Harry Reid: AMA Misled Me, Means Health Care Setback

The Hill:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has told colleagues that he was given bad information by the American Medical Association (AMA), which will result in a significant setback to Democrats' healthcare reform strategy.

Reid told colleagues that the AMA said it could deliver 27 Republican votes for legislation that would impose a 10-year freeze on scheduled cuts in Medicare payments to doctors, according to two Senate Democratic lawmakers, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The doctor payment cuts are mandated by a 1997 law.

Read the whole story: The Hill

Comments

[BambooHarvester]

03:02 PM on 10/22/2009

Resign Harry !

[jazzybo]

01:57 PM on 10/22/2009

So Harry.Whats going to be your next excuse?When is this charade going to end?

[Brightlight]

01:51 PM on 10/22/2009

Mr. Reid, for the good of our Country, you are two years too late to step down, but do it NOW. America needs smart, dedicated and strong leaders. You, sir, are not one of them. And, yes, I am a democrat!

[wm1066]

01:42 PM on 10/22/2009

Reid is using a form of the "Plausable Deniability" to get out from being blamed for this. I like to think of it as "Hey I'm stupid but its not my fault" theme.
Reid is stalling on this. We can all wonder why.

[urnumbersix]

01:17 PM on 10/22/2009

It is a big part of a Lobbyist's JOB to round up votes on the "other" side of the aisle, whatever party. This is how lobbying really works. Any lobbyist worth his/her salt would never leave a Majority Leader with the impression that if he puts the bill on the Floor, it will pass. If AMA didn't, or couldn't, pull Republican votes - as soon as they heard it would be on the Floor - they should have alerted Reid of "no R votes," then Reid most likely would have pulled the bill from the Floor in order to get another strategy going. As it is, AMA embarrassed Reid, so he's throwing them under the bus.

This "doc fix" bill has been passed in 1 year extensions for almost a decade. It's very costly ($250 billion) to fix permanently -- and AMA FINALLY got a permanent fix bill all the way to the Senate Floor, and bungled it.

Now the AMA has a bill that failed on the Floor. Reid has put them to the end of the line in priorities. They should BE so lucky as to get the one-year fix, now. AMA effed up.

Ever member of the AMA should resign in protest.

[changeself]

12:02 PM on 10/22/2009

in the US,

AMA has always been on the forefront of sabotaging a universal single payer health care system.

despite the appearance of doctors being better than insurance industry,

the statistics show,

most doctors in this country have been willingly committing the crime of omission if not of commission

in the criminal enterprise of maximum-profit-at-all-cost sickness service.

[goodnews7]

11:22 AM on 10/22/2009

Health Care Reform and Medicare Advantage

One of the proposed ways of reducing Medicare costs that is being considered for inclusion in the health reform bill is to eliminate the subsidies paid to private insurance companies who sell Medicare Advantage plans. The savings will amount to $177 billion over the first ten years. The insurance companies have mounted a huge campaign to scare people, especially seniors, into believing that this will result in drastic cuts in benefits and increased premiums. Remember that independent assessments of the Medicare Advantage program say that it costs the government (i.e. the taxpayer) about 14% more to provide health care service through that plan rather than through basic Medicare and other channels. That extra government money goes into the health insurers’ coffers, not to seniors. We’ll look at how Medicare Advantage came about, how it works, the benefits offered, the potential effect of cuts and what the government and seniors can do to counteract the potential effects of cuts in subsidies. We’ll also look at how you can decide whether or not to enroll in a Medicare Advantage program and how to avoid the many scams that use them to defraud seniors. [...]
http://silverbuzzcafe.com/?p=3977

[ratcityreprobate]

10:53 AM on 10/22/2009

Step on your appendage again Harry?

[Joe Caps]

09:57 AM on 10/22/2009

HAHA

Your shell game failed, Harry.

Quit the gimmicks.

6 years of benefits, 10 years of taxes included in cost estimate,
paying off the elderly in a seperate bill while cutting medicare,
(trying to) pay off the doctors in a seperate bill.

What a joke. You democrats should be ASHAMED of your leadership. How can you expect people to trust the government with their health care when you guys can't even get it passed without using DECEPTION right off the bat.

And quit blaming others for your failures. Its not the job of the AMA to deliver votes, Harry. That is your job. Grow up, your a big boy now. Start acting like one.

[osage]

07:59 AM on 10/22/2009

Harry Reid is a CAREER POLITICIAN. We need to get rid of ALL career politicians on both sides of the aisle IF we want to accomplish GENUINE PROGRESSIVE CHANGE. We need more people like Alan Grayson and Al Franken in the House and Senate. People whose careers DEPEND on the campaign contributions of LARGE business institutions will ALWAYS BE THEIR SERVANTS!!!!!!!!

[Solja]

09:03 AM on 10/22/2009

Sorry, but all career-politicians are not bad. Pelosi has more backbone than most in the House and all in the Senate, and she's a "career politician". Try the career Republican politicians. Those are the most worthless ones in Congress.

Harry Reid is not appearing to be too effective, but that's only because the media is telling us this. We don't really know what he's doing. Don't get me wrong. He looks weak and ineffective to me also, but the media is still telling us this about him.

[morgan1]

07:42 AM on 10/22/2009

This man can't be believed--You can see "Liar" all over his face. He knew and went along as they pay him to live well and do what they need done. They are all hypocrites.

[Softnsweet]

08:36 AM on 10/22/2009

I agree!

[PWM]

08:49 AM on 10/22/2009

True

[northstar11]

07:41 AM on 10/22/2009

on this first failure it was ------the bush admin mislead us

on the health care failure ---it is --the ama mislead us

here is an idea mr reid ---quit letting yourself be lead around by the nose.

be the leader

then you wont be mislead

[nick1936]

07:24 AM on 10/22/2009

So you were up to the old Washington trick paying off to get votes.THATS CALLED BRIBERY

[bluemike]

07:23 AM on 10/22/2009

Let them have a cut. Aren't MDs already obscenely rich? So many serve themselves rather than their patients.

[TheIndependenceParty]

07:05 AM on 10/22/2009

Oh, I know, Harry! Those doctors are so mean, and their needles are so sharp, ... go put your big boy pants on and get to work for the Public Option. Times is running short!