Sunday August 16, 2009, 8:20 pm
Thank you for signing the petition "Keep health reform moving forward!"
Thanks Suzybell

Sunday August 16, 2009, 11:25 pm
Dennis Kucinich's plan is the best! HR676

Monday August 17, 2009, 1:32 am
Noted. Thanks

Monday August 17, 2009, 9:22 am
Kari Dyrdahl Mounds View, MN
Sent letter to Amy Klobuchar , Betty McCollum and Keith Ellison
Aug 13

Monday August 17, 2009, 11:03 am
WHITE HOUSE STILL BACKS PUBLIC OPTION

The brutal truth about America's healthcare vs Stephen Hawking, who said, "I wouldn't be here today if it were not for the NHS. I have received a large amount of high-quality treatment without which I would not have survived.." And a student who suddenly found himself unable to move and had to be supported by his wife would not have been able to get that sort of care in the United States at all, let alone be kept alive and allowed the time to think that made it possible for him to become *the* Stephen Hawking.


The argument over which system is better at this point is like arguing whether or not global warming is real and human caused. Everyone knows the answer, but some people can turn a profit by denying it.


Who, in the eyes of Canadians, is THE most popular Canadian? Tommy Douglas, the father of the Canadian Medicare System. Watch this video.


http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1463312787?bctid=1463302784


(Also posted at www.lftwings.org.)

Remember, Canada didn't get UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE all at once; it happened Province by Province nd the government could no longer deny Canadians the health care they demanded.



COMPARE health care in:

Australia
http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/Home
Canada
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/...

England
http://www.propertyshowrooms.com/...

USA videos
http://www.youtube.com/...
http://www.youtube.com/...

From: "Health care system and health care reform in Germany"

http://www.bmg.bund.de/cln_160/nn_1169696/EN/Gesundheit/gesundheit__node.html?__nnn=true


This is the official website of the Ministry of Health and Social Matters in Germany

Quote:

"However, a health care system is not a "normal" market. After all, it places even more importance on care standards and service quality than other sectors do. Here, too, Germany scores high on quite a few counts:

* It is far easier to obtain out-of-hours medical attention here than in most other countries and, very importantly, this is so regardless of income or insurance status.

* Wait times for hospital care ... are shorter here than elsewhere.

Also, no such thing as "Preconditions" exists in Germany!

And

"Universal coverage

From now on, all citizens in Germany will enjoy health insurance coverage. From 1st January 2009, and for the first time in German social history, all residents are obliged to take out health insurance unless they are otherwise covered. Persons who had lost their insurance cover must return to their most recent insurer. This applies to the statutory and the private insurance system alike. "

Addendum: If someone cannot pay for his own health insurance (minimum wages apply), the state pays the premiums. This is a legalized RIGHT for citizens of Germany!

Don't opt for less, Americans! Don't let them tell you, it can't be done - because it can!

If we can, then you can, too. YES, YOU CAN!




WENDELL POTTER IS MAKING SENSE....
I wish Wendell Potter was a household name right now. His message and perspective is arguably as important as any in the country. Potter first came to public attention about a month ago, when he sat down with PBS's Bill Moyers. We learned that he's a former executive at a major health insurance company, who's become a whistleblower, explaining the way the industry "put profits before patients" and is doing everything possible to block health care reform now.

Slowly but surely, he's gaining more prominence. Last night, he spoke with CNN's Anderson Cooper, who almost seemed surprised by what he heard.

"The way it works is that the [insurance] industry will hire big PR firms that create these front groups that have names that have no association with the insurance industry," Potter said." And it is these front groups that do the things that you're seeing right now that try to destroy health care reform by using terms like 'government takeover' of the health care system. Or we're heading down toward a 'slippery slope toward socialism.' Or we're going to 'kill your grandpa' because of this health care reform bill.

Cooper asked, "You're saying that language is written by insurance companies?" Potter responded, "Absolutely."

Asked about the right-wing activists, Potter explained that the industry has "very close ties with the conservative radio talk show hosts and commentators and editorial page writers and they feed the talking points."

Potter also spoke to Rachel Maddow this week. "I think that the health insurance industry deserves a great deal of the blame because they're very much behind the town hall disruptions that you see and a lot of the deception that's going on in terms of disinformation that many Americans apparently are believing," he explained.

Asked about a public option, and whether private insurance companies would be able to compete alongside a government-run non-profit plan, Potter added, "Well, they could, absolutely. I've seen the health insurance industry change its business models many, many times. The insurance companies who operate now are very different from the companies that operated a few years ago. They adapt very quickly. And the one thing they know how to do is make money."

Here's hoping that Potter, given his background and unique insights, gets a whole lot more media opportunities.

.....

So, thanks to Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), Speaker Pelosi says she will bring a vote to the floor on single-payer after the recess. Are you all ready to make those phone calls and write those letters?


Nancy's contact info..http://speaker.house.gov/contact/

Send our speaker an e-mail of encouragement.

Monday August 17, 2009, 11:36 am
HR676 is certainly the preferred bill, but for now I'll settle for anything that requires a public option. Once we have at least something, we can improve on it later.

Monday August 17, 2009, 12:17 pm
NOT TO BUST ANY ONES BUBBLE BUT THE SAD NEWS IS THIS
Yep Congress You needed a Vacation
Introduction by Dwight Baker
Dbaker007@stx.rr.com
August 17, 2009

The following is the latest OPEN turbulent convoluted twist on the healthcare debacle to come along. The prime time crime power bosses way at the top---- the ones who will get a one-way ticket out of the USA when we take over----has once again through money and manipulation of the media caused underserved doubts about our need for a good healthcare plan in America.

Some of the names you may remember some you may not. But if you do care and have concern just google to find out who, what and when was behind this seditious plan. Some might say, “Dwight that is too much work to expect me too do”, to that end I would simply say, “Well tough luck”.

The enormous open pit graves for us are being dug right now, the massive prisons await for many of us to be locked up, the swine flu shots are on their way, to kill and maim 150 million of us, our young men and women in uniform are crying out for our VOICES to be heard to help them to stave off un-fair military acts of injustice.

The unemployment polls go unpublished instead many Americans are being dumb down more watching TV prime TIME with focus on how good the cops are and how bad we the people do. Many have stood up the Faultless Lady of History. She has patiently waited to inform, yet her doors being swung wide open but few have found her to be to their liking.
So words that linger in the minds of some of us and keep us dead set on this mission to accomplish are these “When a people will not rule themselves terror filled tyrants wait patiently at the front gate to take over”!
*****Who’s Behind the Attacks on Health Care Overhaul?*****
Friday 14 August 2009
by: Margaret Talev | Visit article original @ McClatchy Newspapers
Re-published bold and underlined edit

Washington - Much of the money and strategy behind the so-called grassroots groups organizing opposition to the Democrats' health care plans comes from
conservative political consultants,
professional organizers
and millionaires
some of whom hold financial stakes in the outcome.

If President Barack Obama and Congress extend health insurance coverage to millions of
uninsured Americans,
raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for it, and
limit insurers' discretion on who they cover and
what they charge, that could pinch these opponents.

Most of them say they oppose big government in principle. Despite Obama's assurances to the contrary, many of them insist that the Democrats' legislation is but the first step toward creation of a single-payer system, where the federal government hires the doctors, approves treatments, sets the rules and imperils profit.

These opposition groups appear to have spent at least $10 million so far on ads attacking the Democrats' plans. Still, supporters of a health care overhaul have outspent opponents by more than 2-to-1 so far, according to Evan Tracey of the Campaign Media Analysis Group, which tracks ad spending.

Supporters include drug makers angling for their own protections, unions, the American Medical Association and AARP, the seniors' lobby. Supporters announced this week that they intend to spend $150 million promoting an overhaul.


The opposition groups' names sound catchy and populist: Patients First. Patients United. Americans for Prosperity. Conservatives for Patients' Rights. FreedomWorks. 60 Plus. Club for Growth.

Here's who's behind them:

Conservatives for Patients' Rights is led by health care entrepreneur Rick Scott, the co-founder of Solantic urgent care walk-in centers, which he's spread across Florida and is looking to expand. While 80 percent of its patients have at least some insurance, Solantic also bills itself as an alternative to emergency-room care and a resource for patients with no insurance.

Scott left his job as CEO of the Columbia/HCA hospitals during a federal Medicare fraud probe in 1997 that led to a historic $1.7 billion settlement. He wasn't prosecuted and got a golden parachute.

Solantic's growth, Scott said in a telephone interview, is due in part to the trend in which "deductibles and co-payments are going up. As that happens, more people want us."

Scott said he wasn't concerned that the Democrats' proposed revisions would undercut his business: "It's irrelevant to us." Instead, he said he opposes the Democrats' plans because he doesn't believe that government involvement will contain health care costs. He sees it killing off the best private insurance plans and ultimately leading to a single-payer system, which he predicted would lead to waiting lists and denial of treatments.

Scott said he supports some government intervention - such as preventing insurers from dumping sick patients. Those who can't afford coverage on their own should get vouchers or tax credits, he said.

FreedomWorks, which has been advocating against the overhaul but has not launched TV ads, is chaired by Dick Armey, the former Republican majority leader of the House of Representatives from Texas.

But also noteworthy are the group's other backers and board members. They include billionaire flat-tax proponent and former GOP presidential candidate Steve Forbes; Richard J. Stephenson, who founded Cancer Treatment Centers of America, which offers alternative as well as standard therapies, sometimes not covered by insurance; and Frank M. Sands, Sr., chief executive officer of an investment management firm whose offerings include a Healthcare Leaders portfolio.

"They're on our board because they support lower taxes, less government and more freedom," said FreedomWorks spokesman Adam Brandon.

Matt Kibbe, the chief executive officer of FreedomWorks, said its members believe that "the government is already way too involved in the nation's health care system" and that government is to blame for health-cost inflation.

Kibbe acknowledged that private insurance is out of reach for many small businesses and individuals, but he contended that can be dealt with without creating a government-managed exchange. Like Scott, he expressed concern that more government interference would lead to a single-payer system, which would "inevitably" impose rationing of treatments to contain costs.

Patients First and Patients United are creations of a larger group called Americans for Prosperity. AFP's Web site describes a grassroots organization with more than 700,000 members that advocates "for public policies that champion the principles of entrepreneurship and fiscal and regulatory restraint."

AFP was started by billionaire David Koch, of the Koch Industries oil family, one of the country's top donors to conservative, free-market causes. The foundation's board includes Art Pope, a former North Carolina legislator also involved in conservative causes, whose family owns hundreds of discount stores.

Tim Phillips, AFP's president, is a former Republican congressional staffer who helped former Christian Coalition executive director Ralph Reed start up the consulting firm Century Strategies in the 1990s. Clients paid the firm to build Christian grassroots support for various business causes. That included work for since-convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

The group, along with FreedomWorks, was involved in promoting the anti-tax "tea parties" earlier this year. AFP also is organizing a campaign "exposing the ballooning costs of global warming hysteria."

In an interview, AFP's Phillips said that he couldn't think of anyone on his board with a direct financial stake in the health care industry. "It's more freedom-based," he said. "They have a deep interest in protecting economic freedoms." He also said that no one in his organization believes that more government involvement in health care will lead to reduced costs for taxpayers.

By Labor Day, he said, his group will have organized 600 rallies on health care.

"Americans are looking at these rallies that are happening and the town-hall turnouts, and they say,

'No one group out of thin air could do that,'" Phillips said.

"The American people can see through the attacks on the other side, where they try to vilify these groups as being corporate groups or front groups.

They're believing it is in fact a broad groundswell.

"We're out here saying the truth, which is costs are going to go up and quality is going to go down. And what's the other side saying? 'Oh, these are front groups, these are all rich people.' The attack route's not going to work. It's not so far."

Two other grassroots groups have financed ads targeting peoples' fears that more government involvement would hurt seniors and hasten end-of-life decisions.

One of them, Club for Growth, which advocates lower taxes, is led by president Chris Chocola, a former Republican congressman from Indiana who lost his re-election bid in 2006. Club for Growth this week announced a $1.2 million ad campaign against a health care overhaul, to run in North Dakota, Colorado, Arkansas and Nevada.

The other, 60 Plus Association, is a conservative senior advocacy group that wants to abolish the estate tax. Singer Pat Boone is the group's national spokesman.

Chairman Jim Martin started the group in 1992 with fund-raising help from conservative direct mail guru Richard Viguerie. It spent $1.5 million on TV ads opposing a healthcare overhaul in the last week.

Martin declined to identify his major donors. In 2006, he acknowledged that his group was getting funding from the pharmaceutical industry. But this year, pharmaceutical companies lead the spending spree on behalf of a health care overhaul.

"The shoe's on the other foot," Martin said. "They've gotten in bed with the White House."

Monday August 17, 2009, 12:45 pm
Already signed Suzybell. Great post Blue. Please call AND write congress and the White House NOW!

Monday August 17, 2009, 12:50 pm
Michael, a better way is get your ideas published in the PRESS, local, state and National, even international, all are looking at us to see if any has resolve.

Monday August 17, 2009, 4:08 pm
ALL IS WELL, Healthcare reform with public option will be passed or not.

Monday August 17, 2009, 5:07 pm
Thanks for Signing!
You signed this petition on Aug 16 and emailed the following representatives:

Anna Eshoo , Mike Honda , Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer

Monday August 17, 2009, 6:41 pm
Thanks for all the links,Blue.Thank You,Dwight for the info.

Tuesday August 18, 2009, 7:41 am
Thannnx.... tiem to get rolling mass action done outside their offices... and let them know what the people want

Tuesday August 18, 2009, 7:47 am
Chaz

GUESS WHAT THEY KNOW----but seems they all take their orders from Dr Death and Dr NO. Congress went on Vacation OH WEEEEE. Now we will all wait and SEEEE What the PUSH WILL BEEEEE after Vacation?????????????????We all know what must be done.--------------But seems some if not most have NO RESOLVE???????????