Rabid Liberal Rants

Under Sen. Ron Wyden’s the proposed Senate Bill, people who refuse to buy health insurance will be fined over $1000/year.

Called “shared responsibility payments,” the fines would be set at least half the cost of basic medical coverage, according to the legislation.

I’m sorry, I didn’t vote Democratic so they can fine me for not choosing health insurance. As I have said before, I shouldn’t be forced to foot the bill for folks who choose to eat fast food three times a day. The cost for these programs will only go up. And they continue to take more money out of my paycheck to pay for these programs. Yet my pay isn’t going up that fast, which means I’m making less.

According to research done by the Kaiser Family Foundation, National Public Radio, and the Harvard School of Health, health insurance costs individuals an average of $4,800 annually. The cost for families to get insurance is even higher, at around $12,000 annually. These kinds of costs would push many people over the edge financially. How does Sen. Wyden propose that we pay for more people who will be unable to afford food, housing and education if they have to pay for health insurance? Effective health-care reform would be better accomplished by other means. Sen. Wyden’s own proposals to switch America from employer-based to individual health-insurance markets, for example, would do a great amount of good by encouraging competition and innovation without making life harder for the people having the most difficult time getting insurance.

Why not have individual health insurance markets? I can choose my car insurance, life insurance, cell phone provider, internet provider, cable tv provider, etc? Competition would create lower prices.

In Europe, where health care is free and state run, many experts say we may be going down a slippery slope.

Europeans have some of the world’s best hospitals and have made great strides in fighting problems like obesity and heart disease. But the system is far from perfect.

“What we can be proud of in Europe is the ground rules, that everyone has the right to health care,” said Jose Martin-Moreno, a health expert at the University of Valencia in Spain. “But the implementation has been difficult and one size does not fit all.”

Critics say the policies are often driven more by politics than science. Last week, Prime Minister Gordon Brown promised that patients unable to see cancer experts within two weeks would get cash to pay for private care. Brown had previously argued against paying for private providers and some say the reversal may be a gimmick to boost his sagging popularity.

A World Health Organization survey in 2000 found that France had the world’s best health system. But that has come at a high price; health budgets have been in the red since 1988.

“I would warn Americans that once the government gets its nose into health care, it’s hard to stop the dangerous effects later,” said Valentin Petkantchin, of the Institut Economique Molinari in France. He said many private providers have been pushed out, forcing a dependence on an overstretched public system.

“The minute you make health insurance mandatory, people start overusing it,” said Dr. Alphonse Crespo, an orthopedic surgeon and research director at Switzerland’s Institut Constant de Rebecque. “If I have a cold, I might go see a doctor because I am already paying a health insurance premium.”

The legislation bandied about by the Dems will require, -force-, people to buy in health insurance.

Senior House Democrats drafting health care legislation are considering slapping an unspecified financial penalty on anyone who refuses to purchase affordable health insurance, a key committee chairman said Monday.

Plus, they want to add more taxes in order to pay for the healthcare they want to provide to the uninsured:

In addition, officials said Democrats are considering a new tax on certain health insurance benefits as one of numerous options to help pay for expanding coverage to the uninsured.

I’m all for providing care to people who need it, and can’t afford it, but there has to be a better way than by forcing the rest of us into buying it, and taxing us on top of that.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy’s health committee drafted a bill that would require employers to offer health care to employees or pay a penalty and would require everyone to purchase insurance. In addition, private companies would have to compete with a new, government-sponsored, health care plan.

First of all, the government shouldn’t be forcing people to buy health insurance. Secondly, they shouldn’t be forcing employers to provide health care. Let’s see, the postal service is about $2 billion in the red, they can’t figure out how to fix social security, and Medicaid coverage has been bad for many years.  And how are they going to pay for this additional social program? TAXES. Why should I be forced to pay for health insurance for those who continue to eat at McDonald’s three times a day? I’m being taxed to death as it is.

Instead, we should be allowed to pick a choose our own health insurance. Just like I can pick a choose my cell phone service provider, cable TV and internet provider, life insurance, home insurance, car insurance, credit cards, and bank services,  I want to be able to pick my own health insurance provider. Competition would increase and prices would decrease, I’d keep more of my money from my paycheck.

You read it right. There is rocket fuel in drinking water, “found in at least 395 sites in 35 states”. It’s called perchlorate. And the EPA – the ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION Agency- rather than pushing for safe standards, pushing for cleanup, for both health and environmental reasons, has been twiddling their thumbs for years, has been pushed around by DoD and their contractors. Instead, they’re thinking about issuing a public health advisory.

[Perchlorate] interferes with thyroid function and poses developmental health risks, particularly to fetuses.

If you care about rocket fuel in your drinking water, call your elected official and tell them you want it cleaned up. And while your at it, contact the EPA and let them know you don’t want perchlorate in your drinking water.

More information on perchlorate:

• EPA Perchlorate Links
• Wikipedia info
• FDA Q&A Page on Perchlorate
• CA Dept. of Public Health

This is why I try to avoid, or at least limit, my meat consumption.

The president of a slaughterhouse at the heart of the largest meat recall denied under oath on Wednesday, but then grudgingly admitted, that his company had apparently introduced sick cows into the hamburger supply.

Here’s a link to the video <CAUTION: It’s graphic, and may turn you into a vegetarian, if you’re not one already!>

Seriously, who are you supposed to trust when it comes to food safety?  There were over 50 recalls last year alone. Here are some links to sites that list recalls:

• Recalls.gov- One stop shop for recall info from FDA, CPSC, USDA, and others
• What’s On Your Plate - great blog listing food and cosmetic recalls
• ConsumerAffairs.com - Consumer Safety News