Jon H. wrote: Left out from the Counterpunch article is how much extra the private insurers cost the federal government. My parents received several robo-calls spreading fear about Medicare Advantage being cut. I'd bet they were paid for by the insurance companies that will miss this profit at the expense of Medicare dollars.
You bet, but you don't really know who paid for those calls. The bottom line is the Obama health care reform package is a privatizing package, and the government-subsidies for the mandated purchase of private insurance by the uninsured will fill the coffers of the insurance companies, so they will benefit more from the new plan than they have already with plans such as Medicare Advantage. i bet you those calls were paid for by the republicans, who, unfortunately, have benefited from the legitimate grievances among senior citizens that the cost-cutting to the tune of $500 billion will come at their expense. It is deeply ironic and politically asinine that the democrats are too craven and corrupt to offer even a decent public option, not to mention single-payer. And you know what? On this one the republicans are dead right. Better to kill the bill because what stands now, as bad as it is, is better than the bill sponsored by Max Baucus and the other blue dog democrats in the senate finance subcommittee. Greg McDonald Full: http://www.counterpunch.org/cramer08182009.html This new bottom line for benefits, much lower than anything I ever had with my “employer-provided” insurance plans, will be this basic Medicare plan offered to all, served up with blarney that now all Americans have access to the same excellent Medicare that the elderly are so “happy” with. If that isn’t good enough for you, anyone who can afford it will be able to purchase additional coverage, at a much higher price than seniors now pay for the government-subsidized supplemental programs (sometimes called Medicare “Advantage”). According to repeated pronouncements by the President and Congress, these government-subsidized, supplemental programs (that seniors have depended upon to expand their Medicare benefits and make basic medical services affordable) will be eliminated. They constitute the “waste” in the system that the President and Congress repeatedly refer to. They also represent “chicken feed,” compared to the enormous profits the private sector is going to accumulate when we all have to purchase private health insurance policies. This is what Grampy meant, when he protested that he did not want the government messing around with his Medicare. In spite of the chortling and demeaning commentary by noted liberals on NPR talk shows, Democracy Now, The DR show, and others, Grampy does know that the deduction he agreed the government should take directly from his monthly Social Security check is his premium payment for the government-run Medicare plan. He also knows he could never afford decent medical coverage if he did not make an additional monthly premium payment for the private supplemental (“Advantage”) program. Grampy knows that these supplemental programs that give him the “advantage” of being able to afford the basics of medical care, are on the chopping block and that their elimination (as Obama brags repeatedly) will play a major part in the cost-cutting needed to pay for the new health reform program. ________________________________________________ YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: [email protected] Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
