- 2,908
As discussed, the dems are in trouble with the Blue Hair Brigade for the medicare cuts that are still in the bill. Now Harry Reid and company are going to try to buy back some favor by closing the donut hole. Note the financial gymnastics here. The amendment to close the donut hole is not in the bill up for a Senate vote. Instead they plan to add it after it passes and is in coference with the house bill. Translation: They dont want the cost of filling the donut hole to be added into the CBO projection for the reform bill.
They just did this about three weeks ago with the doc-fix. It was driving the cost of the health reform bill up so they stripped it out and passed it as a separate bill. Thus they got the doc-fix and it held the cost of the reform bill down even though the expenditure is the same. Don't expect them to stop doing this type of thing anytime soon, given that it is working so well.
There will be nothing but new heatlh care bills and amendments year after year for the rest of our lives. Just as with the Canadian and UK system. The feds have come to help us. Strip the current health bill down to bare bones to get it passed and to get Obama a bill to sign. Then next week start right in with the amendments. Of course the Republicans and democrats fearful for their seats will be doing the same. There will be many cowardly bastards who will vote for the reform bill but immediately sign on to support a bill to restore medicare cuts. And lefties who will support the bill but immediately sign on for an amendment to cover abortion or to have a public option or to lower medicare to age 55. Election coming right up.
Plenty of entertainment value here in some of this. The Howard Dean wing of the party has gone from arguing that we should pull the plug on grandma over to arguing that we should pull the plug on this current bill. Gotta love it.
Change you can believe in.
US Senate Democrats: Health Bill To End 'Doughnut Hole' - WSJ.com
They just did this about three weeks ago with the doc-fix. It was driving the cost of the health reform bill up so they stripped it out and passed it as a separate bill. Thus they got the doc-fix and it held the cost of the reform bill down even though the expenditure is the same. Don't expect them to stop doing this type of thing anytime soon, given that it is working so well.
There will be nothing but new heatlh care bills and amendments year after year for the rest of our lives. Just as with the Canadian and UK system. The feds have come to help us. Strip the current health bill down to bare bones to get it passed and to get Obama a bill to sign. Then next week start right in with the amendments. Of course the Republicans and democrats fearful for their seats will be doing the same. There will be many cowardly bastards who will vote for the reform bill but immediately sign on to support a bill to restore medicare cuts. And lefties who will support the bill but immediately sign on for an amendment to cover abortion or to have a public option or to lower medicare to age 55. Election coming right up.
Plenty of entertainment value here in some of this. The Howard Dean wing of the party has gone from arguing that we should pull the plug on grandma over to arguing that we should pull the plug on this current bill. Gotta love it.
Change you can believe in.
US Senate Democrats: Health Bill To End 'Doughnut Hole' - WSJ.com
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