Chart This
Item: “Democrats Block GOP Health Care Mailing”
Well, nothing personal, GOP Congressguys and Congressgals, but not a lot of people have been opening your mail recently.
But Congressman Kevin Brady and others deserve props for the work they have done representing reality, so I’ll publish the chart here to assist them in their educational effort (link will open in a BIIIIIIG new window; HT Moonbatttery):
Readers can spread it far and wide to people who will actually look at it.
The Roll Call article indicates that the Democrats have an “eight-point memo” documenting their objections to the chart’s details. Given the fact that there are hundreds of boxes, lines, and intertwined relationships on the chart, that would seem to be an admission that the GOP chart is 98%-99% accurate.
(begin sarcasam)
Addendum: Well, by all means, include their objections in a helpful insert included with the mailer. Tell the Dems that once the few who are brave enough to open their congressional mail read the accompanying insert, they will will be soooooo relieved that the chart of what health care will look like isn’t really as bad as the “real,” 1000-page-plus plan.
Or perhaps the GOP can yellow-line or otherwise highlight the areas of dispute. That will set everyone’s mind at ease that the healthcare system won’t be taken over by an unwieldy, unmanageable, unaccountable bureaucracy.
(/saracasm)
Maybe you could pass this along, too.
http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_treatment/archive/2009/07/15/rube-goldberg-already-lives-here.aspx
Comment by Tom Edmonton — July 23, 2009 @ 10:25 pm
The Dem motto: When you can’t debate the merits of a plan, shut down the opposition by limiting the information.
You know it is amazing how hypocritical the Dems are when it comes to participation in the political process. They claim people are disenfranchised when they don’t vote, but they work the hardest to prevent the public from having the facts or participating in the debate on a final plan to vote on it. It’s the old card trick, pick a card, any card…and I’ll tell you what you chose. A choice is not a choice when someone else does the choosing. Rubber stamping a predetermined choice is not democracy and certainly not self governance.
Comment by dscott — July 24, 2009 @ 9:12 am
#1, actually the first comment at TNR is what’s worth passing along:
Thanks for the link. :–>
Comment by TBlumer — July 24, 2009 @ 10:08 am
http://inmycopiousfreetime.blogspot.com/2009/07/tonsillectomies-of-greed.html
Two points brought up by this link.
Extra procedures done under Medicare such as EEGs are done not to pad the bill but to compensate for the less than cost reimbursement rate by Medicare. If bills are being padded with unnecessary procedures it is due to a failure of government policy called cost shifting. There comes a point when the medical care provider must find a way to pay the bills to keep the lights on if they can’t cost shift by over chargeing someone else. But that’s precisely under a GOVERNMENT run system, not a private run system. Remember, private insurance reimburses at rates to keep the medical care provider in business, the government does NOT!
Point two: under Obama’s example a pediatrician is said to be making money on tonsillectomies. Extra procedures are done as a result of defensive medicine to AVOID a lawsuit, there is no tort reform in this bill!
Point three: My point. Since when does a pediatrician profit from a surgery? The surgeon profits from the procedure they do, not the referring the doctor. Either Obama is profoundly ignorant of this separation of procedures or he is being deceitful.
Comment by dscott — July 24, 2009 @ 10:12 am
#1, not to mention: How much of the complexity of the chart TNR worked up is caused by the government already? It has about 20% of the slots and probably 40% of the influence.
I’m all for taking the government out of the chart as much as possible. I would clearly simplify life significantly. TNR has thus done a useful service for free-marketeers.
Comment by TBlumer — July 24, 2009 @ 10:18 am
Follow up on #4
Furthermore, all medical procedures on a child and adults are done with the prior CONSENT of the guardian or patient. If you are going to question the integrity of doctors, you will also have to question the motives of parents for a procedure that was not done on an emergency basis.
Some toncillectomies are done as a PREVENTIVE measure, so is this procedure unnecessary when not done under an emergency basis? This then begs the question, for all the talk of prevention by Obama, doesn’t his very example belie prevention? Look at Canada and Britian, when you delay a treatment or claim the problem is not serious enough to merit a medical procedure, are you not saying prevention (being proactive) is MORE expensive than the reactive emergency medicine? Obama by this very example using toncillectiomies exposed the cost savings fallacy of the Dem Healthcare Plan.
Comment by dscott — July 24, 2009 @ 10:49 am
#4 and #6, you’re making too much sense.
Comment by TBlumer — July 24, 2009 @ 10:51 am
#7, Ah yes, all from my biased conservative worldview. (sarcasm)
Tom, what Obama did in his broadcast by citing the example he did was to actually make the case that a government takeover of health care is NOT what should be done. By going into detail, Obama has made the case that none of his so called reforms should be made! Praise be to Obama!
If Obama can’t see the preventative nature of a tonsillectomy by calling it an unnecessary procedure, then how could a bureaucrat be any better? Thus he clearly made the case that the government has NO BUSINESS in making any guidelines where medical procedures are concerned.
Comment by dscott — July 24, 2009 @ 12:06 pm