Free Republic

Republicans can forget about campaigning against Obamacare in 2016 if Ohio Gov. John Kasich is on the party’s presidential ticket. Conventional wisdom says Kasich will need to explain his Obamacare Medicaid expansion to Republican primary voters — but he’s been explaining it for two years. That’s the problem: most of Kasich’s arguments for Medicaid coverage for working-age adults with no kids and no disabilities sound like they were written by Democratic strategists. The longer Kasich is in the presidential race, the greater the potential for Democrats to capitalize on Kasich’s promotion of Obamacare. ... The governor told the Ohio General...

The White House confirmed to Fox News what the Investigative Project on Terrorism reported two days ago — that the administration met with the deputy of a radical cleric who is barred from entering the United States, and whose organization supports Hamas.  Sheik Abdullah bin Bayyah served as vice president of the International Union of Muslim Scholars, a group headed by Egyptian cleric Yusuf Qaradawi, who has urged Muslim nations to acquire nuclear weapons, demanded the death of American soldiers in Iraq, and defended Hitler. So what did the White House want to discuss with bin Bayyah? Moderation: A senior...

During the debates on ObamaCare, Medicaid got little attention. That was a mistake, since enrollment and the cost of treating all those jumping onto the program is surging beyond expectations.

Health Reform: Before ObamaCare, it would've been hard to find a health plan that combined a huge $6,000 deductible, few in-network doctors, and sky-high premiums. Today, thanks to ObamaCare, it's hard not to.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is standing by his past support for universal health care. “I want people taken care of in the country, okay? You can call it anything you want, but I want — including people that don’t have anything,” The Donald told radio host John Fredericks in an interview Wednesday. “We gotta do that.” Trump said in 1999 — when he was flirting with a presidential rub on the Reform Party ticket — that the U.S. should make health care an entitlement and that coverage should be universal. “I would put forward a comprehensive health care program...

Waste: The VA says it will shut down some hospitals if it doesn't get more money this year. Meanwhile, almost a third of those trying to enroll died before getting a decision. What do these things have in common?

Aetna Life Insurance has been sending some unfriendly letters to residents in Washington, D.C. In their mailbox are notes informing them that they may be losing the plans they purchased through the D.C. Health Link. Individuals seeking PPO plans will now have only one choice. Oh, and they can expect to reach further in their pockets for that limited option. The company’s decision will leave the region’s dominant insurance carrier, CareFirst, as the only one offering PPO plans. CareFirst has proposed rate increases for those plans ranging from less than 3 percent to more than 17 percent. Industry analysts characterized those...

The term “politically correct” dates back to shortly after the Russian Revolution of 1917. Originally, it only meant adherence to the policies and principles of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (aka the “party line”). Inevitably, though, the term would become one of derision, mocking those who would blindly follow Stalin’s enormous policy flip-flops during and after World War II. These days, the term is primarily used to mock the imposition of overly precious speech codes, supposedly intended to prevent insult. Too often, though, the net effect is simply censorship. A common complaint is that the choice of what...

Dear Trump, Please address the skyrocketing cost of healthcare which is DIRECTLY caused by medical facilities having to provide free healthcare through the EMTALA law for childbirth, car wrecks and subsequent lifeflights, etc., etc. which has CAUSED our healthcare costs to skyrocket. We are being ruined financially and the Healthcare Act was passed due to demands by all of these people for "FREE" healthcare. We are trying to provide healthcare for millions who do NOT belong here and it is going to bankrupt us. Do something!

Crony Capitalism: Across the country, health insurers are asking for huge ObamaCare premium increases, blaming new costs imposed by the law. So why is a top industry CEO praising ObamaCare as being great for consumers?

After the Supreme Court ruled in his favor, Obama strode into the Rose Garden and just made stuff up. Straight-faced, he said families are paying about $1,800 less per year on average now. But government actuaries tell the real story that the ACA has increased the average family’s yearly healthcare costs by around $800. When 2016 rolls around, the insurers will be jacking up prices—20 to 40 percent or more because the marketplaces have failed to attract those healthy young people they desperately need. So buckle up. Here come the price increases. The public is now joining our Veterans who...

President Obama is already pointing the finger of blame at greedy insurance companies for what many expect will be huge ObamaCare premium hikes when people go to sign up for their 2016 health insurance.

Yes, some doctors do make good money and they should. But the erroneous idea that all doctors are rich is simply untrue. As the middle class in this country becomes extinct, great resentment is being misdirected at people who have dedicated themselves to years of education and lifetimes of work. Apparently it’s just fine for the insurance companies to skirt anti-trust laws. Maybe it’s time for doctors to organize and unionize so they can fight the government and the insurance mafia and claw back the dignity and compensation they have sweated to earn. Good doctors have paid the price. We...

I in no way assert that I am an expert on the Supreme Court. I have read many books about Supremes such as Felix Frankfurter and John Jay, but that only gives me an inkling of insight. Listening to tapes of the testimony of the most famous cases gives me a little more knowledge. When the decisions came down last week, I relied on experts on both sides to give their thoughts and interpretations. Yet, they missed the key point of what occurred last week. A few got close. You see there was a court case in 1984 called Chevron...

In the past several weeks, a number of controversial natural health doctors have died under mysterious circumstances. Some of them have even had recent encounters with federal agents and bureaucracies.Two weeks ago, the string of mysterious deaths began when Dr. Jeff Bradstreet MD was found in a river with a gunshot wound to his chest. The police claim that the gunshot wound was self-inflicted and that the death was a suicide, however, Bradstreet’s family suspects foul play.Last week, members of the family set up a donation page “To find the answers to the many questions leading up to the death...

Last week, the Supreme Court sided 6-3 with the Obama administration’s interpretation of the Affordable Care Act, ruling the law was written with the intent to provide subsidies through federal exchanges. To put it lightly, conservatives are less than thrilled. But in our disappointment, let’s not forget that the subsidies are just one problematic element of many found in the 20,000-page law. While Congress may not be able to undo the Court’s recent ruling, that doesn’t mean they can’t address another serious issue with the Affordable Care Act: the employer mandate that defines a full-time workweek as 30 hours. The...

The White House’s victory at the Supreme Court last week removed a major threat to ObamaCare that could have rolled back coverage for 6.4 million people. President Obama declared after the ruling that the law has “been woven into the fabric of America,” while allies said the new insurance program and its related policy changes are here to stay. But the law is hardly out of the woods. The battle of public opinion over the Affordable Care Act rages on, with Republicans expressing confidence they will ultimately prevail. Here are five remaining threats to Obama’s signature domestic program. 1.) RepealRepublicans...

I completely disagree with the Supreme Court decision to block Texas from enforcing restrictions on abortion clinics that would force 10 centers in the state to close. Let me be clear, the regulations that were being placed on these clinics were mainly focused on enforcing safety and guidelines for a very delicate procedure. What the state of Texas is asking for is that these independent clinics performing these procedures be held to the same clinical standards as any other surgical center in the country. In other words, the regulations would have mandated that these clinics have of all the tools...

The Supreme Court gave President Obama a reason to be giddy about the status of his signature health care legislation on Friday, upholding Obamacare subsidies for individuals living in states without state based Obamacare exchanges. He promptly held a presser at the White House, beaming that the Affordable Care Act was “here to stay.” Now, it appears he’s taking his victory tour to Tennessee. Rep. Diane Black (R-TN), a former nurse, suggested that maybe the president should have done a little research before choosing her state to promote his pride and joy. “During his visit to Tennessee, perhaps President Obama...

This story broke some time ago, but it’s nevertheless worth flagging. Unconscionably, vermin — and pests — reportedly invaded the kitchen of a Florida Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital. The Tampa Bay Times reports: Workers at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center reported "3 large dead rats that fell through the kitchen ceiling" at the hospital during renovation work Wednesday night, according to emails obtained by the Tampa Bay Times. They then sent color photos of the rats to the facility's infection prevention coordinator, Miriam Ruisz, and also told her about a cockroach infestation, emails show. I almost gagged reading...