True Cost of Health Care, ObamaCare, Threat to Medicare, HHR Analysis of Health Care Legislation, HHR Health Care Reform
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The Week Of: April 25, 2010
Today's Zinger:
Political Rhetoric Can Only Sustain You So Long Before Reality Sets In
The Morning Briefing:
After more than a year of debate, political wrangling and closed door legislative development, President Obama got his health care bill approved. With a goal of covering all Americans, "bending the cost curve" and making health care affordable to all Americans, this bill created the most significant change in a social program in two generations.
Most Americans support the goal for this legislation, but most Americans were also skeptical that this legislation could achieve the goals that were set out. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) which is suppose to be an impartial agency supporting Congress, verified the financial tenants of the legislation as directed by Congress. Of course, the CBO was not given a free hand in their evaluation. They are told what assumptions must be used in their evaluation. In effect, their role was to do the math and not the analysis.
Well, it didn't take long. The Health and Human Services Department has issued a report, the first independent report, on ObamaCare and the implications. Zinger looks at the HHS report and how this may turn in to a truth or dare moment for the administration and Congress.
Who Said It?
"The Constitution does not just protect those whose views we share; it also protects those with whose views we disagree"
The Discussion:
For over a year Zinger has commented on the state of health care reform in the United States. As the administration tried to craft a reform bill that would provide health care to all Americans and reduce the ever rising cost of care, the give and take of the political process led to many significant compromises and payoffs, including exemption of Federal employees, exemption of Congress, exclusion of the high value health care programs currently held by most union members and payoff to the Pharmaceutical industry and insurance companies and tort lawyers to assure their cooperation in securing the legislation. Probably the biggest change in the bill is that it focused on insurance companies and not the health care providers and delivery system that is the true drivers of health care costs.
So, with great fanfare, Nancy Pelosi whipped her party into submission until the bill finally passed, essentially on party lines. But the Republicans held to the belief that the bill, as now passed, failed to achieve many of its objectives and would result in higher health care costs to the nation. The Republicans were demonized for not caring about Americans and their health and being obstructionists. Demonizing the opposition has become the standard procedure for getting things done in Washington these days.
Zinger supported most of the concerns raised by the Republicans. Now, the government's own independent agency has analyzed the bill and opined. Health and Human Services has said that:
The bill will accomplish banning the insurance practice of dropping high risk patients, increasing the number of Americans covered by a health insurance policy and will make health insurance more affordable to some through taxpayer subsidy (sometimes called taxes) of premiums. But lets be honest, we could have accomplished many of these objectives with simple legislation and did not require impacting every single American and throwing our current system of health care in upheaval to achieve this result.
Health Care reform is desperately needed in this country. The biggest anticipated failure of this legislation is the lack of cost control. The cost of the program is currently estimated at approximately $2 trillion in the first 5 years of use. That is made up of more than $1 trillion in new taxes from 2010-2019, more than $300 billion operating loss as reported by HHS and don't forget the $500 billion allocated in the 2010 Federal Budget for health care reform. (PS, I'm sure the administration wants you to forget that little $500 billion because they I'm sure that we will hear how the administration has reduced the overall cost of the budget when reelection comes in 2012 --which is not a reduction at all).
The Conclussion:
Anyone that knows the health care industry and cost structures knows that trying to control the health insurance companies to reduce overall costs is like trying to put controls on the auto insurance companies to reduce accidents and theft of cars. The insurance company is not the source of the problem.
ObamaCare is destined to fail the way it is written. Costs will go up, availability of health care will go down but the number of people covered will increase (at a cost of $86,000 per new covered life from 2015-2019 and this excludes the hidden cost of higher health care). Zinger, like most Americans, wants health care reform. I'm sure the political rhetoric will try to convince us that it will be wonderful. I for one will not listen to Nancy Pelosi when she tells us that the program is good, that we will just have to wait until it is implemented to find out. I don't have to put my hand in a fire to know that if I do I will get burned. No thanks Ms. Pelosi, you can keep this change too.
We can only hope that Congress goes back and revisits this legislation with an eye on real reform.
Here are some recent articles that speak to the Health and Human Services Analysis:
National Review
Health care reform Is going to cost more and impact seniors
Kaiser Foundation analysis of Health Care bill
Who Said It?
"The Constitution does not just protect those whose views we share; it also protects those with whose views we disagree"
Ted Kennedy
The Lion of the Senate
Proponent of Health Care Reform
Today's ZingerToon:
Shameless Request For Support:
ZingerKing operates without advertising or government funding (obviously). The purpose is to inform and educate its readers about economic and political issues that affect our lives.
Help ZingerKing grow. Have you Zinged someone lately? Please forward a link to ZingerKing to a friend, family member or neighbor. If you enjoy reading the Zinger please subscribe (see the subscribe box at the top of the article in the purple side band). Subscribers receive the "Morning Briefing" when published with a link to the full article. Your email address will not be sold to others and will not be shared.
Write To Us:
You can comment on any article by clicking on the comment button at the bottom of each article or you can write to us at ZK@ZingerKing.com
The Week Of: April 25, 2010
Today's Zinger:
Political Rhetoric Can Only Sustain You So Long Before Reality Sets In
The Morning Briefing:
After more than a year of debate, political wrangling and closed door legislative development, President Obama got his health care bill approved. With a goal of covering all Americans, "bending the cost curve" and making health care affordable to all Americans, this bill created the most significant change in a social program in two generations.
Most Americans support the goal for this legislation, but most Americans were also skeptical that this legislation could achieve the goals that were set out. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) which is suppose to be an impartial agency supporting Congress, verified the financial tenants of the legislation as directed by Congress. Of course, the CBO was not given a free hand in their evaluation. They are told what assumptions must be used in their evaluation. In effect, their role was to do the math and not the analysis.
Well, it didn't take long. The Health and Human Services Department has issued a report, the first independent report, on ObamaCare and the implications. Zinger looks at the HHS report and how this may turn in to a truth or dare moment for the administration and Congress.
Who Said It?
"The Constitution does not just protect those whose views we share; it also protects those with whose views we disagree"
The Discussion:
For over a year Zinger has commented on the state of health care reform in the United States. As the administration tried to craft a reform bill that would provide health care to all Americans and reduce the ever rising cost of care, the give and take of the political process led to many significant compromises and payoffs, including exemption of Federal employees, exemption of Congress, exclusion of the high value health care programs currently held by most union members and payoff to the Pharmaceutical industry and insurance companies and tort lawyers to assure their cooperation in securing the legislation. Probably the biggest change in the bill is that it focused on insurance companies and not the health care providers and delivery system that is the true drivers of health care costs.
So, with great fanfare, Nancy Pelosi whipped her party into submission until the bill finally passed, essentially on party lines. But the Republicans held to the belief that the bill, as now passed, failed to achieve many of its objectives and would result in higher health care costs to the nation. The Republicans were demonized for not caring about Americans and their health and being obstructionists. Demonizing the opposition has become the standard procedure for getting things done in Washington these days.
Zinger supported most of the concerns raised by the Republicans. Now, the government's own independent agency has analyzed the bill and opined. Health and Human Services has said that:
- We will still have 23 million people not covered by health insurance. This is better than the current 32 million not covered but it means that this legislation that will cost $2 trillion in its first five years will cover less than 10 million additional people during that five year period.
- Senior will lose health care benefits. HHS estimates that 50% of seniors will lose the Medicare Advantage coverage.
- Corporations will begin to eliminate coverage through private health plans and force employees into the government exchange to purchase health care on their own.
- We will lose many doctors as they "retire" from the bureaucracy and lower pay of the new health care system. This will reduce the availability to care and will increase the cost for care. HHS estimates that the cost of health care will increase under this bill, not decrease or even remain the same.
- The new long-term care program is not a viable business and funding model and is certain to fail.
- HHS estimates that 15% of all hospitals will fail in the next 5 years due to Obamacare, creating further problems with availability of care and therefore higher prices.
The bill will accomplish banning the insurance practice of dropping high risk patients, increasing the number of Americans covered by a health insurance policy and will make health insurance more affordable to some through taxpayer subsidy (sometimes called taxes) of premiums. But lets be honest, we could have accomplished many of these objectives with simple legislation and did not require impacting every single American and throwing our current system of health care in upheaval to achieve this result.
Health Care reform is desperately needed in this country. The biggest anticipated failure of this legislation is the lack of cost control. The cost of the program is currently estimated at approximately $2 trillion in the first 5 years of use. That is made up of more than $1 trillion in new taxes from 2010-2019, more than $300 billion operating loss as reported by HHS and don't forget the $500 billion allocated in the 2010 Federal Budget for health care reform. (PS, I'm sure the administration wants you to forget that little $500 billion because they I'm sure that we will hear how the administration has reduced the overall cost of the budget when reelection comes in 2012 --which is not a reduction at all).
The Conclussion:
Anyone that knows the health care industry and cost structures knows that trying to control the health insurance companies to reduce overall costs is like trying to put controls on the auto insurance companies to reduce accidents and theft of cars. The insurance company is not the source of the problem.
ObamaCare is destined to fail the way it is written. Costs will go up, availability of health care will go down but the number of people covered will increase (at a cost of $86,000 per new covered life from 2015-2019 and this excludes the hidden cost of higher health care). Zinger, like most Americans, wants health care reform. I'm sure the political rhetoric will try to convince us that it will be wonderful. I for one will not listen to Nancy Pelosi when she tells us that the program is good, that we will just have to wait until it is implemented to find out. I don't have to put my hand in a fire to know that if I do I will get burned. No thanks Ms. Pelosi, you can keep this change too.
We can only hope that Congress goes back and revisits this legislation with an eye on real reform.
Here are some recent articles that speak to the Health and Human Services Analysis:
National Review
Health care reform Is going to cost more and impact seniors
Kaiser Foundation analysis of Health Care bill
Who Said It?
"The Constitution does not just protect those whose views we share; it also protects those with whose views we disagree"
Ted Kennedy
The Lion of the Senate
Proponent of Health Care Reform
Today's ZingerToon:
Shameless Request For Support:
ZingerKing operates without advertising or government funding (obviously). The purpose is to inform and educate its readers about economic and political issues that affect our lives.
Help ZingerKing grow. Have you Zinged someone lately? Please forward a link to ZingerKing to a friend, family member or neighbor. If you enjoy reading the Zinger please subscribe (see the subscribe box at the top of the article in the purple side band). Subscribers receive the "Morning Briefing" when published with a link to the full article. Your email address will not be sold to others and will not be shared.
Write To Us:
You can comment on any article by clicking on the comment button at the bottom of each article or you can write to us at ZK@ZingerKing.com
Posted by ZK at 4/27/2010 7:59 AM 
Categories: Legislation, Obama Administration, Social Issues, Healthcare
Categories: Legislation, Obama Administration, Social Issues, Healthcare
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