Special Deal for Harry Reid?

[Winter_123]

Poor babies here. Reid and Dodd might have to answer to their constituents.

Part way down in this link the article refers to "Nevada being one of four states" where the feds will pay the entire freight for medicaid expansion. Huh? How the heck does that work? I mean I know how pork works but what is the offical explanantion that singles them out and makes them special. Or is this a special "save Harry's arse" provision. Something is rotten there.


Healthcare reform adds to troubles of Senators Reid and Dodd | csmonitor.com

 

[somarco]

Wonder who the other 3 states are? My guess is TN isn't one of them. Phil Bredesen (D-TN) isn't real happy about expanding Medicaid roles. He figures it will cost TN residents between $735 million and $3 billion over the next 10 years.

Bummer.

And the will be losing the Saturn plant in Spring Hill before too long. They are at 10.8% already (Aug 2009) so where is the tax money coming from to fund Obamacare?

 

[Winter_123]

Wonder who the other 3 states are??

As discussed, I could see in an instant that this thing with Harry Reid was untidy. If he wants to go down that road and think it wont blow up on him then go for it.


"We cut special favors for special states, not based on need or requirements but on the influence of the individual senator," said Arizona Republican John McCain.
Reid responded: "I make absolutely no apologies -- none - - for helping people in my state."

Uh, okay. Let's see. Olympia Snowe bucks her party but Maine gets no extra pork because she is considered to be a safe seat. Meanwhile Harry is in trouble back home so we give him the pork. Where's my free stuff? The final chapter has not been written in this story. This clown Harry Reid may think that you cant take down a sitting Senate Majority Leader. He might want to have a little chat with Tom Daschle about that.

Change you can believe in.

Reid Leads Democrats In Carving Out Favors for States on Health - Bloomberg.com

 

[ABC]

This type of medicaid expansion will lead to a raise in state taxes.
I know in my state they estimate the expansion would cost the state another $47 million. The state does not have the money so they will have to raise taxes.

We have already hammered the cigarettes so the next will be booze,property taxes, sales tax, and who knows what else.

This entire Health care reform stinks.

If these libs would just open the interstate health plans this would be a real start in the right direction. So what if the DOI loses power they can't handle the work loads they have now.

 

[somarco]

$47 million is cheap. TN Sen. Lamar Alexander (R) projects $1.2 billion by 2015. Spread that over 6.2 million residents and that is a lot of cheddar. Dem Gov. Bredesen is throwing around similar numbers.

 

[Winter_123]

$47 million is cheap. TN Sen. Lamar Alexander (R) projects $1.2 billion by 2015. Spread that over 6.2 million residents and that is a lot of cheddar. Dem Gov. Bredesen is throwing around similar numbers.

The whole medicaid crisis at the state level is a time bomb. States already ran their medicaid budgets into the hole but Obama let them use stimulus funds to plug the state budgets. Now he is talking about Stimulus II. So you let some states use stumulus funds for a few years to plug their state budgets and then the feds pay the state share of expanded medicaid on top of that in a few states fora couple years and then you ask yourself what it looks like when all those band-aids run out. You have to either keep everyone on the federal tit for ever or else take their credit cards away from them as California found out. Then you are back to deciding who to cut when the goal was to expand. Oy!

What a mess. And everyone treats the CBO projections as though they are Gospel. The actual numbers for Medicaid turned out to be almost exactly four times what the CBO projected. Who among us does not think this current gig will cost four times or more of the projected cost? In fairness to the CBO, they are required to do "what-if" modeling. In other words, they are charged with answering what the costs would look like if Congress implemented all elements of its plans as presented. They are not allowed to say "your plan would only cost this, but you idiots never follow the plan and enact cost savings so it is a completely worthless forecast.

Change you can believe in.

 

[somarco]

The CBO numbers are just as "flawed" as the PWC figures put out for the AHIP.

CBO doesn't include all the tax levies on medical supplies, "Cadillac" plans, state level Medicaid & SCHIP taxes, higher health insurance premiums . . .

Both sides are guilty of telling partial truths.

 

[Winter_123]

The CBO numbers are just as "flawed" as the PWC figures put out for the AHIP.

CBO doesn't include all the tax levies on medical supplies, "Cadillac" plans, state level Medicaid & SCHIP taxes, higher health insurance premiums . . .

Both sides are guilty of telling partial truths.

Quite so. The difference is that AHIP is a lobbying group and everyone knows upfront that they have an agenda. The CBO, however, is bi-partisan, and required by law to provide "objective" info. The CBO is not supposed to be representing any side whether public versus private, dem versus repub etc. What they do is another matter.

AHIP, Pharma, and AMA are all a bunch of whores so I am not defending them. I will say though that I have been a little chagrined at how the networks, Fox included, have felt obligated to automatically discredit some of the projections coming from the industry simply because people in the industry sponsored it. The industry report projects massive premium increases under the proposed plan. Most likely that will happen. AMA projects that docs will essentially just become "health care workers" and retire early as medicare rates replace private insurance rates. Both of those are going to happen.
Where else are you going to hear about those concerns, from the government? I dont think so. Yes, Congress has to sort out the truth from fiction but that is their job.

The AHIP and AMA projectionsre most likely going to occur. The CBO projections are completely bogus and the cost will be at least four times as much. Woe be unto Congress if they dismiss Republican and AHIP claims as just partisan arguments. Medicaid, as noted, turned out to be four times the CBO projection.

 

[somarco]

If change comes, and if it does you can bet a lot of pork has been spread around to make it so, the revolt from the public will be massive. This house of cards is already falling apart. Health care reform may be the thing that brings it down.

Current yrs deficit was $1.4 TRILLION. Over 4x the largest single year deficit ever. That's over $4,000 for every man, woman and child in America.

Unemployment is unabated. Foreclosures, bank failures, war. Factor in hyper-inflation (coming) along with the cost of every aspect of health care increasing, higher health insurance premiums, taxes on "Cadillac" plans, Medicare cuts, the elimination of MA PFFS plans and the Obamanation has taken a bad situation and made it worse.

Here at home the revolt will start with next years election. Harry Reid seems like a sure bet to be fired by the residents of NV and a recent poll indicates folks in CA aren't real happy with Princess Nancy either.

The next 13 months will be interesting as the free fall gains momentum.

 

[djs]

Here at home the revolt will start with next years election. Harry Reid seems like a sure bet to be fired by the residents of NV and a recent poll indicates folks in CA aren't real happy with Princess Nancy either.

Nancy is pretty safe. California may not be happy with her, but the area she represents actually thinks she is to conservative, but in general, think she is okay. Barbara Boxer on the other hand, may have a challenge in front of her. Time will tell.

Dan