Orszag Vs. CBO: The Battle Over The Budget Gets Personal

MSNBC:

"Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag accused Congressional Budget Office Director Doug Elmendorf of 'overstepping' in a Web post Saturday, escalating the battle between the Obama administration and Republicans over the White House's conduct toward the CBO. The charge was leveled after Elmendorf posted a blog entry Saturday that suggested a new Obama proposal to create an independent board to reduce Medicare payments would save $2 billion over 10 years, a small sum compared to the overall cost overruns of the program."

Read the whole story: MSNBC

Comments

[Clayton139]

What is Single Payer?

Single-payer is a term used to describe a type of financing system.

It refers to one entity acting as administrator, or "payer." In the case of health care, a single-payer system would be setup such that one entity’ a government run organization’ would collect all health care fees, and pay out all health care costs.

In the current US system, there are literally tens of thousands of different health care organizations"

HMOs, billing agencies, etc. By having so many different payers of health care fees, there is an enormous amount of administrative waste generated in the system. (Just imagine how complex billing must be in a doctor’s office, when each insurance company requires a different form to be completed, has a different billing system, different billing contacts and phone numbers’ it’s very confusing.)


In a single-payer system, all hospitals, doctors, and other health care providers would bill one entity for their services. This alone reduces administrative waste greatly, and saves money, which can be used to provide care and insurance to those who currently don"t have it. What is Single Payer? | Physicians for a National Health Program It refers to one entity acting as administrator, or "payer." In the case of health care, a single-payer system would be setup such that one entity’ a ... www.pnhp.org/facts/what_is_single_payer.php - Cached - Similar

[Clayton139]

Bill Maher you have got it so right. ! ! !

We need to provide all Legitimate Dental and Healthcare because Dental is a Health issue also !



We want Affordable, Good, Quality, Progressive, Revolutionary, High Tech, Genetic, Stem Cell Research & Moral reform in our healthcare to (become number # 1 / One) in the World! (Not a system of 37th). in the World. If we can get a Good Quality Progressive Health Care Bill ! - I am for it !



I am on Disability and Medicare, Medicaid and it takes care of all my Doctor Bills as good or better than any AETNA, and/or Blue Cross Blue Shield, I have ever had !

In fact Aetna and Blue Cross would DENY me on lots of claims !



If President Obama can get this Health care Bill right then, it will be the BEST thing for our Country !

Who knows maybe we will become (No # 1) in the World on Health care instead of (No # 37th, ) !

http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html



Universal health care is health care coverage for all eligible residents of a political region and often covers medical, dental and mental health care.

Universal health care is implemented in all but one of the wealthy, industrialized countries, with the exception being the United States.

It is also provided in many developing countries and is the trend worldwide.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_health_care

[Clayton139]

We the People" need to keep pressure on for (Real Healthcare Reform)!

Contact your Representative’s, Congress, Senators, and even the White House for (Real Healthcare Reform) ! ! !
Follow the LINK or Copy and Paste !

http://www.1payer.net

[Taninthesummer]

I am just astonished that we can spend wheelbarrows full of dough ($8.5 trillion by one measure; www.inteldaily.com/news/139/ARTICLE/9485/2009-01-30.html) to bail out outdated business failures and "alleged" lying, cheating financiers, but we can't find the collective legislative stones to craft a program to keep our citizens healthy and wealthy ...in a relative sense, of course ...through an accessible healthcare system. Just give everyone access to a fraction of what the senators get. Can't pull it off? At least insure the children!

[olmossy]

All we have to do is find someone is DC who gives a Rat'$ A$$ what is good for the American People.

[Havingfun100]

Check this out

"The Canadian public is fed up with waiting lists. Rather than going outside the country or calling for something else, we should be demanding the redesign of the system of care which will allow for better access."

http://www.canada.com/health/women/Toronto+hospital+expands+accelerated+breast+cancer+treatment+program/1576719/story.htm

[ChelseaC]

LOL! Havingfun is still at his/her fear mongering tactics.

[MJinCanada]

A dead end link.

[mcmchugh99]

I have met many Canadians in 15 years overseas, and I always ask them about their health care system. None of them say the things that the Republicans and the insurance companies are saying in this country. They laugh at all this propaganda.

[jeanwny]

If this is a legitimate link why can't it be accessed. I might add that as a 40 year summer resident of Ontario, Canada, having a brother a 35 year resident, a daughter a 22 year resident, both landed immigrants and dual citizens along with innumerable acquaintances in that country along with an occasional need to access the OHIP program in emergency situations myself, I have NEVER heard of the conditions that are fed to the American electorate to deny the passage of a significant program so badly needed in this country.

[themuse]

You work for the insurance mafia, right?

[bluecollarblogger]

Why closed doors at the finance committe? So we cannot hear the names who really runs the finance committee such as United Healthcare......Blue Cross Blue Shield..etc. This is not healthcare reform but rather concessions by the insurance company which they have already figured out will not hurt them.......this is health insurance reform.....an attempt by the big dawgs and the blue dawgs to take care of the big insurance companies........and squash the little guys! These guys have no idea what realtity is.........hospitals are shutting down floors.....losing money......doctors are quitting the profession because of insurance cost.......and who is getting it both ways.......the patients! I do not care if you have insurance or not.......if you got a nurse who is working a 12 hour shift caring for 7 patients ......how safe are you.......we can only do so much........but then again all of this reform is not about you and I but big business!

[ChelseaC]

Agreed. What Obama is proposing is NOT health care reform--it's a BOON for the
insurance industry and Big Pharma.
This is reform--what 60% of American docs support:
http://www.pnhp.org/

[Clayton139]

Contact:
Your Representative’s, Congress, Senators, and even the White House for (Real Healthcare Reform) ! ! !

Follow the LINK or Copy and Paste !

http://www.1payer.net

[CAHertzfe]

All the same talking points that the Republicans are spewing are from the Lewin Group. They are a health care policy research and management consulting firm. They are owned by the Ingenix, which is owned by United Healthcare Group. The United Healthcare Group is one of the largest health care Insurance companies buying up as many healthcare related businesses in America. United Healthcare group is the company agreed to pay $3.5 Million for defrauding Medicare and Medicaid. Health care fraud costs Americans between $30 billion and $180 billion annually.

When some is against what the people know is the right thing along with the rest of civilized world, ask yourself, where is the information originating?

Would it be true to say that the Republicans in the Senate and Congress are against America and the American People? Would it be true to say that these people are only self-serving for their own profit and political power? Can we? Will we allow it to continue?

BTW, United Healthcare Group is the same insurance company bragging 155% profit this past quarter while raising their premiums 3% this year. Are we going to allow this to continue?

[SueInCA]

The republictards are planning a media blitz of commercials during August. More than likely they are going to cite The Lewin Group as the basis for their claims. The Lewin Group is a unit of Ingenix which is owned by United Healthcare. They are already using the standard talking points in their little speeches, "and the Lewin Group" says.......................Get ready.

They will stop at nothing including outright lies to derail healthcare insurance reform.
What happened when Hillary Clinton insisted that the nation confront the healthcare issue? You guessed it, the republican and their religous right groups launched an all out assault on any reform efforts and railed against the evils of "socialized medicine". They used all the same old tired ideas as they are using now, "it will get in between you and your doctor" etc etc etc

It is clear they have not improved their att ack since the early 90's which shows how far behind the times they are. You can bet any blue dog dem against a public option has their hand behind their backs and the insurance companies are filling those hands up.

If this reform fails, it will be the republictards and the blue dog dems who are responsible. They are just too stewpid to realize it.

[ChelseaC]

Sue,
Hi. Don't make the assumption that Republicans are the only problem--Dems on
the take are even a worse problem.
We have a majority--if we REALLY wanted to pass real reform, it could be done through reconciliation--51 votes.
What is being proposed by Obama and company is nothing more than a cash cow boon for
the insurance industry--it's not reform-- it's costly waste and it keeps the insurance companies at the helm.Don't be fooled.
HR-676 is what we need--single payer.

Watch Bill Moyers:
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07242009/watch.html

[myk-os]

The current health system is not working, WHY DELAY FIXING IT? If the dam is leaking, better spend to fix it now than wait for it to break and create a disaster. .

Reform must be fair. No one should fall through the cracks.
If Inmates who committed heinous crimes and elected officials get the best health insurance, then all law-abiding, tax paying people should have the same. Since we can't afford that, government should provide basic health insurance to everyone ( inmates and elected officials included ). For those wanting bells and whistles, get supplemental insurance !
It has to be fair. The rich get taxed a bit more, but they should realize that a healthy nation will be good for them. The health care providers who will have to lower their fees should be freed from red tape and be fairly reimbursed for services rendered. Frivolous lawsuits should be stopped . These contribute to the costly practice of medicine. People should realize that medical care works two ways, and trust is important. If you dont trust your doctor, switch! If patients are free to choose their doctors, the good old free market will keep the doctors on their toes to attract patients. Insurance companies and drug companies will adjust as well. Reform should emphasize preventive measures and individual responsibity must be one of its cornerstones. Reward good health practices, non-compliance should not be tolerated. Basic coverage to everyone equalizes health care and weeds out the bad guys.

[harobamason]

It gonna be a long summer...

[einstein10]

We don't want healthcare cuts, we just want to spread out the costs so basic healthcare is affordable for everyone.

[TalkTalkTAlk]

Finally someone else besides Obama is speaking out on the healthcare plan.

[wonketteRAWKS]

Soundbites by Obama is not "speaking out." This is his biggest domestic priority and rather then give direction since it's birth, he has tried to make this a bipartisan effort with all ideas on board, And yet, who can remember the last time anything major happened because of bipartisanship.

All he really did was say I want a health care reform, uhhh sorry, health INSURANCE reform bill by August, uhh sorry again...by the end of the year. If he had a plan, he should have gathered the democrats and said this is what I want to see happen. No plan, this is what we get....chaos!

[econ1]

Part of the reason there is so much uncertainty over the cost of the proposals is that they are so vague.

Nowhere does anyone state what the minimum plan would actually cover (whether offered by private companies or the government). What operations would be covered and which wouldn't. Which drugs? Which care facilities? What would the co-pays be? Would coverage funding be by person with everyone getting the same amount or by family? Would a family of four get the same amount as a family of eight (and therefore better coverage per person)?

So the costs estimates can all be correct..depending on the starting assumptions.

[JiminNC]

Details? I can hear poor alcoholics complaining that they can't go to the front of the line for free liver transplants while rich republicans will be shocked and outraged that a poor mother of four gets free OBGYN exams. Why bother?

[DoTheMath]

I wondered why no one seemed to be questioning Elmendorf's assumptions, calculations, motivations - anything. Who appointed him supreme leader? There are so many ways in which a rational approach to health care would save enormous amounts of money that we are wasting now. Factoring in all the savings from various sources seems like a difficult job. Maybe Elmendorf needs a little help.

[OneLiberalLady]

Why does he get to have a blog? It's one thing if he is asked to file an official report, but how is it that he just can spout off?

[schatsie]

Elmendorf is doing a TAUZIN. lining up the for-profits that he can go to work for.....Probably United Health, he will get gazillions from them if he can kill the public option.