Newsweek: Why The GOP Is Gunning For Grandma

newsweek.com:

The republicans charge that Democratic health care reform would, in Sen. Charles Grassley's words, "pull the plug on Grandma." According to Sen. Jon Kyl, the bills before Congress would ration medical treatment by age. Rep. John Boehner says they promote euthanasia. Sarah Palin has raised the specter of "death panels." Such fears are understandable. It's not preposterous to imagine laws that would try to save money by encouraging the inconvenient elderly to make an early exit. After all, that's been the Republican policy for years.

Read the whole story: newsweek.com

Comments

[vincent1]

Hopefully, we can take care of Chuck Grassley in the next election... it is time for him to go.

[Chip W]

Here's a good article on end of life care in the US. Hospitals - take all measures to keep people alive versus hospice - allow people to die peacefully. And the costs associated with each.

http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2009/08/04/dying/index.html

[betrayed1]

Waht kind of heathcare reform we get is entirely up to President Obama. If he wants single payer, we can have single payer through reconcilliation. Ditto government option. If he really wants to do it,and is willing to risk the political consequences, he can do it immediatly. The problem is that he has made a political calculation that it is not worth it to him. He woud rather have a watered down reform plan that doesn't ranke any feathers, than take bold, decisive action. He knows that at the end of the day, he will have the support of progressives against whichever big scarry Republican runs against him. Will someone, anyone, on this website please explain why they think Obama will care about any of the progressive's goals if at the end of the day he owns your vote? As long as you are willing to reelect him regardless of what he does, why do you expect him to be responbsive to your concerns. Unless and unitl you make it clear that he can't take your vote for granted, you will not get meaningful change. Complain all you want, but until you start including the words "I will stay home next election" or "I will vote for a third party" or soemthing to that effect if my concerns keep getting ignored/bargained away, you are just wasting your time.

[sueinmn]

Single payer would require raising taxes to pay for it. He promised not to raise taxes even as many of us would be happy to pay more for single payer. Bet we wont see single payer.

[Chip W]

Yes, it would raise taxes, but it could be explained that higher taxes would be offset by reduction (to zero) of health insurance premiums of both individuals and employers, and total system cost of health insurance would likely be considerably lower.

Those who are unwilling to hear wouldn't listen (like the army of Free Market Worshipers), but get the idea out there and some might look at it to see what it's all about.

[bluemike]

The last time I encountered a creature with eyes like that, it bit me.

[spiritpony1]

If you read this (Weisberg's) article in its entirety, it is really kinda shocking and very interesting. It will be interesting to watch over the next year as the estate preservation crap expires---

[CTtransplant]

Senator Kennedy was one of our greatest champions of health care reform. He carried the torch for a long time...and now it is up to us to continue to carry it for him!

We cannot let the scare tactics dissuade us from reaching our goal!

While many of us are struggling to afford medical insurance/medical bills.
While Congress people try to stop healthcare reform.
While Congress people accept large contributions from lobbyists to prevent health care reform.

Our elected officials in Congress receive health care mostly paid for by us tax payers, yet many are trying to make it impossible for us to purchase an affordable plan of our own.

Please sign these petitions! Thank you!

http://www.petitiononline.com/PubOp676/petition.html
http://www.democrats.com/honor-ted-kennedy?cid=ZGVtczQ0MTA5OGRlbXM=
http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5649/t/4922/content.jsp?content_KEY=2763&tag=hk1_typ-e1

[Jaxy]

Considering that the Gopers prefer their women to be thigh-flashing, tea-serving, talking-po­ints-mouth­ing mistresses and ditzes, what use could they possibly have for "Grandma"? Exactly!

[GenuineVeracity]

Americans interested in the quality of their health care would do well to watch the film 'Money-Driven Medicine', based on the book of the same name penned by financial journalist Maggie Mahar.

The film was run on this week's PBS's Bill Moyers Journal - http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/08282009/watch.html

ABC featured a segment on the film - http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8308112

Money-Driven Medicine Web site - http://moneydrivenmedicine.org/

[BlueDingoDog]

Are you a liberal?
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/8/30/773243/-Top-10-Signs-You-Might-Not-Be-A-Libertarian

[sparky73]

6th lie....President Obama, "I am for a single payer healthcare system."

[BabblingBrooks]

Obama said that, so it isn't a lie--unless Obama's lying or changed his mind, but he says he hasn't...

So which statement of Obama's is the lie?

And what were the first five? I suspect they were not lies, but merely different interpretations of various provisions in the bill--and I would bet that the health care opposition interpretations were much closer to reality. Thus, if judged by accuracy, it would be the health care proponents who were spinning. Maybe they believe it, in which case it wouldn't be lying. Just error.

[sparky73]

without a single payer system, we do not have healthcare reform. He promised the unions that he was for a single payer system but now its no longer mandatory. So yes, I would call it a lie

[osage]

THERE IS NO DECENCY OR COMPASSION IN TODAY'S POLTICAL SYSTEM......ONLY GREED, MALICE AND HATRED CREATED, MANIPULATED AND EXPLOITED BY CORPORATISM AND THE CAREER POLITICIANS WILLING TO PROSITUTE THEMSELVES

In America, the oil, insurance, medical and pharmaceutical industries are all OPEC like cartels /MONOPOLIES that use their money to BUY POLITICIANS and the government policies they formulate.

We ARE NOT a DEMOCRACY or a FREE ENTERPRISE SYSTEM. WE ARE nothing more than a third world country whose RICH DICTATORS are paying the PEOPLE'S REPRESENTATIVES to enforce the will of CORPORATIOINS and sacrifice the welfare of 98% of it's citizens. ONLY THE RICH are served by today's BOUGHT and PAID FOR political and government officials.

From President Obama on down, CAREER POLITICIANS are allowing the EVIL of MONEY to DRIVE AMERICA INSANE and to BANKRUPT and DESTROY everything that was once MORAL and DECENT in American society.

IF President Obama isn't willing to FIGHT THE RIGHTEOUS FIGHT and LOSE, he will PERPETUATE and STRENGTHEN the tentacles of moral and ethical corruption that are literally STRANGLING THE LIFE OUT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE!

IT'S NOT AMERICAN GOVERNMENT THAT WE THE PEOPLE SHOULD FEAR......IT'S AMERICAN CAREER POLTICIANS!

[OhComeOnNow]

F&F

[blisster]

Aren't most Grandmother's, Grossley's grand daughters. Conflict of interest.

[write2bheard]

The death panel debacle was just a projection - they were projecting their own heinous deeds on us. Because there is such deceit, murder, geed, and guile in their own hearts, they believe others to be fully capable of that also.

[rxvette]

The GOP is obviously scared of what the majority of the American public wants - real and meaningful healthcare reform. This would be a great start - http://bit.ly/9QLV8

[mamalisa38]

For profit health insurance is immoral. The only way to maximize profits is to raise premiums and deductibles and deny claims. The top ten insurance executives earned $85.6 million in 2008 and the top ten drug company executives earned $199.4 million, plus profits for shareholders. PER HOUR PAY:

Mike White - Abbott - $17,395.00
Fred Hassan - Schering Plough - $15,677.00
Bill Weldon - Johnson & Johnson - $13,022.00
Bob Essner - Wyeth - $12,552.00
Ron Williams - Aetna - $12,656.00
H. Edward Hanway - CIGNA - $6,373.00 (also due to get $73 million retirement package)
Angela Braly - WellPoint - $5,127.00

These people are spending $1.4 million a day, since January 2009, to protect their cozy set up. Who is paying for that? We are, with rising premiums and deductibles and denied claims.