Free Republic

Yes, there is something worse than socialists winning elections in America: socialists so uneducated/stupid they don’t even know they’re socialists. Christine Hallquist, after winning Vermont governor primary: “I’m Not Sure I Even Know What Socialism Is.” “So I just don't have the background to answer that question.” I don’t blame Christine – who’s running on a socialist platform of universal health care and free public college – for not knowing he’s a socialist, heck, he doesn’t even know what gender he is.But come on, people of Vermont, you can still tell the difference, right?Christine: poster boy/girl for universal public education....

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is fun. No, I mean that in all sincerity; she’s a fun candidate. She’s now one of the faces of the emerging left wing of the Democratic Party. Some have even called her the future of the Democratic Party. Maybe they should slow their roll on her, but hey—a Democratic implosion of rising talent is always a fun show to watch. She’s feisty. She has her moments, but when it comes to the policy discussion for her television hits, she veers into rocky shoals. casio-Cortez is clueless on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, playing whack-a-mole concerning whether there should be...

Oh my! The darling of the Democrats - Socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez - tells CNN's Chris Cuomo that Socialized Medicine would actually be less expensive for the Government because people won't have to pay for funerals! Uh, bless her heart! It is frightening that there are actually people in power who are this stupid. Flat-out stupid. Basically, she has no answer for how the Socialists (Democrats) will pay for their pipe dreams - at least not an answer that people will accept. The truth is that it would take massive tax increases on EVERYONE - not just the rich - to...

Legislation that would dramatically increase an important contribution limit just cleared a major hurdle. The House of Representatives recently passed two pieces of legislation that would make significant changes to health savings accounts (HSAs), including a massive increase in the amount of tax-deferred contributions that could be made to them. These changes could not only allow Americans to get more of a tax deduction for their healthcare expenditures, but they could also help participants build their retirement nest eggs at a faster rate. Here's a rundown of what the new HSA contribution limit could be, why it matters for retirement...

Democrats are laying the groundwork to make a push for “Medicare for All” legislation if they win back the House in November. More than 60 House Democrats launched a Medicare for All caucus this month, a sign of the popularity surrounding the concept of a government-run health insurance system for all that’s supported by liberal firebrands like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The caucus plans to hold briefings with experts as part of its efforts to revise a previous bill that will act as the framework for future legislation to establish single-payer national health insurance. “We're going to do what it takes to...

Collapse: One of “Democratic” presidential contender Bernie Sanders’ biggest campaign promises in 2016 was “Medicare for all” — the unofficial name of his universal healthcare plan. Like all avowed socialists, big ideas are based not on any realistic ability to pay for them, but rather on the notion that in order to get the big ideas passed, you’ve got to bribe voters with other peoples’ money so they’ll support you. Well, Bernie got jobbed out of the Democratic Party nomination by a corrupt DNC and an equally corrupt rival, Hillary Clinton, and the rest is history. Too bad the Medicare-for-all...

The Mercatus Center, a libertarian think-tank out of George Mason University, is releasing a study today that will show how much Vermont senator Bernie Sanders's "Medicare for all" idea would cost. Over ten years: $32.6 trillion. The Associated Press wants to make sure you read that correctly: That's trillion with a "T." The latest plan from the Vermont independent would require historic tax increases as government replaces what employers and consumers now pay for health care, according to the analysis being released Monday by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University in Virginia.  It would deliver significant savings on administration and drug costs,...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Bernie Sanders’ “Medicare for all” plan would increase government health care spending by $32.6 trillion over 10 years, according to a study by a university-based libertarian policy center. That’s trillion with a “T.” The latest plan from the Vermont independent would require historic tax increases as government replaces what employers and consumers now pay for health care, according to the analysis being released Monday by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University in Virginia. It would deliver significant savings on administration and drug costs, but increased demand for care would drive up spending, the analysis found.

Summary The 2018 "official" U.S. debt figure of $34 trillion is 120% of GDP and projected to double as a percent of GDP within the next 20 years. It's big.If we add "off-the-books" net obligations like Social Security and Medicare, our all-in debt, or so-called "fiscal gap", rises to $110 trillion, or 390% of GDP. It's scary.Raising taxes and reducing benefits won't restore solvency. Something is going to break, and it won't be pretty. We're broke and no one seems to care. We're all aware that this country owes a lot of money, but no one cares because we're leading...

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) said Thursday that "Medicare for All" proposals should be “evaluated” if Democrats win back the House this year, adding “it’s all on the table." Pelosi has long backed a public option for health insurance, but has not supported going further — as many Democrats want — and setting up government-run, universal health insurance. The Democratic leader did not explicitly endorse the idea of Medicare for All during a press conference Wednesday, but she also did not rule out the proposal. “I've always been for a public option so I'm always eager to talk about...

The latest official report on Medicare's financial status says it will be insolvent in 2026 — just eight years from now. So much for the promise that ObamaCare had fixed that program for the long term. When he signed ObamaCare into law in 2010, President Obama bragged repeatedly that ObamaCare's combination of slowing down overall health spending, payment cuts to providers, improved productivity and quality, as well as less waste, fraud, and abuse would vastly extend Medicare's solvency. He promised ObamaCare would guarantee that Medicare's "sacred trust between America and its seniors … is never broken." Turns out "never" isn't...

Social Security will spend more than it collects this year, the program’s trustees said Tuesday, marking the first time in more than 35 years that it will run an annual deficit as it slides toward insolvency by 2034. Medicare’s main trust fund is in even worse shape, scheduled to hit insolvency in 2026 — three years earlier than last year’s estimate, the trustees said. The twin warnings add even more pressure to a budget already strained by last year’s tax cuts and this year’s deal to boost spending on defense and basic domestic needs, leaving few bright spots in the...

Medicare will run out of money sooner than expected, and Social Security’s financial problems can’t be ignored either, the government said Tuesday in a sobering checkup on programs vital to the middle class. The report from program trustees says Medicare will become insolvent in 2026 — three years earlier than previously forecast. Its giant trust fund for inpatient care won’t be able to fully cover projected medical bills starting at that point. The report says Social Security will become insolvent in 2034 — no change from the projection last year. The warning serves as a reminder of major issues left...

Aging population is boosting the costs of Social Security and Medicare as growth projections ease The Social Security program’s costs will exceed its income this year for the first time since 1982, forcing the program to dip into its nearly $3 trillion trust fund to cover benefits. This is three years sooner than expected a year ago, partly due to lower economic growth projections, according to the latest annual report the trustees of Social Security and Medicare released Tuesday. The program’s income comes from tax revenue and interest from its trust fund. The trust fund will be depleted in 2034...

House bill would require discounts for drugs in Medicare's prescription drug program to be applied when the medicine is bought at the pharmacy, an effort to make sure that customers get the full discount instead of a cut going to insurers and drug middlemen. The Phair Pricing Act of 2018 introduced Thursday builds on parts of a blueprint President Trump released this month to tackle drug pricing. It highlights a lack of transparency in the negotiations over rebates to lower prices for medications in Medicare Part D, the program’s prescription drug plan.

The nation’s largest non-profit advocate for people over 50 is praising the Trump Administration’s first steps to bring down the costs of prescription drugs. Leigh Purvis, Director of Health Service Research in the AARP Public Policy Institute said “American Patients First: The Trump Administration Blueprint to Lower Drug Prices and Reduce Out-of-Pocket Costs,” released May 11 by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), is a positive first step to controlling drug costs for everyone, but particularly the elderly. “This is clearly something that President Trump mentioned during the campaign that was something that was resonating with him....

Here’s a simple idea to help lower healthcare costs: Publish prices. A bipartisan group of state lawmakers in Colorado is pushing a bill to do precisely that. The Comprehensive Health Care Billing Transparency Act would allow Coloradans to see the true price of any health service they use—exams, procedures, prescriptions—before they undertake treatment. If passed, the legislation would mandate that hospitals and other facilities disclose the base fees they charge for specific services “before applying any discounts, rebates, or other charge adjustment mechanisms.” Every bill sent to a patient would need to include an itemized list, which would allow patients...

President Trump's drug pricing plan will not include a call for Medicare to negotiate drug prices, a leading Democratic idea that Trump previously supported, a senior administration official said Thursday. “We're not calling for Medicare negotiation in the way that Democrats have called for,” the official said on a call with reporters previewing Trump’s speech on drug prices scheduled Friday. However, the official said there will be other proposals to increase competition in Medicare, likely using private sector players rather than Medicare directly negotiating prices. Democrats have been pressuring Trump ahead of his speech to renew his call for Medicare...

The AK-47. And liberals want to ban it.

President Trump made it very clear in his State of the Union Address that he wanted to address the high cost of health care, including out-of-control drug prices.  Well, what if the simple repeal of a law would generate both tens of billions of dollars in savings for the hospital supply chain (which includes the Medicare and Medicaid programs) while promoting free-market competition for the drug and medical supply marketplace at the same time? Does such an opportunity truly exist? It does, and it starts and ends with repealing the Medicare Anti-Kickback Safe Harbor Statute, which would level the hospital supply...