Posted on 08/16/2009 2:29:50 PM PDT by Steelfish
White House Appears Open to Insurance Co-ops
JOSEPH BERGER August 16, 2009
The Obama administration sent signals on Sunday that it has backed away from its once-firm vision of a government organization to provide for the nation’s 50 million uninsured and is now open to using nonprofit cooperatives instead.
Kathleen Sebelius, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, said on Sunday morning that an additional government insurer is “not the essential element” of the administration’s plan to overhaul the country’s health care system.
“I think there will be a competitor to private insurers,” she said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “That’s really the essential part, is you don’t turn over the whole new marketplace to private insurance companies and trust them to do the right thing. We need some choices, we need some competition.”
Her less-than-forceful insistence on a government insurance organization was paralleled by Robert Gibbs, the president’s press secretary.
“What I am saying is the bottom line for this for the president is, what we have to have is choice and competition in the insurance market,” he said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
The administration, mindful of steadfast Republican opposition to a government insurer in addition to Medicaid and Medicare, has previously indicated that it could accept nonprofit insurance cooperatives as an alternative, and the Senate Finance Committee appears to be forming a bipartisan consensus around the idea of nonprofit insurance cooperatives.
The health care industry prefers that format, even though many liberal Democrats have argued that cooperatives would not have as much sway over the prices Americans pay for health care.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
These assholes want a ANYTHING because they will then be able to add to it and get what they want. Not this year, but in the next two or three.
Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, said it would be difficult to pass any legislation through the Democratic-controlled Congress without the promised public plan.
"We'll have the same number of people uninsured," she said. "If the insurance companies wanted to insure these people now, they'd be insured."
Hopefully, enough Liberals will pissed at this "compromise", that it won't pass.
The Democrats did not let President Bush have any kind of victory with privatizing Socical Security. Why should Republicans do any different?
It sounds like these will be run by private citizens - Like any other Co-0p.
The problem that I see, is that the initial money is provided by the GOVERNMENT & it's not clear if it will be paid back or not.
You know what happened when the auto industry & the banks took GOVERNMENT money!! The same GOVERNMENT puts rules in on HOW it is run...so what's the difference between doing this & having Obama's plan?
...it looks like the Republicans have already flashed a green light on this.
************
Well then it’s time we, their great unwashed constituency, “flash” them with something loud and bright. Fire-up those faxes, e-mails, smith-coronas and #2’s, ladies and gents!
Here are several good “talking points” (which have been talked about here, there, and everywhere except the exalted halls of congress): http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204251404574342170072865070.html
Two words: Trojan horse
The same destination regardless. Just a different color vehicle. Compromise is just another word for bait and switch.
Not only NO, but HELL NO!
This is unbelievable but not unexpected.
DEAR LEADER and the Rats are so anxious to pass something (ANYTHING) so they can show the Fascist-in-Chief, (pretending) he did something for the sheeple, they will resort to ANY tactic or underhanded sleight-of-hand.
THEY ARE NOT TO BE TRUSTED!
Sadly, while we (the Conservatives, not the Pubes in Congress) have them on the ropes, those F'N asssholes are going to cave in the spirit of "Bi-Partisanship."
WILL THEY NEVER LEARN????
In the end, the master goal is achieved. Blue Dogs and Moderate R's NEVER learn from their mistakes. They are the Socialists best friends as useful idiots in their implementation of agendas.
Sebelius is the sensitive person who praised the SEIU.
How about,
’ Save a Life, Kill the Bill’
I don’t think so. The Poacher in chief is after sitting duck. Press your advantage you damn Republicans!
YES, unless we teach each and every time they are about to screw up.
I seriously doubt the Obama Administration would have put forward this notion of the non-profit Co-ops unless they had the firm back-room handshake from the Republican leadership.
This is why the NY Times makes reference to “bi-partisan consensus” as the basis for this idea. Obama has vowed to make Health Care “Reform” his signature piece and insists that he’d do it before the end of this year.
I fear Obama, Axelrod, and Emanuel may just have found the crack in the Republican armor to do this.
10,000 times NO.
Get the camel’s nose in the tent and then move everyone else out.
The GOP is going to find some bi-partisan solution, which means they’ll find a way to get taxpayer money to their own special interest groups and try to sell it to the rest of us unwashed as a good bill. Once again, the GOP will snatch defeat from the jaws of a conservative victory. A pox on both their houses!
Insurance CoOps are a “backdoor” approach to the “public option”.
How long will it be before the Leftists find a problem with how the CoOps are run and pass legislation to essentially take them over - and run them the “government way”? Thus putting insurance companies out of business - which is what they wanted all along.
Less than 2 years is my bet!!!
There is no way - no how that we can believe they have done a U-Turn & now they no longer want to have their original health plan.They are feverishly working overtime to reword & repackage this abomination.
Once the trust is gone - there is no turning back for 'WE THE PEOPLE'.
We want ALL the politicians to keep their paws off our health care. If they were honestly concerned about our health & welfare - Medicare would not keep getting robbed for them to spend for their wish lists.
They can start by seriously investigating all the fraud in Medicare & Medicaid. Now, they want to add illegals & everyone else they can think of - to be paid for by honest working people.
None of them know what they are doing. They are not health care providers - most have never run a business. They are the last people that need to be dismanteling the best health care system in the world!
We need to have double & triple numbers of people marching in the streets against it.
Just because Obama decided that it's the STAR of his administration means nothing to the rest of us. It will only stroke his ego to get more catastrophies passed.
HELL NO!!
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