared before Conrad's committee to testify about the nation's long-term budget problems, Conrad focused his questions on the House and Senate committee measures, which were drafted without Republican input.

"I'm going to really put you on the spot," Conrad said. "From what you have seen from the products of the committees that have reported, do you see a successful effort being mounted to bend the long-term cost curve?"

Elmendorf responded: "No, Mr. Chairman." Although the House plan to cover the uninsured, for example, would add more than $1 trillion to federal health spending over the next decade, according to the CBO, it would trim about $500 billion from existing programs -- increasing federal health spending overall.

Some provisions of the bill have the potential to trim spending further, Elmendorf said, but "the changes that we have looked at so far do not represent the sort of fundamental change, the order of magnitude that would be necessary, to offset the direct increase in federal health costs that would result from the insurance coverage proposals."

Meanwhile, a growing number of physician groups are also objecting to the House package. Although the chief executive of the American Medical Association pledged yesterday to "help build support" for the legislation, as many as 20 state medical societies have drafted a letter to congressional leaders vowing to fight creation of a government-sponsored health insurance program that could compete with private firms.

Washington Post
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 7, 2009, 12:41pm EDT
"These discussions are blocked by screaming mobs repeating the lies Beck, Hannity, Limbaugh, LeVin tell them."
That statement is firing up anger in a lot of regular folks.Most of the people screaming are regular ordinary people,not plants or repubs like Pelosi and Obama are trying to get us to believe.Take a look at the videos,one of them is mostly seniors.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 7, 2009, 12:38pm EDT
I was told to post ? I dont watch Hannity or fox news,too right wingy,I dont watch MSNBC,too left wingy.I watch CNN at least some of the people there are middle of the road.
I am a registered democrat.I and many others do not want the government running everything.That is not a democracy.I couldnt stand Bush,but to say the problems are inherited is misleading.Yes we had a deficit,but now it is what quadrupled? Yes we had unemployment,but not this bad.The problems we are having is because the government/President is spending way too much money.Stimulus?Not much,cash for clunkers,more money for Japan.Health care will put us in a huger deficit and end up costing taxpayers sooner or later.The presidents own budget office said the figures dont add up and health care will end up being more expensive not less.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 7, 2009, 8:59am EDT
I read this on a couple of different sites,news,opinions,blogs etc.
Aug 7, 2009 | rating: 5 | comments: 91
Patti W. Aug 7, 2009, 8:58am EDT
Page 30: A government committee will decide what treatments and benefits you get
• Page 42: The “Health Choices Commissioner” will decide health benefits for you.
• Page 50: All non-US citizens, illegal or not, will be provided with free healthcare services.
• Page 58: Every person will be issued a National ID Healthcard .
• Page 59: The federal government will have direct, real-time access to all individual bank accounts for electronic funds transfer.
• Page 65: Taxpayers will subsidize all union retiree and community organizer health plans (read: SEIU, UAW and ACORN)
• Page 72: All private healthcare plans must conform to government rules to participate in a Healthcare Exchange.
• Page 84: All private healthcare plans must participate in the Healthcare Exchange (i.e., total government control of private plans)
• Page 91: Government mandates linguistic infrastructure for services; translation: illegal aliens
• Page 95: The Government will pay ACORN and Americorps to sign up individuals for Government-run Health Care plan.
• Page 102: Those eligible for Medicaid will be automatically enrolled: you have no choice in the matter.
• Page 124: No company can sue the government for price-fixing. No “judicial review” is permitted against the government monopoly. Put simply, private insurers will be crushed.
• Page 127: The AMA sold doctors out: the government will set wages..
• Page 145: An employer MUST auto-enroll employees into the government-run public plan. No alternatives.
• Page 126: Employers MUST pay healthcare bills for part-time employees AND their families.
• Page 149: Any employer with a payroll of $400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays an=2 08% tax on payroll
• Page 150: Any employer with a payroll of $250K-400K or more, who does not offer the public option, pays a 2 to 6% tax on payroll
• Page 167: Any individual who doesnt’ have acceptable healthcare (according to the government) will be taxed 2.5% of income.
• Page 170: Any NON-RESIDENT alien is exempt from individual taxes (Americans will pay for them).
• Page 195: Officers and employees of Government Healthcare Bureaucracy will have access to ALL American financial and personal records.
• Page 203: “The tax imposed under this section shall not be treated as tax.” Yes, it really says that.
• Page 239: Bill will reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors and the poor most affected.”
• Page 241: Doctors: no matter what speciality you have, you’ll all be paid the same (thanks, AMA!)
• Page 253: Government sets value of doctors’ time, their professional judgment, etc.
• Page 265: Government mandates and controls productivity for private healthcare industries.
• Page 268: Government regulates rental and purchase of power-driven wheelchairs.
• Page 272: Cancer patients: welcome to the wonderful world of rationing!
• Page 280: Hospitals will be penalized for what the government deems preventable re-admissions.
• Page 298: Doctors: if you treat a patient during an initial admission th at results in a readmission, you will be penalized by the government.
• Page 317: Doctors: you are now prohibited for owning and investing in healthcare companies!
• Page 318: Prohibition on hospital expansion. Hospitals cannot expand without government approval.
• Page 321: Hospital expansion hinges on “community” input: in other words, yet another payoff for ACORN.
• Page 335: Government mandates establishment of outcome-based measures: i.e., rationing.
• Page 341: Government has authority to disqualify Medicare Advantage Plans, HMOs, etc.
• Page 354: Government will restrict enrollment of SPECIAL NEEDS individuals.
• Page 379: More bureaucracy: Telehealth Advisory Committee (healthcare by phone).
• Page 425: More bureaucracy: Advance Care Planning Consult: Senior Citizens, assisted suicide, euthanasia?
• Page 425: Government will instruct and consult regarding living wills, durable powers of attorney, etc. Mandatory. Appears to lock in estate taxes ahead of time.
• Page 425: Goverment provides approved list of end-of-life resources, guiding you in death.
• Page 427: Government mandates program that orders end-of-life treatment; government dictates how your life ends.
• Page 429: Advance Care Planning Consult will be used to dictate treatment as patient’s health deteriorates. This can include an ORDER for end-of-life plans. An ORDER from the GOVERNMENT.
• Page 430: Government will decide what level of treatments you may have at end-of-life.
• Page 469: Community-based Home Medical Services: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 472: Payments to Community-based organizations: more payoffs for ACORN.
• Page 489: Government will cover marriage and family therapy. Government intervenes in your marriage.
• Page 494: Government will cover mental health services: defining, creating and rationing those services
Page 1 of 74  first | prev | next 
 
Gather | Friends | Groups | Share
About Gather | Engagement Marketing | Make New Friends | Gather Points | Advertise on Gather | Gather Press | Privacy | Terms of Service | Community Guidelines
Books | Celebs | Entertainment | Family | Food | Health | Moms | Money | News | Politics | Spirituality | Sports | Travel | Writing
Version 16811, "Oz"; Copyright © 2009 Gather Inc. All rights reserved.