Time to get back on the Merry Go Round…
Before staunch backers of President Obama dismiss what I am about to write as simply contrarian Republican rhetoric, let me share an excerpt from a letter I wrote to a dear friend the day after President Obama was elected:
While I remain a conservative by philosophy who sees the government who governs least governs best, I feel a sense of history and pleasure with America at the dawn of this new day.
For the first time in our Nation’s history, we the people have elected a black man to our highest office. This occurred without him making it an issue of any substance in the campaign. To this I say it is high time, and I hold out the high hope that we the people have determined to measure people not “by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
I place faith in having a man assume the Office of the President I believe to be intelligent and compelling. I pray him to also be honorable and good on his word to listen to all sides. I pray he can marshal the Nation’s “best and brightest” and engage the Nation in a course of honor where “might for right” reigns. Far too long we have waited for a president with such promise.
I harbor concerns that President Elect Obama’s sees steps toward socialism as the solution. I am concerned about the drag of such policies on the economic “house of cards” built by both sides of the aisle. My heart’s hope is that he will surround himself with that “best and brightest” to assist him, counsel with him and restore the proper role government in the problem-solving of our society.
Most of all, to quote LDS First Presidency member President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “I believe in the infinite power of hope!” Today, I too, remain hopeful.
May all our children have the opportunity to be like Tom of Warwick in Camelot by living out those good words: “Might for right! Right for right! Justice for all!” May they grow up, grow old, beat their swords into plowshares and arm themselves with the “tenets of truth” and safeguard our Nation’s hopes and ideals.
“Yes we can!” may just be words, but they are good words, and good words are where ideas begin.
With all of that, I believe this is a bad idea. The “this” I refer to is the health provisions content in the current version of the Economic Stimulus Bill. Please have a look at this Op-Ed piece in Bloomberg written by Betsy McCaughey, former lieutenant governor of New York and an adjunct senior fellow at the Hudson Institute.
Upon my reading of the Op-Ed piece (and the related sections of the bill), these key phrases or ideas in the bill concern me:
The Scope: “every individual in the United States” (445, 454, 479). The bill allocates more funding for this bureaucracy than for the Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Force combined (90-92, 174-177, 181)
The Goal: to reduce costs and “guide” your doctor’s decisions (442, 446)
The Penalties: hospitals and doctors that are not “meaningful users” of the new system will face penalties. (511, 518, 540-541)
ROI-based Health Care Decisions: The stimulus bill would change Medicare by applying a cost- effectiveness standard set by the Federal Council (464). I believe this is effectively rationing health care for seniors in particular.
New terms, organizations, positions created in the bill that concern me include:
The Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research (190-192)
The most chilling words of McCaughey’s piece are near the conclusion:
“Yet the bill treats health care the way European governments do: as a cost problem instead of a growth industry. Imagine limiting growth and innovation in the electronics or auto industry during this downturn. This stimulus is dangerous to your health and the economy.”
Perhaps it’s time to give our senators, your representatives and the White House (scroll down after clicking on the link) a call… while there’s still time to get this YANKED out of the bill.
0 Responses to “Dusting Off… Federal Shades of Orwellian Health Care in Stimulus Bill”