ShowMeBlog

Social Security and Medicare

  Here is a great post from Americablog.  It is by Steve Kyle.  He teaches economics at Cornell University.
This post says what I have been trying to say for years about Social Security.  Mr. Kyle does it in a clear way and I am posting his entire post on the subject.

 GOP talking about cutting Social Security again, when the real budge problem is health care

by Steve Kyle (NY) on 2/07/2010 07:01:00 PM

Two Republicans, Alan Greenspan and Hank Paulson, sat on Meet the Press this morning and told us that there is no way out of our fiscal mess that doesn't involve cutting entitlements. And first on their list is Social Security.
First, why should anyone believe what these two guys have to say? They presided over the monetary policy and the fiscal policy that got us into our current economic mess.
Second, why on earth does the supposedly he-said/she-said addicted mainstream press have only discredited Republicans to talk about economics? Aren't there no Democrats available?
Third, and most important, can we PLEASE kill the zombie-like reawakening of the we-must-cut-Social-Security-benefits meme once and for all? We last killed this lie a few years ago when Bush Jr. had a run at it, but in fact it has been around since 1933. Republicans HATE Social Security for two reasons, one stupid and one understandable (but also stupid if you actually care about retirees):

- The stupid reason: Social Security is "socialist." Well, sure it is and what of it? If people actually like it (and there is no question they do) are we really going to cut it just because it is something socialists happen to like also?
- The understandable reason: If I were a Republican, I too would hate the program that is so popular, it got Democrats elected and reelected for half a century. (Incidentally, this is also why they hate single payer health care. If we ever actually put it in place it would be so popular that the party who got credit for it would be cemented in power for the rest of our lives (which would be much markedly longer, incidentally). Only people who never travel to other countries (like most Republicans) could imagine that single payer wouldn't be popular. If you doubt what I say, just look at Medicare, our current seniors-only single payer government health care system. Even the tea-baggers like it.

Here are some facts. Social Security, if it has a long run problem at all, won't run in to any problems for at least three more decades by even the most conservative estimates from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. Even then, the "crisis" is that the SS trust fund will run out and SS will have to rely on current SS taxes like it did for most of its history. In other words, the "crisis" is that instead of having a steadily rising value, social security payments will be stuck at current levels, meaning us worker bees today will retire "only" at the level current retirees are getting rather than the steady increases we are promised. Of course, it is entirely possible and even probable that this "crisis" will never materialize at all, so it is silly to worry about it now when there are far bigger problems out there.
What are those far bigger problems? Medicare and Medicaid! They really ARE going to eat the entire federal budget in a decade or two if we don't pass some health care reforms.
To make it crystal clear, let me reiterate. Health care costs are going to bankrupt us if we don't pass some real reforms. Social Security won't bankrupt us. Lumping them together is just a way for the Republicans to attack Social Security - something they have hated for almost 80 years, and something which still works pretty well. And it will continue to work pretty well if we just leave it alone. Health care won't.

Torn Quad Tendon

  

  I just found out that a friend of mine in Kansas City fell recently on the ice in his drive way.  He was on his way to work.  They are going to see if they get him in today for surgery.  He did not break a bone but has  a torn quad tendon. 

  I found the following via a Google Search. 
It is from A Philosopher’s Blog

Quadriceps Tendon Repair

Image via Wikipedia

“On March 26th I had a ladder go out from me, resulting in a fall of about eight feet. I struck the wayward ladder with my left foot, thus taking all the impact on that leg. The result was a torn quadriceps tendon.

In the course of getting this injury treated, I found that most medical professionals (though generally very pleasant) seem to take the view that informing the patient is a very, very low priority. Since I am rather concerned about my well being, I did a fair amount of research on the quadriceps tendon, the tear, and its treatment.

Before getting to the discussion, you should keep in mind that I am a philosophy professor and not a medical professional. I’m presenting this information with the purpose of sharing my own experiences and not with the intent of providing medical advice or a diagnosis. If you are injured, then you should see a medical professional. Now that the disclaimer is out of the way, on to the information.

The quadriceps is a group of four muscles that link to a single tendon (the aptly named “quadriceps tendon”). These muscles are located in the upper part of the leg and are connected to the knee cap via that tendon. These muscles play critical roles in allowing people to walk, run, jump and squat. The tendon, as I found out, also serves to absorb the shock of landing.

The quadriceps tendon is normally very strong and rather difficult to tear. However, there are a variety of circumstances in which it can be torn. In some cases, age or a pre-existing condition can weaken the tendon-sometimes so much so that it will tear (or rupture) while walking or due to a minor fall. Among healthy folks, a quadriceps tear is usually due to a fall or an impact injury such as suffered by football players or skiers.

One can of soda a day!

  I drink more than one can of soda a day that is for sure.  I drink Coke and I have been trying to break the habit.  I need to stop drinking Coke.  I guess I need to watch this NYC anti-soad ad each day.

Health Care Bill passed House vote!

  National health care for Americans narrowly passed the House.  One Republican voted for the bill.  The Republicans do not want Americans to have national health care and they do not want health care reform.  They had nothing to offer and now they have made their bet.  They hope and pray that all Americans do not have health care and they hope and pray that there are problems so they can get elected in 2010 and turn back the clock to their old ways to doing things.
  The Democrats have been trying to get national health care since Harry S Truman was President of the United States.  Republicans have been fighting to keep the United States from having health care for all.  The Republicans have been trying to do away with Social Security since the Democrats passed it under FDR.
  If the health care for all passes in the Senate then the Republicans will do all they can to make sure it does not work. 
  When it is a success, the way Social Security is, the Republicans will refuse to accept it and fight it and lie about it and try and get rid of it.  When that does not work they will say of course we support national health care but they will want to make it private … They will want to turn it over to the insurance companies to run.  They will want to turn it over to banks, Wall Street corporations to manage for you.

  
  “…The Affordable Health Care for America Act, or H.R. 3962, restricts insurance companies from denying coverage to anyone with a pre-existing condition or charging higher premiums based on gender or medical history. It also provides federal subsidies to those who cannot afford it and guarantees coverage for 96 percent of Americans, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office…”   CNN

The Senate has to pass this bill now and the President has to sign it.  The GOP is going to pull out everything they got to fight this…Every lie they can come up with… It is going to be a battle between good (Democrats) and evil (Republicans).  The Democrats fighting to give all Americans health care and the Republicans fighting to keep Americans from having health care.
  Who will win?  Will big insurance corporations win or will the American people win?

Tom Tancredo walks off TV set

  Here is an interesting video.  Tom Tancredo gets mad and walks out of the TV interview/discussion after Markos Moulitsas confronts him on health care.
 
 

 

Seniors will have higher Medicare drug cost in 2010

  Senior Journal dot Com reports “Senior Citizens Facing Higher Medicare Drug Plan Premiums May Seek Lower Cost Options.” 
  “…Oct. 8, 2009 – Medicare announced in August that senior citizens are expected to face a 7 percent premium increase for the average Part D prescription drug plan in 2010. The news is even worse for some in Medicare Advantage plans that will see a premium jump of almost 22 percent…”

  The article says that we can try a less expense insurance plan.  The problem is that many of us already had the least expensive plan.
  The numbers they give look correct to me… I been looking at the new 2010 plans and I am finding they all have made increases in the cost of medications.  I been getting my medications for free but it looks like I am going to pay at least $50.00 a month for the three I get now and if a doctor adds some medications my cost will go up. 
  There are other costs that could hit me and others.

  I am still looking for a SS medical insurance plan…I was thinking that I just was not finding the right plan…Now I see that all of the plans are increasing what it is going to cost us.
  It looks like Jarrod is correct in his comment here – see comment here.
  If he is correct, and it appears he is, it is going to hurt me a great deal but if it means that all Americans will have national health insurance I am more than willing to pay the price.

Higher Cost SS Health Care Plans?

  In will be moving in about two weeks to Texas so I will need a new Medicare insurance plan for Texas.  I looked a little bit on line and it looks like I will be paying out more money this year.  I have not done a complete check of all the plans yet.
  Today I got information from AvMed.  They are the plan I been using here in FL.  They are not in Texas so I can not use them next year.  I took a look at the AvMed plan for next year just to get an idea of what is going on with insurance.
  The good news…Next year they will cover one Colonoscopy each year and the same with a Mammogram. 
  Then you get to the bad news…last year a impatient hospital stay cost 0.  In 2010 days 4 to 23 will cost $100.00 each day….A visit to a Outpatient Rehab Facility last year was 0 and it is $5 per visit in 2010….To see a Specialist last year, well this year, was zero and next year it will be $5 per visit.
  God forbid you need Kidney Dialysis because this year it is 0 per visit but next year you will have to pay 20% of the cost. 
  Outpatient Diagnostic Testing 0/$50 and next year $25/$100 plus 20% of a PET scan. 
  Then you get into the Medications.  This year I been paying zero for my three medications.  Next year I would be paying $20.00 for one of them and my guess is any doctor I see is going to want to add a couple of medications and my guess is that under this plan next year I would be paying $60.00 for medications each month.

  It looks to me like Medicare health care plans are going to cost each of us more money next year.
  Insurance corporations are allowed to fix prices …  They can get with each other and decide what to do to make more money! 
  I did not know that.  I was watching MSNBC and the woman, forget her name, said that the only two industries exempt from government oversight were insurance companies and major league baseball.
  This is crazy…Insurance companies are exempt from price fixing oversight and laws.  
  Why have we not heard about this?  Why has this not been corrected?

  You and I know what why… Money… We need to fix our election laws.  We need public funding of elections.  The NRA, insurance companies and unions should not be allowed to buy elections.   OK OK… I do not think any unions have that sort of money.. But you got to include them and others to get a law passed.  We need to put an end to corporations or organizations buying elections. 

My ticket number is 7014

Have you heard of Peggy Robertson? After having her second child, her insurance company required that she get sterilized if she wanted to receive health insurance. Peggy fought back, and testifed before Sen. Barbara Mikulski's committee hearing this month on how insurance companies discriminate against women.¹

Members of Congress heard about it. The media reported on it. But we wondered, do our friends, family and neighbors realize how insurance companies have turned being a woman into a pre-existing condition?

Take your ticket for gender equity. Get in line here: seiu.org/ticket

Women want equal coverage for the equal premiums they pay - plain and simple. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) is leading the charge, but we've got to get the word out. We built a tool to do just that - to demonstrate that any bill passed by Congress needs to end gender discrimination by insurers.

 

When you take your "deli counter ticket," you'll receive a unique number. Post the number, along with this automatically-generated status update to Twitter, Facebook, and elsewhere: I'm [your number] against discrimination by health insurers. Women deserve equal coverage for equal premiums. http://seiu.org/ticket #hc09

Your ticket is waiting. Take it, here: seiu.org/ticket

Right now, millions of American women aren't involved in the health care debate. They haven't called or written Congress. They haven't thought about health insurance reform much at all. But they're dealing with the health insurance system every day - paying more and getting less.

Women pay 30-40% more than men on the private insurance market. Common pregnancy and c-sections are considered "pre-existing conditions." And in some states, insurers can even deny coverage to victims of domestic violence. The bills before Congress will guarantee, once and for all, that women are treated fairly by insurers.

Already, more than 6,500 tickets have been taken. Let's demonstrate that women (and men!) across the country are calling for an end to discrimination against women by health insurers. Take your ticket now.

Thanks for speaking out,

Jessica Kutch
Online Campaign Manager
SEIU Healthcare

P.S. Yesterday's announcement by Senate Majority Leader Reid that the Senate bill will include a public option is great news - but there's still much work ahead. We must keep up the drumbeat for reform by spreading awareness on key issues like this one. I hope you'll join us by taking your ticket for health care equality.

Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) on Health Care Bankruptcies

“Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) humbles Hudson Institute dilettante over health care bankruptcies
This during a senate Judiciary sub-committee hearing on bankruptcies driven by catastrophic medical expenses.”

 

  It looks like I was 100% wrong about Al Franken.  I was not sure how he would do in the job and from everything I have seen he is doing excellent.

Hearing loss

  CNN has a story “Men, convertible drivers at higher risk for hearing loss.”  I am a man, wait let me look…yes..I am a man… I do not drive a convertible…I do not even own a car…But I have a lot of hearing lost in both ears.  I have never seen a doctor about it.
   I got the hearing lost when I was very young…I think it may have been after an ear infection.  Doctors made house calls in those days and our doctor did not show up for a few days.  After that when I would be tested at school I would fail the hearing test.  My class would go to the school library and take the hearing test.  That is the only time in my life that I tried to copy off of other kids.  They were all marking down that they hear sounds I was not hearing anything.
   I am not sure why Jim and Betty, my father and mother, never took me to a doctor about it.  Then why did I never go when I was an adult.
   I worked for a few years, after high school, as a boilermaker and welder.  That did not help the hearing. 
   Now when I was a kid I was walking around with them and they were reading off street signs and I could not see the signs from the distance that they could read the signs.  I told Jim and Betty that I needed glasses and they took me to get them.
   On the hearing it may have just been that it seem to them that I could hear OK and I never said I can’t hear you. 
    If you have kids…Make sure they have their eyes tested and their hearing tested. 
    One reason I have not seen a doctor about my hearing is …I know I would need hearing aids and I can not afford them.  That is one thing that Medicare does not pay for…I sort of think that if Medicare paid for hearing aids the cost of them should come way down in price.
     Young people do not take care of their hearing.  They listen to music that is way to loud.  If you are a young person please take care of your hearing.

Medications

  Right now I am talking three medications.  I take Carvedilol, Lisinopril and Flomax.  The Carvedilol cost $10.55 for 60.  The Lisinopril is $4.39 for 30.  The Flomax is $105.51 for 30.  I pay nothing.  My insurance pays the entire amount.  I have a Medicare insurance program via AvMed. 
  I have a government run national health care plan.  Just like all members of Congress have a government run national health care plan.
  You get my point I am sure.

  I do not understand why some medications cost $5.00 a month and others cost $100.00 a month.  Or in the case of my son, in Texas, his medication is $400.00 a month.
  Now I think there are a very few rare medications that might have something in them like the roots from some rare plant in the Amazon or something and I can understand high costs for those…But those are very very rare.
  I just have a problem with U.S. pharmacies taking in billions ($350B by 2015). (1)  Now if I understand it correct that is just the retail places that you buy your medications. 
  The pharmaceuticals corporations I can not even understand the numbers they give for their profits.  Just one company such as Johnson & Johnson had revenues of $53,324.00 and profits of $11,053.00 (those are millions by the way). (2)  
  I think there should be some sort of excess profit tax or something like that for those sorts of corporations.  All states have alcohol-related laws.  I am not sure if there are any states that only allow alcohol to be sold in state stores but there are many areas in the United States like that.. some areas do not allow bars.  Why could we not do something like that with drugs.  State run Rx would sell medications and the profit would go into health care for Americans. 
  That is just off the top of my head…Let the major medication corporations know that we are not going to allow them to make billions of profit off the sick, old and poor in the United States.  Tell them …You come up with a plan or we will come up with laws. 
  We could decide that they are allow x amount of profit.  I bet that one step would fund national health care and fix any Medicare problems.  
  I do not think it is hard to fix our problems if we are willing to look at doing things different that the past.  We have gone to war over oil because it was in our national interest.  
  Health care for Americans is in our national interest.  Our hospitals are in our national interest.  Our nursing homes are in our national interest.  The health care of children is in our national interest.

Waves of new fund cuts imperil US nursing homes

“By DAVE COLLINS, Associated Press Writer Dave Collins, Associated Press Writer – Sun Oct 4, 3:14 pm ET

HARTFORD, Conn. – The nation's nursing homes are perilously close to laying off workers, cutting services — possibly even closing — because of a perfect storm wallop from the recession and deep federal and state government spending cuts, industry experts say.

A Medicare rate adjustment that cuts an estimated $16 billion in nursing home funding over the next 10 years was enacted at week's end by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services — on top of state-level cuts or flat-funding that already had the industry reeling.

And Congress is debating slashing billions more in Medicare funding as part of health care reform.

Add it all up, and the nursing home industry is headed for a crisis, industry officials say…” 

  I do not think there is one American that wants to end up in a nursing home.  But thank God there are nursing homes. 
  My mother and father made it clear they never wanted to end up in a nursing home and they never had to see the inside of one. My father died at a hospital and my mother died at home.  My mother could die at home because one of my daughters (Hillary) moved in with her and took care of her.

The GOP Health Care Plan

  Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Florida, tells you the GOP Health Care Plan in this YouTube video.

Don’t Blame Shots for All Ills, Swine Flu Officials Say

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

Published: September 27, 2009

“As soon as swine flu vaccinations start next month, some people getting them will drop dead of heart attacks or strokes, some children will have seizures and some pregnant women will miscarry.

But those events will not necessarily have anything to do with the vaccine. That poses a public relations challenge for federal officials, who remember how sensational reports of deaths and illnesses derailed the large-scale flu vaccine drive of 1976.

This time they are making plans to respond rapidly to such events and to try to reassure a nervous public — and headline-hunting journalists — that the vaccine is not responsible.

Every year, there are 1.1 million heart attacks in the United States, 795,000 strokes and 876,000 miscarriages, and 200,000 Americans have their first seizure. Inevitably, officials say, some of these will happen within hours or days of a flu shot…”  The New York Times

  It sounds like they know what the TV and blogs are going to say as soon as something happens.  Think of all the stories they are going to have every time someone gets sick or dies.  Plus we got about 10% of the people that will believe any wild and strange story.  I would hate to be the CDC and other people when they start giving out the swine flu shots.