Fresh doubt cast on Obama's health care story

Washington Examiner ^ | 7/11/11 | Byron York

[Nachum]

During the 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama often discussed his mother's struggle with cancer. Ann Dunham spent the months before her death in 1995, Obama said, fighting with insurance companies that sought to deny her the coverage she needed to pay for treatment.

"I remember in the last month of her life, she wasn't thinking about how to get well, she wasn't thinking about coming to terms with her own mortality, she was thinking about whether or not insurance was going to cover the medical bills and whether our family would be bankrupt as a consequence," Obama said in September 2007.

"She was in her hospital room looking at insurance forms because the insurance company said that maybe she had a pre-existing condition and maybe they wouldn't have to reimburse her for her medical bills," Obama added in January 2008.

"The insurance companies were saying, 'Maybe there's a pre-existing condition and we don't have to pay your medical bills,' " Obama said in a debate with Republican opponent Sen. John McCain in October 2008.

[Condor51]

Barry and mommy were DOLTS.

Forget CIGNA and nay company disability coverage Durham had or did not have. If you have terminal cancer, or terminal anything, you IMMEDIATELY qualify for Social Security Disability including Medicare. (not SSI but full boat, regular S.S.)

Her S.S. monthly amount would have been the same amount as if she was 65 and retiring. So she wouldn't have had to pay a penny out of pocket and worry about 'bankruptcy'. Her company Health Insurance pays the primary, 80%, and from her SS payments she could have paid the deductible (it's not like Medicaid were you have to be 'poor'(/s) to qualify). So her 'Lawyer son' apparently wasn't too sharp back then. (HUGH sarcasm intended)

She should have called....... Binder and Binder :-)

[1010RD]

‘Fresh Doubt’? A rational man must doubt everything a Cook County Democrat says.

Only the insane forgo skepticism when a Crook County Dem speaks. Their promises are mist, their memories sieves, and their tongues forked. They lie as naturally as they breathe.

[PghBaldy]

Byron York is being kind. It is more than “fresh doubt.” Obama lied, once again.

[TheOldLady]

Loosely quoted: Fifty-seven states with one left to go. Alaska and Hawaii, my staff couldn't justify it.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have 60 states! God Bless America!

He didn't include Puerto Rico. Yet.

[Seizethecarp]

“If you have terminal cancer, or terminal anything, you IMMEDIATELY qualify for Social Security Disability including Medicare. (not SSI but full boat, regular S.S.)”

This was not true in 1975-77 when I worked for Social Security.

I remember a file where the guy was terminally ill and the Claims Authorizer deemed him still able to push a broom, so he was denied disability benefits. He appealed and wrote to his representative, but died before his appeal could be processed, but after death he got retroactive benefits up to his death paid to his family, IIRC.

I believe that the more compassionate treatment of the terminally ill you refer to did not come until reforms passed under Clinton.

Relevant to this thread is that Stanley Ann would have had to first qualify for SS benefits based on her payments and her US employers payments into the SS system while she working in the US. Her US working history was negligible (a few year at the Ford Foundation in NY?), so the SSDI benefits would have been the minimum, most likely.