Posted on 08/01/2007 1:06:13 AM PDT by goldstategop
Does President Bush really believe what he's saying about the effort from congressional Democrats and some leading Senate Republicans to provide health coverage for millions of uninsured children? He's portraying it as the first step on a slippery slope toward "government-run healthcare," as if senior senators in both parties were conspiring with Michael Moore to import Cuban doctors to inoculate and indoctrinate American children.
In fact, Congress is moving responsibly to remove a blot on the nation: the 8 million children without health insurance. It is doing so by expanding the State Children's Health Insurance Program, or SCHIP, a state-federal partnership that the Republican Congress and President Clinton created in 1997 to cover kids in working-poor families. Final votes on the House and Senate floors could come this week.
Bush, seemingly determined to provoke every possible confrontation with congressional Democrats, has pledged to veto the bills.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
The more I think about it the more I believe in health savings accounts to pay for private insurance. Government interference would disrupt everything, drive up costs, and force doctors out of medicine.
I thought this was interesting, you may be paying the AMT (tax), and still qualify for the Schip program:
Now, the S-CHIP program was originally designed to help poverty level children, something I think we can all get behind. But who will be the beneficiary of this increased spending under the new plan? A family of 4, including adults, who make up to $81,000 per year or 400% above poverty level could qualify to be covered under this program. It looks to me more like a gradual spread of socialized medicine rather than helping the truly needy in our country. Ironically enough, under the Democrat’s expanded S-CHIP program, 70,000 American families would be “poor enough” to qualify for S-CHIP while at the same time among “the rich” who have to pay the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).
I predict Bush will sign this bill. He's never seen a spending bill that he didn't like, and being the illegal aliens' best friend, would only be more than happy to do anything to make their stay in the USA more of a pleasant one.
Stealing Health Care From Babies (Ronald Brownstein Blows His Stack Alert)
another socialist advocating the US taxpayers fund and support illegals up to age 25.....
what a true a-hole!!!!
If a scumbag like ronnie was REALLY serious about wanting to cover children and not open America up to more abusive illegal aliens, he would be fighting to keep these burglars out. He would be talking about how we have limited funds that can ONLY be spent on Americans to solve this problem. But a scumbag does as a scumbag is.
There is a tax increas on tobacco to pray for this. Although Dems claim they will just tax the rich, in reality it is the poor who smoke who will pay to subsidize families of above average income. When will smokers stop; acting guilty and object?
The government can “help” the children get health insurance by simply lowering and simplifying the tax code for their parents. But that’s too logical for the gubmint.
Ron, are we talking about good health care, or
King-Drew/King-Harbor/whatever-they-call-the-place-next quality health care? Because if we’re talking about “Killer King” quality health care, trust me, we’re doing babies a favor by stealing it from them.
Sounds like a good idea, tax smokers....tell everyone that smokers will pay the costs and few will object. But there is also a proposal to tax priviate health insurance owners to help fund this. I am sure that if there is a tax on my health insurance that tax will be passed along to me.
It`s Ron BrownSTAIN
Children up to age 25, that just kills me.
Under this plan, a 24-year old illegal alien is a “child” who gets free healthcare. No f**king way!
and then there is this statement:
The Senate bill would increase spending by $35 billion over five years
and the House Democrats would increase spending by more than $50 billion.
Yet SCHIP expansion would do nothing to increase enrollment among children
who are already eligible, and most of the additional children are already
covered by private insurance. According to the Congressional Budget Office
(CBO), of the children who are uninsured for an entire year:
— More than one million children currently qualify for public coverage
but are not enrolled.
— Another 1.1 million do not qualify because they are illegal (or
temporary) immigrants.
— About 403,000 are income-eligible immigrants who have not been legal
residents long enough to qualify for Medicaid benefits.
— In families earning 200 percent to 300 percent of the poverty-level
income, 77 percent of children already have private coverage, according
to the CBO.
— In families earning 300 percent to 400 percent of poverty, 90 percent
of children are already covered by private health insurance.
Both chambers pay for this expansion, in part, by an increase in the
tobacco tax, which disproportionately impacts the poor. The House has also
targeted cutting Medicare Advantage plans, which help low-income seniors.
In addition, there are other, non-monetary costs that have to be taken into
account. For example, children will have less access to health care because
most SCHIP enrollees experience restrictions to care not felt by children
enrolled in private insurance plans.
“Funding for this effort will come from people who have less income
than the families who are purported to benefit,” said Herrick. “Congress
should instead focus on getting more people access to private insurance.”
I don’t get it. How can it be “stealing” if the president merely opposes the expansion of the program? Simply opposing the expansion of coverage does nothing to take away what coverage is already in place. Not only that, but the proposed expansion of the health coverage would actually take away private insurance for large numbers of children and replace it with government-run insurance. And the author thinks that the president is “stealing”? It makes no sense.
If you want money taken from "us" to pay for health care for poverty-level children, why bother with a government middle-man?
Why not just have the parents of these poverty-level children (or, since some of these "children" are legally adults, the "children" themselves) come stick a knife in our ribs to take the money directly?
I have been outraged by the SCHIPS program for many years.
I was outraged when states started giving wavers to single mothers so that they could get insurance under the Schips program. I am outraged that our government abuse children by saying IT’S FOR THE CHILDREN, then take the programs in different directions, I am outraged that welfare mothers are allowed to get wavers for work requirements. I am outraged that “we the people” don’t know what these programs do.
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