Another Dirty Healthcare Deal

Maybe the Democrats will not succeed in discrediting their party beyond any hope of repair while they work their health care magic. But no one can say that they didn't try.

Early on the Obama Administration cut deals with the pharmaceutical industry, protecting it against any shock from health care reform. Congressional Democrats made sure that tort lawyers would continue to feed at the health care trough, made sure that medical insurance companies couldn't threaten state monopolies on regulation, and cut Doctors fees from Medicare with one hand while restoring them with another. Oh, and they bought Nebraska Senator Nelson's vote by securing special protection for his state from the costs of health care reform. As his own poll rating plummet, Senator Nelson is now saying he was trying to secure the same protections for all the other states.

They aren't finished yet. The President has made another sweet deal. From the Politico:

The White House on Thursday cut a deal with its closest labor allies to blunt the impact of a new tax on high-cost insurance policies — and blunt their protests against the health reform plan.

Democrats couldn't eliminate the tax on union members' high-cost insurance policies altogether but did put off the effective date until 2018, but only for labor agreements and state and local government workers.

And that seems sure to open up Democrats to charges that it took yet another behind-closed-doors bargaining session with a powerful interest group to close the deal on health reform.

So the labor unions and state and local government workers join the long list of special interests protected against the costs of health care reform.

All this, of course, makes merry with the idea that the reform bills will control the costs of health care in these United States. Congress is always great at spending money, and really, really lousy at controlling costs. Nothing new here.

But I can't help wondering what most Americans will think of all this. Most Americans are not employed by the government. Most Americans are not doctors or lawyers, and most do not have a union card. Most Americans, I suspect, do not live in Nebraska. What will the most of us think when the enormous bill comes due and we realize how many special people were shielded from the cost? Just asking.

Comments

[Stan Gibilisco]

If I understand correctly, this bill contains a provision to the effect that a 2/3 majority would be needed to repeal it, should it become law.

As more and more people get hammered by provisions of this bill, and if the Republicans can never gather enough votes to repeal it, then this bill might become, to twist a phrase, a ripoff that keeps on ripping -- at the Democrats, for decades to come.

I hope the Republican Party can consolidate pretty soon, but I doubt that they will. The question might then become, "Which of the two old parties will the emerging independent voters damage more?"

Maybe a three-party system will evolve from all this.

[Lynn]

Is the 2/3 majority applicable to only piece of the bill of the whole thing?

For the life of me, I cannot understand how our nation evolved into this kind of partisan, corrupt, bribery, unconstitutional gov't and that they are gettnig away with it. What would happen if the entire country just stormed Congress and the White House and threw them out bodily? At least one of the senators is probably there fraudulently anyway, which was the 60th vote, and no one was able to do anything about that either.

[George Mason]

This is the nationalization of Chicago politics writ large. The deal was done in the middle of the night, behind close doors, with the beneficiaries in the room, and with any dissenters barred. The Obama administrations craves dictatorial powers and passage of this bill is another step down that road.

[Lynn]

I am so ANGRY! What can we do? I called Herseth's office and asked that she cotniue to vote against the bill, but I don't have any hopes that she will honor that request if her vote is needed for passage. How do people stop dictators short of a revolution and violence, which no one wants?

[Miranda]

Lynn: My Dad always says that the country gets the president it deserves. I think he's right. One of the reasons I am not angry about what is happening is because it is happening to people who chose it. The election was not even a close call. America decided that it wanted Obama for president and Democrats in congress. Now it has them.

Because we got ourselves into the situation we are in by choice, a revolution would do little to solve the problem. Throw out one set of leaders and you're still left with the same people who elected him. We may very well just elect the same types of people all over again.

What is nice is that we live in a country that allows free public discourse. We can take any opportunity we like to try to convince our fellow Americans that our ideas and candidates are worthwhile. I think that gives us a tremendous amount of power. How we use that and how often is up to us.

[Patriotson]

This president and congress has become a boil on the ass of Americans. The heads being Obama/Reid/Pelosi need to be lanced in order for this puss of a congress to be cleansed other wise healing will not take place and it will continue to be an issue on our asses.
How dare Obama and company make deals with the unions to exempt them for the burdens of the taxes we will have to pay. I object to having to subsidise the expenses of the union through my wage warnings. Never, never have I seen such back door dealing and sweetheart deals for special interest groups as this congress and president has undertaken and we who are left out will have to pay the difference in: reduced medical care; reduced quality care; higher taxes; higher deficiet; no reductions in medical costs; and supporting card carrying union members for whom I did not have a vote to radify. Abomination!

[Lynn]

Obama's win was NOT a close call, seems he only got 54% of the vote. That means at least 46% of us are getting a gov't we do not deserve and did not want. Also, many of the 54% who voted for O the first time around are now fed up with thsi administration's lies, unethical dealings with bribery, coercion, backdoor deals, no transparency, etc etc. No one deserves a gov't such as this administration. You are right that if we throw these bums out that the same people will re-elect new gov't leaders; however, the voters are now awake and more aware this time around and I guarantee the resutls would not be the same.

[Miranda]

Lynn,

Agreed on all accounts. I fully expect the results of the next few elections to be markedly different!

[Lioness]

Many elements of this bill are totally unhealthy! They do nothing to serve healthcare
improvement; they simply lock citizens into supporting bad legislation. Every Congressman needs to be held responsible for every offensive part of this mess - NOW. Each one is responsible for selling their vote against the will of their constituency.