Townhall.com, Where Your Opinion Counts
Talk Radio:   Bill Bennett   Mike Gallagher   Dennis Prager   Michael Medved   Hugh Hewitt   
BREAKING NEWS  LeftArrow - Townhall.com : Conservative, Political, Republican   RightArrow - Townhall.com : Conservative, Political, Republican  
Columns, funnies & more in your inbox!
  • Check the boxes and send us your email address to receveive your free newsletter
  • Your daily must-read of conservative columns, cartoons and news. Coulter, Sowell, Krauthammer and more.
  • Townhall.com’s weekly inside scoop on what’s happening behind the scenes in the world of politics. When news breaks, we report.
  • Signup to receive the latest daily Townhall cartoons
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Scott Wheeler :: Townhall.com Columnist
Vote Right or Die
by Scott Wheeler
Vote on It:
Average Vote:
[+] Text [-]
 
Poll
Will Congress pass Obamacare by the end of the year?

Any health care plan will have winners and losers. That is a fact. Under the Obama plan healthcare will be distributed more evenly, which sounds nice in theory, however in reality this means that some Americans will see their current level of health care decrease. The only way to provide care to more people with the same or less money is to pick losers.

During Obama’s staged town meeting on health care, a woman with cancer and no healthcare coverage asked a prewritten question and received a staged hug after Obama told her that he would help her. Unsurprisingly it turned out she was an Obama campaign worker. The snake oil salesmen of the nineteenth century used to seed their audiences with shills to talk up the cure too.

This deceptive practice was an un-clever attempt to imply that under Obama’s plan the insurance-less woman would have her cancer cured. Republicans should counter with their own town hall healthcare forum whereby they can invite real people who would be victims of health care rationing and not allotted treatment. Republicans could make a public appeal and ask Obama why these people do not get access just because the government underwriters callously determine that saving their lives will cost too much.

Grace-Marie Turner of the Galen Institute recently wrote an analysis of the “six worst flaws” of the Obama healthcare plan. Among them, “A uniform, government-defined benefits package. Rather than letting individuals pick plans based on their own needs, the Obama proposal would require insurers to offer a minimum benefits package. Congress will soon see every special interest group — from alcohol-abuse counselors to chiropractors and acupuncturists — lining up on Capitol Hill lobbying to have its service included in the ‘minimum’ package.” Do not be fooled- the rationing of care will be the bedrock of the government plan.

Just look at Medicare for example, the government, not doctors, determine what the cost value is for a particular procedure, Diagnostic Related Groupings as they are called, and the government dictates the treatment protocols and how much the doctor can charge for any procedure and how long a patient is allowed to stay in the hospital for each procedure. This should make everyone question the danger of government intervention.

In June, the New York Times reported that a Times/CBS poll determined that “most Americans would be willing to pay higher taxes so everyone could have health insurance and that they said the government could do a better job of holding down health-care costs than the private sector.” The poll question I would like to ask is; how many of those polled actually pay taxes? It is easy to say you are in favor of higher taxes for more benefits when you are not the one paying the higher taxes.

The reality is this: there will always be some people who receive less care than others under any healthcare system; under the free market it is those who take from the system who get less care than those who pay for the system; under Obama’s plan the government sets standards that determine who gets care. This is especially alarming considering the way Obama has used the power of government to allocate resources to reward his supporters and punish those who supported his opposition. No one should be comfortable with a system that gives the power of life and death to a politically appointed bureaucrat especially with easy access through public documents to information on whom the patient supported.

The Obama Administration and the Democrat controlled Congress will do their best to ram this legislation through before the American people have a chance understand its devastating ramifications. They know the more we analyze this proposal the more their poll numbers will drop. On July 21, the Wall Street Journal opined “The more we inspect the House bill, the more it looks to be one of the worst pieces of legislation ever introduced in Congress.” Sadly, few members of congress will inspect the bill at all before voting for it.

Share:
Vote on It:
Average Vote:
 
About The Author
Scott Wheeler is executive director of the National Republican Trust PAC. Wheeler is a former television producer, international investigative journalist, and veteran of the U.S. Army infantry.
 
TOWNHALL DAILY: Sign up today and receive Townhall.com daily lineup delivered each morning to your inbox.
Obama Can't Hear You
He is performing his own prostate exam and he'll have to pull his head out (unless those ears have caused him to get stuck in there).

It's so quiet in there he can't hear a Russian nuclear warhead going off, much less listen to dissent over his death care plan.

Ike
"And when the healthcare bureaucrats decide, Georgia Girl, that your cancer surgery and chemotherapy and radiation treatments are too much money for too little reward to them, who is going to be the victim of whom?"

You mean like the health insurance beaurocrats currently do? Try finding an affordable health care plan if you have a pre-existing condition such as diabetes, or have had cancer or a heart attack. You may find one, but the premiums will be more than regular people can afford to pay.
Sign Up to Post Your CommentsSign Up to Post Your Comments
If you are already registered, click here to login. Otherwise, please take a few seconds to register with Townhall.com. Once you sign up, you’ll be able to post your comments immediately, use the action center, get podcasts, and more!
Note: Fields marked with a red asterisk (*) are required.
Salutation:
First Name:
*
Last Name:
*
Email:
*
Nickname:
*
Note: Nick name will be shown when you post comments.
Address 1:
*
Address 2:
City:
*
State:
*
Zip:
*
Phone:
      
Your daily must-read of conservative columns, cartoons and news. Coulter, Sowell, Krauthammer and more.
(Bi-Weekly) We highlight the best opportunities from our partners for surveys, action items and more.