Recently in Health Care Category

It's funny, but most of us thought there would be less anger after the election of Barack Obama. As a group we are angry people. We see it all of the hate speech. We see it in the Tea parties around the country, and we see it among people that are angry that are health care debate has been bought and sold by the insurance industry. As a group we are all hopping mad, but...

Now that September is here and the Congressional recess is about to end, the next few weeks should answer some very important questions about our elected representatives in Washington, not the least of which is, who do they really represent, the people or the corporate interests? According to Brain Beutler at TPMDC the Senate Democrats are on the horns of the proverbial dilemma. Finally realizing that there will be no Republican support for any health...

As the nation engages in vigorous health insurance debate, there is, perhaps no greater example of why we need a public option than the example of Wal-Mart's health insurance offerings. Employees of the conglomerate are no longer treated in the manner in which Sam Walton wished them to be treated - fairly, with honest compensation for honest work. Instead, Wal-Mart's benefit system is an intricate spider-web of rules and caveats designed to discourage employees...

I've known the Cavnars for five years or so, but I didn't know anything about Bob's brother Bill until his recent post.  I do know a lot about health reform though, and Bill's story ought to stiffen the spine of wavering Democrats on reform.Bill Cavnar's story is a common one.  20,000 really ill Americans who had health insurance were removed from the roles over the last three years because Insurance companies knew that they could...

As the public continues to focus on health care reform, there is one piece of reform Congress could pass that would have a much larger impact on the political process and society at large. The health care debate is a good start. Everyone should know by now about the huge political contrubutions from the health insurance industry. That is only the tip of the iceberg. Just like health care reform, campaign finance reform is a...

I've always had a lot of respect for Senator Bob Dole.  He is an honest-to-God WWII hero, with two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star with the combat "V" - for his valor in attempting to assist a downed radio man.  In his service as a Congressman and Senator, he was widely regarded as a man able to bridge the moderate and conservative wings of the Republican Party.  Since his retirement (and loss in the...

Robert Reich wrote in his blog on Friday about the so-called Gang of Six-- the three Republican and three Democratic members of the Senate Finance Committee who have been given undue influence and disproportionate control over any pending health care reform legislation. "It's come down to these six senators. The House has reported a bill as has another Senate committee, but all eyes are fixed on Senate Finance -- and on these three Dems and...

I have had the inestimable pleasure from time to time of watching animated and live action children's movies with my kids. As has always been true, there is as much in them for adults as there is for the kids. Think Popeye, Aladdin, The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland, The Chronicles of Narnia ... lots of political, religious, social commentary there.I had been putting off watching the movie Wall-E because at some point, I felt...

A living will is defined as "instructions given by individuals specifying what actions should be taken for their health in the event that they are no longer able to make decisions due to illness or incapacity." Read that again, please.   In other words - if you want your family to let you die if you are so incapacitated that you can't make the decision yourself, so be it.  If you want to be kept alive...

As President Obama's approval ratings, both overall and on his handling of the issue of health care reform, continue to slide, the unasked question in these polls is why do those polled disapprove. Part of the answer may lie in the numbers from the latest Daily Kos/Research 2000 tracking poll. While the disapproval rating among Republicans remains constant, despite the concessions and the futile attempts to appease the unappeasable, the drop among Democrats and Independents...