Health Care Rationing May Be Our Future

During the health care debate the public expressed concern that the health care bill would result in rationing and bureaucrats denying health care because it deemed that care to not be cost effective. We were told by politicians that we were being foolish and that that would never happen.

NOW let us look at the man that President Obama has nominated to head Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). What are the beliefs and policies advocated by Donald Berwick? CMS is the world’s second largest health care insurance provider - only Great Britain’s NHS is larger. Currently the CMS covers over 98 million Americans and has a budget of around 800 million tax payer dollars. It provides health care coverage for almost one-third of our population.

Donald Berwick is a big supporter of the rationed British system. He has stated, “I am romantic about NHS. I love it.” He has also said, “Any health care funding plan that is equitable civilized and humane must, must redistribute wealth from the richer among us to the poorer...Excellent health care is by definition redistributional.” He believes we should have a socialized health care system like that found in Great Britain. Of course, their survival rate for nearly every disease is significantly lower than ours.

The British rationing system (NICE) denies treatment if they deem this treatment to not be cost effective. Berwick supports this cost cutting rationing saying, “NICE is extremely effective.” I’m sure that the people who die because their treatment is denied, don’t appreciate this cost effectiveness.

The health care bill that Congress passed, against the wishes of the American people, has placed an unbearable burden on our health care system. We do not have the money to pay for it and we do not have enough medical providers. We will have another EMERGENCY. Isn’t it fortuitous that last year Congress established the Comparative Effectiveness Research panel (CER)? What a coincidence! We already have a bureaucratic panel that will determine who is “cost effective” and may receive medical treatment. If Donald Berwick’s nomination is approved he can approve and administer this health care rationing. He has already praised the British rationing system and would support it in this country. When asked if CER would lead to rationing he replied, “The decision is not whether or not we will ration care. The decision is whether we will ration with our eyes open.”

This sounds like a “Death Panel” to me. The question is whether Congress will allow Donald Berwick, a health care rationing enabler, to be appointed to run the CMS.

Signed,
The Electorate

Health Care: Impossible Claims

Washington is making impossible claims as it seeks to convince the American people that the proposed health care bill will be good for us and the country. They ask us to abandon all reason and believe the impossible. I would like to list a few of these claims.

The government will provide higher quality health care to more people at a lower cost.

The same government that bankrupted social security and Medicare will run this new program so efficiently that the deficit will be reduced by their health care plan.

Medicare can be cut by over 500 billion dollars and the quality and quantity of senior care will not be affected.

The Medicare cuts will save Medicare even though the money saved will be spent to fund health care to other people.

A finite number of health care providers can treat 30 million more people and maintain the same quality of care.

The bill will not cause health care premiums to go up.

The bill will not cause middle class taxes to go up.

The health care bill will not exceed estimated costs. When has any government program not exceeded estimated costs?

Ten years of taxes to pay for the program is truly the equivalent of an average of five years of received benefits. Compare apples to apples and not apples to oranges.

This health care bill will not cause the national debt to soar and bankrupt our country. Out of control spending is destroying the country.

The government can fairly decide what treatment individuals are eligible to receive. Allowing a “cost effectiveness” panel is health care rationing.

Washington knows what is best for us. The American people are too dumb to know what they really want or need.

Americans do not believe these impossible claims. We are not gullible. That is one of the reasons we oppose the bill. We also do not trust our government to fairly control our health care. The government should not be able to determine how “cost effective” our lives are.

We, your constituents, do not want you to vote for this health care bill – no matter how the vote is hidden. Vote “NO” on the health care bill and “NO” on any self executing rule.

Signed,
The Electorate