Chris Hedges: Obama’s Health Care Bill Is Enough to Make You Sick

from truthdig:




Obama’s Health Care Bill Is Enough to Make You Sick

Posted on Jul 12, 2010
By Chris Hedges


A close reading of the new health care legislation, which will conveniently take effect in 2014 after the next presidential election, is deeply depressing. The legislation not only mocks the lofty promises made by President Barack Obama, exposing most as lies, but sadly reconfirms that our nation is hostage to unchecked corporate greed and abuse. The simple truth, that single-payer nonprofit health care for all Americans would dramatically reduce costs and save lives, that the for-profit health care system is the problem and must be destroyed, is censored out of the public debate by a media that relies on these corporations as major advertisers and sponsors, as well as a morally bankrupt Democratic Party that is as bought off by corporations as the Republicans.

The 2,000-page piece of legislation, according to figures compiled by Physicians for a National Health Plan (PNHP), will leave at least 23 million people without insurance, a figure that translates into an estimated 23,000 unnecessary deaths a year among people who cannot afford care. It will permit prices to climb so that many of us will soon be paying close to 10 percent of our annual income to buy commercial health insurance, although this coverage will only pay for about 70 percent of our medical expenses. Those who become seriously ill, lose their incomes and cannot pay skyrocketing premiums will be denied coverage. And at least $447 billion in taxpayer subsidies will now be handed to insurance firms. We will be forced by law to buy their defective products. There is no check in the new legislation to halt rising health care costs. The elderly can be charged three times the rates provided to the young. Companies with predominantly female work forces can be charged higher gender-based rates. The dizzying array of technical loopholes in the bill—written in by armies of insurance and pharmaceutical lobbyists—means that these companies, which profit off human sickness, suffering and death, can continue their grim game of trading away human life for money.

“They named this legislation the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and as the tradition of this nation goes, any words they put into the name of a piece of legislation means the opposite,” said single-payer activist Dr. Margaret Flowers when I heard her and Helen Redmond dissect the legislation in Chicago at the Socialism 2010 Conference last month. “It neither protects patients nor leads to affordable care.”

“This legislation moves us further in the direction of the commodification of health care,” Flowers went on. “It requires people to purchase health insurance. It takes public dollars to subsidize the purchase of that private insurance. It not only forces people to purchase this private product, but uses public dollars and gives them directly to these corporations. In return, there are no caps on premiums. Insurance companies can continue to raise premiums. We estimate that because they are required to cover people with pre-existing conditions, although we will see if this happens, they will argue that they will have to raise premiums.” ..............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/obamas_health_care_bill_is_enough_to_make_you_sick_20100712/

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It was obvious once they focused on insurance that this whole thing was a joke. It passed because Obama wanted to claim he did something that had never been done before. What an exprnsive price we will pay for his ego trip.

nt

I would have preferred a public option, but it couldn't pass at this time. It is a start nonetheless and something to build upon. And it does great things on student loans to boot. Think "progress" not purity.

Not only does it do nothing to contain costs- but the incentives push everyone toward or into high deductible, high copay junk insurance that will leave millions bankrupt when they or a family member fall ill or is injured.

This quite aside from the fact that it exposed the new president as duplicitous.

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bill this is? I have a bridge to sell to you if you are interested lol

With the centrists at the helm, its always "the sun will come out tomorrow" Ah yes, the sterile purity of the extreme centrist. A centrist who is married to a Utopian vision of free market perfection. 1980s banking disaster, Enron disaster, wall street disaster, BP disaster - all part of the greater plan of centrism. All centrism works together to distribute wealth from the many to the few via free market purity.

Centrists can spin away all you want, but a whole lot more of us are getting fucked by "realist" centrists than the other way around.

Don't confuse positive approval ratings for "doing something" with "doing the right thing". Many gave high approvals for Obama's drill, baby, drill plan as well and still do. That doesn't make it good for USA.

In the real world, not the pure Randian world of the modern centrist, a real life executive staff is now weighing dropping coverage for all employees. An exercise going on all across the country in fortune 500 board rooms.

It's happening at a multi-billion fortune 500 (they just told us that to cut costs we have to empty our own trash) and some H1Bs suggested bathroom cleaning could be reduced to 3x a week instead of daily! Just like Bangalore! Gotta love Geithner and Obama helping India first.

Record profits, record bonus & salary for exec staff. Now with all the out sourcing and H1Bs, the gilded class of centrist MBAs is licking their chops over the savings they could get by dropping health care coverage. H1Bs and out sourcing is like free money for centrists - all the cash for cheap unregulated labor - none of the hassles of benefits, etc. H1B gets sick? Well its back to India. And a Bangalore contractor gets sick - he gets fired. Yep - thanks to the purity of the modern centrism we have all the war of the neo-cons with all the free-market globalization bullshit of the DLC neo-libs. Its double penetration. Centrist style.

The centrist posse attempts to "control the message" calling liberals "purists". LOL! In a move from republican playbook they took single payer off the table before negotiations! The ultimate hallmark of a centrist purist.

I will give centrists extra credit for effort much like the republicans. Centrists know how to attack "those on the left".

It will be interesting to see when a million democrats stay home next election if the centrists make it up with all those new republican voters that the centrists are courting. My prediction is that after pissing off just enough democrats, a charismatic republican is going to come along and as soon as you can say "nearly 10% unemployment and outsourcing" all those new "centrist" democrats are going to leave Obama at the altar. And then they start whinning and crying - "booo hooo - we need liberals to help us <sniff? we promise you'll get a seat at the table". LOL! I say fuck you.

If the centrists are deliberately hoping to keep "those on the left" at home they are doing a tremendous job.

With all the MBA muscle behind the centrists they do a pretty shitty job of marketing. But, then again they only have to keep Fortune 500 happy. That's the beauty of Summers and Geithner and Bernake - what does it matter that the only jobs are exporting movies and selling insurance - GDP is still GDP!

Jesus, what a bunch of fucking losers.

The centrist is easy to understand. Just think of them as nothing more than a neo-con succubus.

Damn, most centrists seem to communicate in snark, so they won't be able to understand this. Sigh, preaching to the converted again...

funny how it doesnt start up til after the hypothetic 2nd term.

:sarcasm:

I am fully insured but lack access to affordable medical treatment.

My choices-
1. become healthier
2. make more money
3. go on disability

Just like all those "that can now get medical insurance" = they get the insurance, but cannot afford to utilize the insurance for treatment.

And you've obligated yourself to an eternity of monthly payments that you may never be able to use. It's such a crock.

any kind of care.
Nothing is guaranteed.
Healthcare in America is, and always will be market-oriented, not altruistic.
At least it will be until some radical re-structuring of the health-care procurement and delivery systems is made.

I could go on disability and receive medical treatment..

Karen Ignagni writes the legislation and pays off the right people to get it passed.
I'm pretty sure that the president, if he could have worked with altruistic people, would have crafted something better. Like, maybe, single-payer.

Perhaps you have different information?

documentary on the history of healthcare reform between the Clinton and Obama admins.
It's because of Karen Ignagni's ability to castrate our elected officials that single-payer was taken off the table.
It's also because of her authoritative advice that we have the "individual mandate" toward buying private insurance.
Do you really think she would allow the re-structuring of the industry away from profit-seeking?
Really?
I have read this woman's interviews in Harpers and on the documentary.
If you have heard her speak, you know that she lives only for the status quo pre-Obama.
Her suggestions and imperatives were KEY in the construction of health care "reform".

It's already made me sick.

this bill and make it more affordable, and user friendly.