Healthcare

By Dave LIndorff

All you need to really know about the Obama health “reform” initiative is that it is being supported by retail giant Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart, a corporation that was built on the philosophy of treating workers like dirt (the company famously locks its employees inside its buildings at night, forces workers who have checked out of their shifts to continue to serve customers, off the clock, if they are asked for help on their way out of the store, has bitterly resisted offering any health benefits, and has one of the worst records of labor law violations of any company in the country), is now signing on as an endorser of the Obama health reform effort, saying:

“We believe now is the time for action on this vital issue. We commend the leadership of elected officials who are committed to enactment of reform, and we appreciate the commitment to inclusion and transparency which has been present thus far.

Thus far 349 people have died in Gaza because of blockade preventing proper medical care. On a per-capita basis how does that compare with the thousands who die in the United States for lack of "health insurance"? In other words, what does our "Freedom" do for us compared to the lack of freedom we impose on others?

House Dems look at surtax on the wealthy
By AP

WASHINGTON – A plan to raise taxes on the wealthy is emerging as the leading option among House Democrats looking to finance health care legislation that President Barack Obama wants.

Numerous officials say that under the proposal, an income tax surcharge would be imposed on individuals earning more than $200,000, with a higher threshold for couples.

The same officials say earlier options under consideration have been abandoned. Among them was a proposal to raise the payroll tax that finances Medicare. The officials spoke anonymously to discuss private discussions.

House Democrats hope to unveil legislation on Friday that reins in the overall growth of health care spending, at the same time it extends coverage to millions who lack insurance.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

Bettendorf woman says state wants late veteran’s assets
By Barb Ickes | Quad City Times

Two tours in Vietnam.

A Purple Heart.

A welding accident.

A wheelchair.

Death at 61.

A bill for $277,186.96.

Two months after Roger Lennon died, the woman who took care of him for more than a dozen years got a bill in the mail. The state of Iowa said the Bettendorf veteran owes almost $300,000 for the medical care he received in the state-run veterans home.

"I called them and said, 'Is this a joke?'" Sarah Miller said. "Who has that kind of money? And I was with Roger every time he was signed into the Iowa Veterans Home in Marshalltown. They never said anything about billing him after he passed."

The spokesman for the Iowa Department of Human Services, which runs Medicaid for the state, said Lennon should have known the state would pursue any remaining assets after his death. Read more.

Out, Damn Rahm!
In Shakespeare’s play MacBeth, Lady MacBeth goes mad after becoming an accomplice to her husband’s murder of a trusting and faithful ally. Lady Macbeth’s famous phrase “Out, Damn Spot!” is a reference to the incriminating blood stain on her hand which she cannot remove.
By Diane Wittner | Chesapeake Citizens | July 8, 2009

As I see it, there is one distinct advantage to all this discussion about prominent governors leaving office before their terms expire.
These surreal developments (OMG, Palin’s gone! LOL, Sanford’s in an embarrassing place!) remind us that public servants ought to serve We The People. If they cannot work effectively for us, they ought to leave office.

Howard Dean: Private Health Care Is Breaking Our Economy
By John H. Richardson | Esquire

And the Republicans are all a bunch of liars. And Washington is as scared of change as a cult. And other things you'd expect Howard Dean to say in a hot-button debate. Except, when it comes to this particular hot-button debate, Howard Dean really knows what he's talking about. And so should you.

As Congress debates health-care reform, the arguments against a "public option" are coming fast and furious. The best I've read recently is from Greg Manikow, the distinguished Harvard economist and former Bush advisor who insists that the public option will inevitably crowd out private insurance companies, resulting in less competition and poorer health care. Manikow reminded me of how quickly the efficiencies of private military contractors like Blackwater crushed the socialists in the United States Army, how the option of great public beaches in New York drove all Connecticut elite from their Buffy-and-Muffy-only private beach clubs to the boardwalks of Coney Island, and how the wealthy rushed from their Park Avenue penthouses to take advantage of the great deals in Section 8 housing.

For an alternate point of view, however, I consulted the former governor of Vermont. As a doctor married to a doctor, Howard Dean made health care a priority of his administration, putting strict regulations on health insurance profiteering and figuring out a way to extend insurance to every child in the state. In a new book called Howard Dean's Prescription for Real Health Care Reform, he makes a persuasive case for reform.

ESQUIRE: Your book really lays everything out in a very simple, clear way. It's obvious this is something you've been thinking about for a long time.

HOWARD DEAN: It was one of the reasons I ran for president.

ESQ: One thing I've never seen before is when you say, "Much is made of the 47 million without insurance, but nothing of the 25 million who have insurance but don't go and see the doctor." I've got one of those high-deductible catastrophic plans myself, so I don't go to the doctor unless I'm bleeding. Why have I never seen this argument before?

HD: Because 99 percent of the discussions among reporters, policy wonks, and politicians focus on the uninsured — which is, frankly, why nothing is passed. They don't focus on the majority of Americans who have health insurance that doesn't work. (Bolding mine). Read more.

The healthcare fight in the House.

SINGLE-PAYER HEALTH CARE IS AN ECONOMIC JUSTICE ISSUE

WHEREAS, the lack of single-payer health care in the United States is a critically important issue of economic justice for women and their families that affects many economic issues in their lives, and women pay more for health insurance while making less money than men; and

WHEREAS, the lack of single-payer health care leads to unemployment and underemployment because employers do not want to pay health insurance benefits and thus either do not hire workers or hire a high percentage of temporary or part-time workers to avoid paying benefits; and

WHEREAS, many people are tied to jobs in order to keep their health insurance; and

WHEREAS, the largest percentage of people who file bankruptcy do so because of a health care crisis;

WHEREAS, various states have been actively working on passage of single-payer legislation as a vehicle for passage of single-payer on the national level;

Here is the Congressman's letter: PDF.

Familiar Players in Health Bill Lobbying
Firms Are Enlisting Ex-Lawmakers, Aides
By Dan Eggen and Kimberly Kindy | Washington Post

The hirings are part of a record-breaking influence campaign by the health-care industry, which is spending more than $1.4 million a day on lobbying in the current fight, according to disclosure records. And even in a city where lobbying is a part of life, the scale of the effort has drawn attention. For example, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) doubled its spending to nearly $7 million in the first quarter of 2009, followed by Pfizer, with more than $6 million.

The nation's largest insurers, hospitals and medical groups have hired more than 350 former government staff members and retired members of Congress in hopes of influencing their old bosses and colleagues, according to an analysis of lobbying disclosures and other records.

The tactic is so widespread that three of every four major health-care firms have at least one former insider on their lobbying payrolls, according to The Washington Post's analysis.

Nearly half of the insiders previously worked for the key committees and lawmakers, including Sens. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), debating whether to adopt a public insurance option opposed by major industry groups. At least 10 others have been members of Congress, such as former House majority leaders Richard K. Armey (R-Tex.) and Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.), both of whom represent a New Jersey pharmaceutical firm. Read more.

Bioweapons, Dangerous Vaccines, and Threats of a Global Pandemic
By Stephen Lendman

Although international law prohibits the use of chemical and bacteriological weapons, America has had an active biological warfare program since at least the 1940s. In 1941, it began secret developmental efforts using controversial testing methods. During WW II, mustard gas was tested on about 4000 servicemen. Biological weapons research was also conducted. Human subjects were used as guinea pigs in various other experiments, and numerous illegal practices continued to the present, including secretly releasing toxic biological agents in US cities to test the effects of germ warfare.

Single-payer health insurance is seen by many healthcare workers and citizens as the best tool for expanding coverage while reducing costs. But it is rarely discussed in the media.

Public TRICARE military health plan most popular in South | Institute for Southern Studies

In this year's health reform debate, Congressional Democrats quickly took proposals for a single-payer system off the table, claiming it was "unrealistic."

But more than 9 million people in the U.S. have already signed on to a single-payer system that's proved both workable and popular: TRICARE, the Department of Defense's program for active-duty military and retirees.

Even more interesting: According to a Facing South analysis, nearly half of TRICARE beneficiaries live in the South -- states where Congressional leadership has been most vocal in opposing public involvement in health care.

Last week, a top-rated diary at DailyKos by a person claiming to be "an active duty obstetrician/gynecologist in a major medical facility on the East Coast" noted that:

9.2 Million active duty and retired uniformed service member and their families receive their healthcare from the federal government. My family and I receive free healthcare from the federal government ... I am struck however that nobody has brought up the simple fact that the government already provides free healthcare in a single payer model to over 9 million of its population.

I decided to look into where TRICARE beneficiaries were located. According to my analysis of TRICARE data, 47% -- nearly half -- of the 9.2 million using TRICARE are based in 13 Southern states: Read more.

by Linda Milazzo

This morning I received the following letter from President Barack Obama:

Medicare Fraud Strike Force Operations Lead to Charges Against 53 Doctors, Health Care Executives and Beneficiaries for More Than $50 Million in Alleged False Billing in Detroit | Press Release
Early Morning Takedown Leads to Arrests in Detroit, Miami and Denver

Fifty-three people have been indicted for schemes to submit more than $50 million in false Medicare claims in the continuing operation of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force in Detroit, Attorney General Eric Holder, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and FBI Director Robert Mueller announced today. The Strike Force in Detroit is the third phase of a targeted criminal, civil and administrative effort against individuals and health care companies that fraudulently bill the Medicare program.

Nader nags Obama on healthcare
Posted by Foon Rhee | Boston.com

Consumer activist Ralph Nader has a simple message for liberals feeling less warm and fuzzy about President Obama: "I told you so."

"Millions of Americans are feeling betrayed. They thought Obama as President meant change we can believe in. They thought Obama as President meant withdrawal from Iraq. They thought Obama as President meant standing up to Wall Street fat cats. They thought Obama as President meant a living wage," Nader, who ran a presidential campaign last year far less successful than his 2000 bid, said in an email to supporters today,

"But for those of you who stood with us during the 2008 Presidential campaign, you knew the score. You do not feel betrayed. You are immune to Obama Betrayal Syndrome," Nader continues. "Because you knew, as we pointed out repeatedly during the campaign, that Obama was the corporate Democrat. Beholden to large campaign contributors from Wall Street. From the military industrial complex. And from the health insurance pharma complex."

Nader's missive seeks donations for Single Payer Action, a new advocacy group pushing a healthcare plan along the lines of the national insurance plan in Canada. Read more.

By Tom Klammer

President Obama held a town hall on Health Care Reform last Wednesday, broadcast nationwide on ABC with Charlie Gibson and Diane Sawyer. Once again, even though a majority of the public and now even a majority of doctors in the US favor a single payer system, single payer was still off the table.

The president of the AMA, which opposes single payer, nowadays representing about a 19 percent minority of doctors, was prominently on display.

Ron Williams, CEO of Aetna, the health insurance company that in the 1850’s provided insurance to slave holders for their slaves, was part of the discussion too. In 2007, Ron Williams received $19,924,027.00 in total compensation as CEO of that health insurance company.

By Marcy Winograd

One of the many frustrations for advocates of single-payer health care is the relentless drive to marginalize us, not only by conservatives but also by members of our own party.

Case in point: the accounting arm of Congress, the Congressional Budget Office, has yet to perform a financial analysis of the cost of implementing single payer, a system whereby taxpayers—businesses and individuals--pay into a single general fund which covers everyone's health care for the rest of their lives, regardless of job or health status. Studies in California and Colorado have shown that a single payer system would save money for businesses, families, and government by eliminating private insurance overhead and creating enormous purchasing power that would drive down the costs of care.

I wanted to know why we don’t have federal government cost projections for single payer, so I called the Congressional Budget Office – and reached an answering machine.

Join unions, doctors, nurses, seniors, faith groups, and Americans of every stripe on July 30th in Washington, DC to Celebrate Medicares 44th Birthday and show Congress and President Obama that we support a national, single-payer healthcare system and demand the passage of HR 676. Map & Flyer

As President Obama says, "We must build on what works and leave out what doesnt."

Medicare has successfully provided care to seniors and people with disabilities for almost half a century. Medicare is a truly American-made system that other health care systems around the world have since been modeled after. With little over 3% administrative overhead, we must look to this American solution to our health care crisis.

The best way to save this system is to expand it, improve it, and make it a truly single-payer system by removing the for-profit interests.

So, the Leadership Conference for Guaranteed Health Care is launching a rally and lobby day on Thursday, July 30th in Washington DC with concurrent actions around the country to bring this message to Washington DC and the Congress.

New Hope for Over-Charged Health Insurance Customers
Replacing 'Corrupt' Database Could Benefit Patients Stiffed by Insurance Companies
By Alice Gomstyn | ABC NEWS Business Unit

The Ingenix database is used widely by health insurance companies to determine what the rates for various health care services should be.

But critics argue that Ingenix and the insurance companies that use it systematically underestimate the costs of services. That means consumers like Jerome are left making up the difference between what doctors charge and what insurance companies pay.

Mary Reinbold Jerome doesn't know how much time she has left.

After being diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2006, surgery and chemotherapy helped the Yonkers, N.Y., woman enter remission for more than a year. But the cancer recurred last October and Jerome is fighting for her life once more.

No matter how this new battle ends, Jerome said she's grateful for at least one victory: her struggles with her health insurance company will help bring about the demise of a database that critics say allowed insurers to routinely rip off patients who sought "out-of-network" care -- medical care outside of a patient's insurance company network.

While insurance companies have defended the database containing market rates for hospital procedures -- run by a company known as Ingenix -- they nonetheless have agreed to provide millions of dollars to discontinue the database and create a new, independent one in its place. Government officials told ABCNews.com that they are optimistic that the new database will be in operation by early next year. Read more.

By Karen Dolan, Institute for Policy Studies

Single-payer and public option advocates are fighting each other. We must remember that we're on the same side.

READ THE REST AT ALTERNET.

Can we please stop saying that Max Baucus is the top recipient of bribes from the Health Insurance and Healthcare insustry? Please?

Here are the numbers from OpenSecrets.org:

Max Baucus:
Health Industry Total: $1,720,449
DETAILS:
Health Professionals $499,641
Pharmaceuticals/Health Products $494,313
Health Services/HMOs $345,500
Hospitals/Nursing Homes $344,326

Barack Obama:
Health Industry Total: $18,803,350
DETAILS:
Health Professionals $11,532,962
Hospitals/Nursing Homes $3,205,041
Insurance $2,211,348

OK? Have we got it now?

Stop Health Care Industry Fraud | Press Release | By Senator Bernie Sanders

Sen. Bernie Sanders, a member of the Senate health committee, said today that real health care reform must address the billions of dollars in fraud and abuse that comes from the major corporations in the health care industry.

“What we have seen for many years is the systemic fraud perpetrated by private insurance companies, private drug companies, and private for-profit hospitals ripping off the American people and the taxpayers of this country to the tune of many billions of dollars,” Sanders (I-Vt.) said at a committee markup session.

Sanders cited example after example indicating that virtually all of the major hospital chains, private insurance companies, and pharmaceutical companies have been involved in massive health care fraud over the past decade.

Food Inc: Michael Pollan and Friends Reveal the Food Industry's Darkest Secrets
The new film Food Inc. is a shocking look at the health, human rights and the environmental nightmare that lands on our plate each meal.
By Tara Lohan | AlterNet

Watch the Food Inc. movie trailer.

It turns out that figuring out the most simple thing -- like what's on your dinner plate, and where it came from -- is actually a pretty subversive act.

That's what director Robert Kenner found out while spending six years putting together the amazing new documentary, Food Inc., which features prominent food writers Michael Pollan (The Omnivore’s Dilemma) and Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation).

Warning: Food Inc. is not for the faint of heart. While its focus is not on the gory images of slaughterhouse floors and filthy feedlots, what it does show about the journey of our food from "farm" to plate is not pretty.

The story's main narrative chronicles the consolidation of our vast food industry into the hands of a few powerful corporations that have worked to limit the public's understanding of where its food comes from, what's in it and how safe it may be. Read more.

The Health Care Industry vs. Health Reform
By Wendell Potter | Center for Media and Democracy

I'm the former insurance industry insider now speaking out about how big for-profit insurers have hijacked our health care system and turned it into a giant ATM for Wall Street investors, and how the industry is using its massive wealth and influence to determine what is (and is not) included in the health care reform legislation members of Congress are now writing.

Although by most measures I had a great career in the insurance industry (four years at Humana and nearly 15 at CIGNA), in recent years I had grown increasingly uncomfortable serving as one of the industry's top PR executives. In addition to my responsibilities at CIGNA, which included serving as the company's chief spokesman to the media on all corporate and financial matters, I also served on a lot of trade association committees and industry-financed coalitions, many of which were essentially front groups for insurers. So I was in a unique position to see not only how Wall Street analysts and investors influence decisions insurance company executives make but also how the industry has carried out behind-the-scenes PR and lobbying campaigns to kill or weaken any health care reform efforts that threatened insurers' profitability.

I also have seen how the industry's practices -- especially those of the for-profit insurers that are under constant pressure from Wall Street to meet their profit expectations -- have contributed to the tragedy of nearly 50 million people being uninsured as well as to the growing number of Americans who, because insurers now require them to pay thousands of dollars out of their own pockets before their coverage kicks in -- are underinsured. An estimated 25 million of us now fall into that category.

What I saw happening over the past few years was a steady movement away from the concept of insurance and toward "individual responsibility," a term used a lot by insurers and their ideological allies. This is playing out as a continuous shifting of the financial burden of health care costs away from insurers and employers and onto the backs of individuals. As a result, more and more sick people are not going to the doctor or picking up their prescriptions because of costs. If they are unfortunate enough to become seriously ill or injured, many people enrolled in these plans find themselves on the hook for such high medical bills that they are losing their homes to foreclosure or being forced into bankruptcy. Read more.