The Crime of Nationalized Healthcare (Part IV)

Solving the System. Note, this is almost all copied from BalancedPolitics.org. I am posting it here to show you what I think we should do.

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The 15-Point Solution to the Health Care Crisis

By: Joe Messerli

Why This Problem Is Now a Crisis

• Increase costs to the individual. We've all felt the hit from increased monthly premiums, higher deductibles, higher co-pays, and so on. The increase in costs over the past few years have in effect wiped out any employment raises. Health costs will soon surpass housing as our biggest monthly expense. Between premiums, deductibles, and co-pays, an individuals can end up paying several thousands of dollars before insurance kicks in dollar one. Things will only get worse as the population ages.
  
  
• Increase costs to businesses. Most employees don't realize that the insurance premiums deducted from their checks are only part of the monthly insurance cost. The businesses providing the plan often shoulder a much bigger burden. When health costs go up, less money is available for raises, new hires, and profits. In other words, stock values of our 401(k)'s are affected by shrinking profits and businesses are less able to hire new employees. Many of the smaller businesses, especially the service-oriented ones, are forced into bankruptcy.
  
  
• Tens of millions of uninsured Americans. The number of uninsured Americans is already over 35 million, and it's growing at an exponential rate. More and more people, if they can afford insurance at all, are finding it's easier to go without insurance than pay the exploding costs. When a person doesn't have insurance, he's less likely to seek medical help when problems arise. Thus, prevention costs as well as the modest cost of catching certain problems in the early stages lead to the much greater costs of full-blown illnesses & diseases. The costs of these full-blown problems must be absorbed by all the insured individuals.
  
  
• Longer wait times and less access to health care. Have you ever gone to a doctor's office and been seen by your physician within 5 minutes? Times vary, but it's not unusual or unexpected to wait 30-60 minutes after your appointment time before being serviced. Depending on specialty, it may take weeks or months to even get an appointment. It's rarely the fault of the medical professionals. They are simply too overworked and understaffed. Beyond the inconvenience, this contributes to lost productivity of the entire nation.
  
  
• Businesses pass on costs as higher consumer prices. Health insurance is simply another component of labor costs. Just like costs of energy, equipment, and rent are factored into the cost of a product, so are labor costs. To ensure a profit at a level that makes it worthwhile to stay in business, companies must raise prices. Thus, rising health costs lead to inflation throughout the economy.
  
  
• Economy is hit by redirection of consumer spending. Since consumers must spend a larger percentage of every dollar on health care, less money is available to buy cars, computers, clothes, and other items that fuel a thriving economy. Rising health care costs could easily throw us back into a recession.
  
  
• Unhealthy individuals may have trouble finding employment. A sad fact of the current system is that monthly premiums are determined by the cost of your insurance pool. In the same way that you're charged higher auto insurance premiums when you have multiple accidents, a poor health record can increase the costs for everyone in the pool. For example, if you have one employee in a pool of 50 people that gets cancer or some other expensive illness, everyone in the 50 must absorb higher premiums. Although it's technically illegal to make hiring decisions based on health conditions, some businesses may find other reasons not to hire a potentially expensive individual. In fact, for small businesses on the edge of financial ruin, there may be no choice.
  
  
• National & worldwide shortage of doctors, nurses, and other health professionals. Hospitals simply cannot keep up with the rising demand for health care. There's obviously a shortage of medical professionals or you wouldn't be forced to wait for appointments, and salaries wouldn't be so high. This is more than an American problem since the high salaries are pulling professionals to the U.S. from India, Britain, Canada, and other areas around the world. We have a shortage in America despite the most advanced medical training system in the world; you can imagine the shortage in 3rd world countries such as those in Africa or South America.
  
  

A 15-Point Solution

1. De-regulate the medical profession. It's time the government ease restrictions on who can do what in medicine. Does it make sense that someone who wants to perform heart surgery has to go through the same amount of education as someone who wants to set broken bones and prescribe infection remedies? Does it make sense that 3rd-year med students are allowed to perform medical tasks that a nurse with 30 years of experience can't? Does it make sense that a Ph.D. psychologist can't prescribe Zoloft or Prozac but a psychiatrist who can prescribe the drugs must go through 8 years of education almost completed unrelated to psychology? Medicine is probably the most complex subject in existence; still, the vast majority of medical tasks don't require someone with 12 years of tortuous training. Health care costs are so high because tasks that could often be performed by nurses, physicians assistants, paramedics, and CNA's are restricted to fully-licensed doctors. De-regulation would reduce costs in three ways: 1) Routine tasks can be billed out at the much cheaper rate of the non-doctor; 2) Doctor salaries would fall since they wouldn't have to handle the same case load and pressures; and 3) Competition would increase, which always leads to lower prices and better quality. Doctors would also have more time to devote to the tougher cases, and you'd draw more students to medicine since they'd be able to do more meaningful work without having to devote the time and money of becoming a full physician.
   
   Why, in a nation of 280 million people do we have only 600,000 doctors? There are millions of potential students out there who have the intelligence to do the work but can't go all the way through med school because of financial, work, or family obligations. Or maybe they're part of the 95 percent of applicants that are denied entrance to medical school because of rigorous requirements and few open admission spots. Yes, we want and need an elite class of physicians, but given the dire situation, maybe we need to open certain tasks to lesser-trained individuals.
   
   Some may worry that this opens the door to more medical mistakes. Yes, lesser-trained individuals will make more mistakes, but remember, people have a choice. If they want to save some money and take a little more risk, they'll choose a nurse. If it's a more complex problem, they'll go to a fully-licensed physician. Think about how many doctors refer their patients to specialists anyway. What difference does it make if the first cog in the machinery is a nurse? Also remember that a medical professional always has the threat of a lawsuit if he or she screws up.
   
   
2. Create a range of new medical training levels and specialties. Despite the vast number of medical problems, there are very few specialties. Sure, there are specialties, but they're all at the doctor level. It takes almost a superhuman to get through the rigorous training requirements we have for our physicians. Each student must spend an average of $150,000 and devote 8 years to a grueling education program. Then, he or she must complete a slave-labor 4-year residency with 80+ hour workweeks. This is just to start their medical career. Almost anyone in medicine will agree that while a solid base of knowledge is important, you don't really know what you're doing until you've accumulated years working on real cases. Think about it. If you had a certain medical problem, would you rather see someone with 12 years of general education and no expertise in your problem area, or would you rather see someone with 12 years of experience working specifically in the area you need help?
   
   I'm suggesting that in addition to de-regulation, we develop several new specialties and education levels. Obviously, to work in medicine, you'd want to require a base set of classes in anatomy, chemistry, biology, etc. But after that, training can be ultra focused to areas of specialty. Students could be given hands-on and written certification tests at multiple levels to demonstrate their ability in their area. We could have several levels of doctors or nurses. Think about how achievement in martial arts is structured. You start out at white belt and proceed through various colors all the way to black belt. To advance to each new level, you must devote a certain amount of time and demonstrate a certain set of skills. By looking at the color of belt, we instantly can guess a person's ability and level of training. Think about the financial planning profession. A 2 or 4-year degree may get a professional his or her first job, but customers may not want to go to that person unless he or she has CPA, stock broker license, Certified Financial Planner qualification, etc. Now consider how doctors are currently ranked: there's really only one level: DOCTOR!
   
   Again, it's all about choice. We still need the heavily-trained individuals for the complex cases. We can save money by going to a lesser-trained, lesser-experienced individual if we want. Insurance companies could offer incentives to use the cheaper alternatives. For example, go to a nurse for your physical and it doesn't count towards your deductible.
   
   One last idea when it comes to specialties: allow the creation of businesses that specialize in performing certain types of tests; for example, CT scans, X-rays, etc. Businesses could be set up to do nothing but the type of test that's required. A specialist could streamline operations and squeeze out levels of efficiency like never before. Once again, regulation constrains true reform.
   
   
3. Develop a new no-patent government drug research & development facility (or contract with a private firm). Prescription drugs are undoubtedly one of the most expensive components of rising health care costs. However, the actual production of drugs is usually pretty cheap. The expense comes from the research and development. Remember, creating new drugs can take years or even decades of meticulous, expensive research & testing. And for every successful new drug, there are hundreds that turn out to be a waste of time. Drug companies must charge exorbitant prices to recoup their costs and ensure an adequate profit. Unfortunately, because patent laws create a virtual monopoly on their product for 17 years, they can charge whatever they want (subject to market price demand). I'm proposing the government start a not-for-profit drug research facility where patents laws aren't applied and all experimental learning is shared with the public. There are several advantages of such a facility.
   
   First of all, once a drug is created and approved, anyone would immediately be allowed to make and sell it. Competition would drive the price to rock bottom levels. Second of all, time could be devoted to curing illnesses and diseases that aren't always the most profitable. For example, certain types of fevers such as malaria are almost non-existent in the U.S., but are major problems overseas. We could develop remedies that were never dreamed of, possibly prompting other countries to do the same. Lastly, we will be able to build the knowledge base for everyone, leading to the faster develop of new life and pain-saving drugs. In the current system, drug companies almost have an incentive not to share their knowledge since doing so might lead to other companies gaining a patent first. In a government-controlled facility, we could, for example, require the results of certain experiments be posted online.
   
   
4. Create a new statute to punish those who bring frivolous malpractice suits and extort money from doctors. Frivolous lawsuits against doctors and hospitals, especially ones with outrageous verdicts, have led to skyrocketing medical liability insurance. Many lawyers will extort money by threatening lawsuits, even though they have no chance of winning. Doctors may opt for a quick settlement anyway since the cost of a malpractice lawsuit is enormous compared to paying the lawyer to just go away. A solution to this is to get back at the lawyers responsible for attacking the doctors or hospitals that haven't done anything wrong. What I suggest is a new law that requires that not only should the plaintiff have to pay court & attorney fees to innocent defendants, but lawyers who encourage the case be forced to pay a matching amount as a fine. The lawyer would also lose "points" on his legal license, so those with a track record of bringing frivolous lawsuits would lose their license to practice law.
   
   
5. Develop a new court system to deal with medical malpractice lawsuits. Medical malpractice lawsuits are by far the most expensive to bring to trial. This makes sense when you consider the subject matter of the trials involves doctors who go to school for 8 grueling years, endure 4 years of 80-hr week residency, and then work several years on their specialty. Can we really expect a jury of 12 people who have little or no medical training to understand what's going on? Not only is it expensive, but too often juries who don't understand the facts must pick between a rich doctor and a feeble, dying, or disfigured patient. So even if the doctor has done nothing wrong, he or she may get the shaft. And that cost is of course passed down to us in increased health insurance premiums. I propose setting up a specialty court system similar to what we have for tax and bankruptcy disputes. Decisions would be made by trained medical professionals who can better understand the issues and render fairer verdicts.
   
   
6. Create liability caps on damages for pain & suffering and punitive damages in malpractice lawsuits. Doctors across America are walking off the job or giving up their practice because of the exorbitant cost of malpractice insurance. Malpractice insurance is passed on to all of us in higher insurance premiums. There should be no limit to damages for lost income or medical bills caused by malpractice since they can be objectively measured. However, pain/suffering and punitive damages are intangible amounts that need to be reined in. Juries often come back with unjust awards because they feel sympathy for the patient and figure a rich doctor or insurance company can afford the loss. Everyone makes mistakes, and doctors should be held accountable, but excessive lawsuits are changing the medical system as we know it. Doctors are practicing expensive defensive medicine to avoid getting sued as well as curbing or eliminating risky areas of practice. Remember, there are plenty of punishment options for doctors that screw up that don't involve money; for example, suspension or revocation of their license to practice. This solves both problems: getting the poor-performing doctor out of the profession while keeping our health insurance premiums from going up. A $250,000 or $500,000 cap on damages would be a reasonable start in addressing all these problems.
   
   
7. Build a series of lawsuit-prohibited medical facilities. If you could save thousands of dollars by going to a doctor with the same expertise as other clinics but for which there was no chance to sue if a mistake was made, would you go? Some people would say yes; some would say no. There's always the chance you'd get lesser quality because the threat of lawsuit isn't there to keep up the pressure; however, you may get better care since doctors can concentrate on curing the patient rather than covering their butts. I suggest clinics be set up where patients must sign a release preventing any legal action if they want to be treated. Doctors would be able to charge a small fraction of what they currently do since they wouldn't need to pay hundreds of thousands in malpractice insurance. You'd also be able to save money arising from unnecessary tests that are often carried out to minimize legal liability.
   
   Remember, people are required to sign do-not-sue releases to go bungee jumping, sky dive, take a karate class, and do a number of other activities. Does this stop people from going? People will come to such a medical facility often because they have nowhere else to go or because they're not worried about malpractice when getting an antibiotic prescription. Is such a facility an unrealistic idea? Not by a long shot. Patch Adams, the doctor on whom a movie was based, founded a free clinic called the Gesundheit Institute and ran the clinic without malpractice insurance. He has since expanded and introduced all kinds of revolutionary medical ideas. Thousands of doctors have volunteered their time to his program. It's not realistic to operate all free clinics, but the costs of a clinic that doesn't need malpractice insurance is dramatically cheaper.
   
   
8. Streamline or eliminate the FDA, and de-regulate the process of approving drugs. While the FDA's purpose of protecting the public is noble, the organization has become increasing less useful and is causing more problems than it solves. It was originally set up to protect the public from charlatans selling snake oil and other potions, but in today's complex pharmaceutical market, the organization isn't as necessary.
   
   Consider the problems caused by the FDA: 1) The FDA costs the taxpayers an enormous amount of money to function; we should always be looking for ways to cut government waste so the funds can be redirected to other areas. 2) The FDA delays the release of drugs, causing pain and death in patients. Like all government offices, bureaucracy slows operations to a crawl. It can take months or years to get a new drug through the screening process, even though the seller has already screened the drug thoroughly. For patients who are suffering and those who will die without a new drug, this delay is unacceptable. The FDA will bring criminal procedures against the seller even when the patient is willing to assume all risks. 3) The FDA drives up the cost of prescription drugs. The impractical requirements placed on drug makers along with the added layer of screening forces companies to charge more for their products.
   
   Some may ask "What about the consumer? Won't this increase the chances of unsafe drugs being put on the market?" The answer is a possible yes, but only marginally so. Remember, drug companies are worried about their reputation and don't want to be sued. One class-action lawsuit or the bad press of one unsafe drug could put them out of business. Thus, they take great pains to make sure their drugs are safe. And drug companies are run by human beings who obviously don't want their products to cause harm. The FDA just adds a repetitive layer that isn't necessary. Patients and the doctors from whom they get a prescription are going to factor safety into their decision to use a drug. Thus, even without the FDA, it's likely a private screening company will develop to certify the drugs. Private policing of the industry is faster, cheaper, and more flexible. It's time to cut some of the FDA fat from the budget.
   
   
9. Streamline the process of purchasing drugs for consumers. I went to the drug store last week to pick up some asthma meds. Despite the fact that I called a day ahead, I had to wait 45 minutes for my prescription. Why? Because I had to have a pharmacist explain to me how to use an inhaler I've been using daily for over 15 years. Have you ever gone to pick up a prescription and not been subjected to a wait in line? The cost of pharmacy employees is part of the drug distribution cost. Wait times are ridiculous because overprotective, condescending politicians have passed laws forcing pharmacists to read you a label that says "Take this twice per day with meals." After all, it's possible you can't read or didn't hear when your doctor told you the same thing the day before. The average hourly cost of a pharmacist is over $60. Multiply the hours you'd save by the number of pharmacists in the country.
   
   
10. Pass a law requiring publication of price lists of all medical services. Did you ever stop to think that medicine is the only business that doesn't publicize it's prices? Can you imagine dropping your car off for repairs and having the mechanic pick any price he deems appropriate? Publication of prices leads to more-informed consumers. Consumers would be able to shop around for better prices and question unreasonable fees.
    
    
11. Set up a new scholarship/grant program for those that want to enter the health profession. The average medical student graduates with over $100,000 in debt. Then he or she must work a 4-year residency at close to minimum wage. Is it any wonder that few doctors want to volunteer time or work in low-cost clinics? Is it any wonder they try to squeeze in as many revenue-generating patients per day? They have to just to pay school loans, malpractice insurance, and other overhead! The nursing shortage gets worse every year, which leads to longer hours for the current staff and more potential for costly mistakes. We should be doing everything we can to get more students into the medical profession. The economic laws of supply show prices will drop proportionately, so the scholarships should pay for themselves.
    
    
12. Increase awareness of WebMD, Ask-a-Nurse, and other free medical advice. There is an endless wealth of free information on the Web and on phone hotlines that people simply don't know about. Most minor problems could be solved by the patient if he or she took the time to look up the ailment. Part of the problem is that people don't know you can get diagnoses, symptoms, causes, related illnesses, etc. without paying a dime. Most of these medical data banks will have a section "When you should visit a professional", so the basic problems can be solved with minimal risk.
    
    
13. Develop a national health information system that centralizes all medical information.Did you realize that 60-70 percent of your medical dollar goes towards administration and insurance costs? How many times in your life have you filled out a full medical history? How many times have you had to re-explain your medical background to a new doctor? Every medical office has its own set of medical records that must be organized, filed, data-entered, and maintained. Every medical office must duplicate insurance information, organize claim procedures, and manage their own computer system. This redundancy causes two major problems: 1) It creates a greater chance for error, by both the patient and the hospital staff; 2) It doubles the administration costs which are passed on to all of us as higher premiums. Think about how much money we could save in the future if we integrated all this health information into one national database. Consider how much better doctors could do their job if they could pull up a full medical history of the patient's treatment, including treatment at other hospitals.
    
    
14. Ease right-to-die rules. By far the biggest advantages to physician-assisted suicide are the preservation of dignity, minimization of suffering, and the easing of anguish on family members. These cannot be underestimated. It's almost callous to think it, but there's another advantage that most people don't consider, which is the savings of health care costs and freeing up of hospital staff resources. Money and hospital staff time mean nothing compared to human life, but for a person who wants to die and faces a certain painful death, wouldn't it make more sense to re-direct money and hospital resources to patients that can be saved and want to live? For example, does it make sense to spend tens of thousands of dollars keeping a suffering bone cancer patient alive to the last excruciating breath while occupying the time of a doctor, nurse, and CNA--all when the patient wants to die gracefully? Savable patients suffer and die every day because of hospital understaffing. We need to be smart and practical if we are to achieve maximum benefit for society.
    
    
15. Design new insurance plans that shift more costs from premiums to out-of-pocket costs. Perhaps the biggest reason why health care costs are out of control is that the economic laws of supply and demand have been removed from the industry. I've already talked about how stifling government regulation has limited the supply of medical resources; now, let's consider demand. The U.S. has the most diverse and advanced access to medical care of any country in the world. Consequently, we've become a bit spoiled. We've developed an entitlement mentality in this country. We feel we are entitled to the best medical care regardless of expense, and we think we should have to pay little or nothing for it. Unfortunately, the best technology, the best trained professionals, and the best prescription drugs cost money. If we were forced to pay out-of-pocket for all our medical care, we would be a little more frugal. We would discipline ourselves and modify our habits--Do I really need this CT scan? Should I run to the doctor every time my child sniffles? Do I need a doctor with 20 years experience to perform some routine surgery or would a new graduate be able to do it just as well? Do I need the latest and greatest surgical equipment or would the cheaper conventional equipment do the job? Should I go to the doctor for some antibiotics to cure this problem immediately or should I let my body fight it off?
    
    Imagine if we had the same entitlement mentality with housing. After all, housing is a basic need that all Americans must have for survival. Imagine you had a $5000 annual deductible, but after that all your housing costs were paid for by insurance. Would you choose a small basic apartment that costs $5200 per year or would you go for a $15,000 penthouse with swimming pool, hot tub, and fire place? Would you like a small townhouse by the airport or a 100,000 square foot beach house?
    
    The whole purpose of insurance is to spread the risk and costs of unusual and unexpected events. It was never designed to pay expenses from your daily lives. Health insurance premiums should be reduced to the same rate range as life insurance premiums and cover only the major medical problems costing, say $10,000 or more. Currently between business and individual contributions, $3500 is paid out on average per person every year before insurance starts to help out. Then you have to deal with co-pays and other costs. An out-of-pocket focused plan would mean that $3500 normally spent on premiums would be available to the consumer. For years where patients have no medical problems, the money could be pocketed. Obviously, people will be much more frugal shoppers. They will go only when they really need to and will demand better value for their money. Thus, economic laws of supply and demand would go back into health care, lowering prices to the point that $3500 per year will easily take care of almost all individuals. Remember that 60-70 percent of each health care dollar is spent on administration costs. An out-of-pocket focused plan would mean hospitals could eliminate the tedious insurance claim process for most of their charges.
    
    There are secondary benefits to such a shift in cost. If people are forced to pay more out-of-pocket for all health care, they're more likely to exercise, eat right, and practice preventive medicine, all of which are vastly cheaper in the long run. It's all about personal responsibility. We'd shift the focus of our society away from the pill-popping solution to every medical problem, which is counter-productive and causes a host of new problems. For example, overuse of antibiotics has led to the breeding of new superbugs. In other words, infections that used to be easily cured with antibiotics have grown resistant and now cannot be fought at all. The human body was built for one thing--survival. It can fight off most health problems if we simply let it.
    
    

Conclusion

Admittedly, some of these suggestions may be near-impossible to implement. And there are plenty of disadvantages to following this plan. But the fact is, any controversial issue is going to have advantages and disadvantages. There is no easy solution. Otherwise, the issue wouldn't be controversial. However, the downsides of any action can paralyze us to the point where we do nothing. We have to analyze all the choices and come up with the solution that has the greatest weight of pros over cons. You might have noticed, but the old system also has a few flaws.

"The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them."--Albert Einstein

"Other people see things and say 'why'. But I dream things that never were and say 'why not'.--George Bernard Shaw

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result."--Albert Einstein

Now, while I disagree with the point about Right-to-die being added to the system, disagree very strongly in fact, the rest of them are the most common sense ways to solve the problem.

Socialized Healthcare treats the symptoms of a failing system, but the system being advised by Free Market Proponents is designed to treat the cause.

The Crime of Nationalized Healthcare (Part III)

This the third post on this subject. Dang am I on a roll tonight.

Sorry about the deviation, this was going to be about Europe, but the links have timed out, and I am in search of new ones. Instead, I will be covering Canada!

(Note: The Canadian Idiot is by Wierd Al)

First of all, take a look at the graph to the Left. It comes from The Fraser Institute via the Mackinac Center For Public Policy in the great state of Michigan. The numbers here are signifigant, as the numbers are almost double for all systems in the United States as compared to Canada.

Second, PET (Positron emission tomography) scans are no longer covered by the Canadian Healthcare System. Instead, they use the less accurate CT scan. This according to the STATE RUN CBC News, or the Canadian Broadcasting Company. In fact, the lack of PET scans has led to numerous unnecessary surgeries for the purpose of removing a tumor.

Third, according to the Christian Science Monitor, Canadians are leaving the system and going to private clinics, despite the fact that even setting one up is illegal, let alone visiting one.

The Crime of Nationalized Healthcare (Part II)

Well, Crazy Artist has a point on this one, and therefore I am going to go through and Cite stats and go more indepth into the problems. Note, this is not going to be a fair and balanced look. Nothing on this is fair and balanced. My Blog is a window on my BRAIN!

First, going to a government run facility is a nightmare. Two Months ago, I escorted my sister to a State Run Free Clinic. We sat there for a full hour waiting for a simple vaccination. A month later, I went to my doctor's office, and I got a Hep B shot in five minuets, with most of the wait being because they where short staffed and full up. Why is this? For the same reason that I got a better education at Bishop Miege High School. Because at my doctor's office, they know that they need to earn my continued business, unlike the state run free clinics.

Now, don't get me wrong, Free Health Care for the un-insured is good. But there is too much Red Tape in any thing run by the government, and that ultimately leads to people getting the short end of the stick.

Second, this is going to mean a rise in taxes. This affects everyone, despite the rhetoric of Tax Cuts for The Rich. The lie is given to this by checking Poverty Rates vs Income Tax Rates. The lower the Income Tax, the lower the Poverty Rate. Why? Because Income Tax Hikes hit the impoverished harder than anyone.

Third, the Free Market always fixes itself in some way or form. Always has, always will. This is something that we need to understand, and something we need to work with and support. The best way to do this? Loser Pays Court Cases.

Fourth, according to the Guardian Unlimited, one in eight people have to wait a full YEAR to gain access to Health minister Andy Burnham. The story goes on to say that 30% had to wait 30 WEEKS, or about 7 months, for a surgery, 48% had to wait 18 weeks, and 12.4% had to wait a full year. 48% had to wait 18 weeks. In the US, the wait, with extreme exceptions, is around two or three weeks at most.

Fifth, according to Healthcare News, smokers and the obese are BANNED from hospitals. BANNED! The story comes straight from the health Secretary Patricia Hewitt.

Sixth, according to The Scotsman, cancer patients in the UK are not receiving some life prolonging cancer medicines because it is "Too Expensive" for the government to afford.

"The Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) yesterday refused to recommend Sutent for use on the NHS, meaning patients who fail on current treatment will have no other drug options."

Seventh, according to the Telegraph UK, 5,000, FIVE THOUSAND, elderly children die each year because they do not have the beds necessary to treat them. FIVE THOUSAND!

More Headlines about the UK can be found here. Up next, I take a look at the problems in other European countries. Don't worry, this one will be shorter.

Answering the Star

My local paper has written a series of ten gotcha questions they would like to see asked of Sarah Palin in the interview tonight. Well, while I may not be the one being interviewed, but if I was her, this is how I would answer.

You can find the questions Here.

1. Yes, I did campaign in favor of the "Bridge to Nowhere" until I found out how much it was going to cost Alaska to fund it. If it had just been federal money, we might have don it, but it was going to cost too much to be justified. So, I nixed it when I found out more details, and kept the money for other projects that needed to be done across Alaska.
F: And let the government waste it again? I had roads I needed built, sewer systems that needed construction or replacement. Things that Federal Funds assist states with, which we needed to get done.

2. Largest per capita, wow. Well, yes, it was a lot of money, but it was money we needed for necessary projects. Public Transit, Sewage, etc. It was not wasted money spent on Earmarks, but rather Federal assistance to help keep taxes in Alaska down. They may have been added on as Earmarks, but they where standard requests for Federal assistance.
F: For health care, we need to reduce frivolous law suits that drive up costs for doctors, which they transfer over to you and me. We need to also stop raiding social security whenever we have paid out the minimum, and let people invest it themselves. Whether it is in their bank, in the stock market, gold, silver, whatever, the people can do a better job than the government. And if they don't want to invest themselves, we will have safe investments, like Oil, Manufacturing, etc. that they can have the government invest for them in. It will be safer, it will mean less money being taken from the tax payers, and it will mean that your return on your investment is up to you. Even better, it means that the Government can not waste that money. As for Defense, I think we should increase it if possible. I disagree with Obama about cuttign costs and not researching new technologies to defend our troops better and make wars shorter.

3. I am not stonewalling the Legislature. There was nothing improper on our side. That man tasered my nephew, threatened to kill my father, drove drunk in his car with an open bottle of beer and a gun. He is unfit for office, and when he was in service, his car patrol route took him along the street where those he threatened lived. That is why I wanted him fired, and when the Public Safety Comissioner refused to do so, I fired him as well and found someone who was willing to do his job.

4. It's not as overwhelming as you may think. There are mountains of evidence that show that the warmign is located almsot entirely int he big cities. The oceans, the atmosphere, the south pole, none of it is warmign signifigantly. In fact, Antactica is colder than durign the last interglacial. Look at the Solar System, Pluto, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Europa, all of them have shown signs of warming, until the recent sunspot minimum. Now, they, and the Earth are beginning to cool.
F: Nothing, because I have seen both sides of the debate, and quite frankly, I don't buy your side's line. None of it ever takes into account the wamrign going on outside of our own planet.

5. Let's cool that Environmentally Sensitive rhetoric. We are talkign abotu an area the size of LAX. If you where to shrink the entirety of ANWR to the size of a Football Field, then the area we want to drill in is the size of a postage stamp. Add in the evidence we have showing that the Trans-Alaska Pipeline has become the Caribou Singles Bar, and it shows that maybe, just maybe, activities there will help the evironment.
F: Of course I weant to overturn it. Polar Bears are up since we first started observing them. Their population has tripled in fact. There is no danger to them from humans, this was simply a way that organizations like Greepeace and ELF can stop development and put humans last.

6. Yes, I do. Most of those captured where done so in direct violation of the Geneva Convention. They could have been shot dead where they stood and legally, nothign would have been wrong. Instead, we captured them, took them over to Guantanamo, and placed them in camps where for many, the conditions where better than they had at home. Three square meals that is in direct compliance with their holy laws, their own Korans, which many of them proceeded to destroy and frame on guards. They don't deserve thsoe protections, and yet we treat them like they are eligible for Geneva Convention protections anyways.
F: Of course I am, that is always going to happen. But with the old system, it was possible for people to prove their innocence. Now, those we would detain are merely shot on sight. Now, innocent people are in even greater danger, because the troops don't want to have to fight people twelve times over.

7. Not comitting enough troops from the beginning, and not training them for an insurgency such as this. We could have won that war by now, but we where arrogant going in, and now, we have a war that is dragging out longer and longer than it should have.
F: I agree with John McCain. We need to win, and then once we have won, draw down our presence to a minimum and create a German, Japanese, or Korean stly presence with a small contingent there to assist the Iraqi army with security when they need it.

8. No, I would try to overturn Roe v.. Wade, but that is because I believe that it is a States Rights issue. I think that each state should be able to set it's own policy on that, and that the Federal Government has no right to decide issues of Abortion.
F: Teach about the consequence of premature sexual affairs in terms of Psychology, Scoiology, Physiology. These are things people don't ever talk about. We need to encourage them to wait until they are married or at least until they are through with schooling. One way we can do that is to encourage use of Natural Family Planning as opposed to Planned Parenthood.

9. Yes, many of John McCain's advisors are former Bush Advisors, but he chose them because he trusted them. When John voted with Bush on 95% I believe the charge is, he did so because he agreed with Bush on those issues, not out of party loyalty.
F: I would ask my people from Alaska to come south and help me out there, the same way they did in Anchorage and Wasilla.

10. My children are off limits. If you want to talk about a member of the family, then talk about one who has put themselves out there on the campaign trail.
F: No, I didn't, because I didn't think anyone would be that hateful as too attack my family and put private matters all over the country.

The Crime of Nationalized Healthcare (Part I)

In the Heretic Nation, John Edwards is on the "Most Wanted" List by the HBI.

This is because of his activities in recent years. Since the beginning of his law career, John Edwards has been what is colloquially known as an "Ambulance Chaser," or a man who specialized in Medical Malpractice Lawsuits.

Now, let it be known, that lawsuits against doctors cost massive amounts of money to the Medical Insurance Company. And, no matter who wins, the Insurance Company is responsible for paying for the costs of the Client's Legal Fees. Therefore, every time there is a medical lawsuit, the insurance companies have to shell out large amounts of money, forcing them to increase their premiums, which forces doctors to charge more for coverage, and thus to short change more people out of healthcare.

Also, on another prong of the assault, Illegal Immigrants, for fear of being discovered, and wait until they are in absolute desperation, go to the ER, and cost massive amounts of money from the citizens, raising their taxes.

So, that is the situation we find ourselves in when we come to the crockumentary travesty, SiCKO.

In the movie, Michael Moore paints this picture of a paradise in which the nations of Europe and the Americas have this great, free health care system, which has no flaws whatsoever.

Well, I have to call Shame on this, and while I agree that there needs to be some changes in the way that our Health care system is run, there are better ways to do so.

Now, first of all, lets look at the problems of Nationalized Healthcare.

First: People who are under this system have to wait several months to get into a doctor's office, leading to many people dieing from diseases they could have survived if they could have gotten it diagnosed

Second: You MUST go to a Government Approved doctor and gain a recommendation to a specialist, then wait a few more months to go see said specialist

Third: X-Ray Machines/MRI Machines take about five months to be able to get into the machines, whereas people can get into an MRI by the end of the day, and an X-Ray within an hour

Fourth: Those who set up private clinics in Europe or Canada get tossed into jail

Fifth: Nations with Socialized Healthcare are one of the largest sources of "Medical Tourism" to the United States, due to the ease of access into the use of our medical facilities

I have an alternate plan, or rather Neal Boortz has an alternate plan. This is a system of lawsuits known as Loser Pays, in which the loser in any case will have to pay the costs of any and all persons within the case.

This will do many things.

First: It will reduce the amount of cases that the courts have to here

Second: It will bring down the costs of health care, as even cases that never make it to court still increase the amount that a doctor has to pay for his Malpractice Insurance

This is a much better system, and one we should follow.

Say WHAT!?

On the floor of the house the other day, Congressman Steve Cohen said that Jesus was a Community Organizer, Pontius Pilate was a Governor.

Seriously, WTF!? We on the right are always accused of being religious wack jobs. We are called zealots and wanna-be terrorists because we believe that Faith has a position in society. And yet, when this guy makes that comment, they are picked up by the media and the Democrats and used against us without an eye beign batted. Makes you wonder...

Crime of Nationalised Healthcare

I am going to be reposting the entire series, the Crime of Nationalized Healthcare, over the next four days. They are some of my best posts ever. Sad really that they are my best, but oh well.

The Fairness Doctrine: Politics of Fear and Control

The Left as we speak are suing radio stations who broadcast views they oppose. The latest is KRLA, a Salem Broadcastign affiliat in California. He is being sued by the Birke Brothers, who claim that he is using Public Airwaves to push the Republican agenda. Unlike those fair and balanced anchors over at MSNBC or the AP huh?

And, to make it worse, the Obama Legal Team give it Five Stars and call it Shiny.

Of course, those thugs are the same people who tried to keep Stephen Kurtz of The National Review Online from speaking on WGN Chicago about the Obama - Ayers connection. They crashed the phone lines, filling the air with the sound of Left Wing talking points issued by the Obama Campaign, unable to back them up with thought or response to challenge. The good folks over at WGN have posted a full 2-Hour Pod Cast, which can be downloaded Here.

They also went after GOP donors for funding The American Issues Project. Bob Bauer, General Counsel of the Obama Campaign sent letters tot he U.S. Justice Department DEMANDING that they look into criminal charges against the group and their donors. These are the same people who helped Barack Obama hide his connection to ACORN, a group that registers Cemetaries, Cartoion Characters, Marvel Superheroes, and any one else they can find, to vote Democrat.

They went after the Donors after they couldn't force TV Stations to stop airing the commercials.

This is the beginning of a long list of attacks on any and all who oppose them. Just look at Biden's claims that the Obama Campaign WILL look into charges against George Bush should they take the White House. I haven't been a big fan of Bush for a while now, for my own reasons, but the Iraq War was not one of them. I would never call on a President to be charged for crimes, real or imagined, that he might have committed while in the White House so long as they where the normal business of government.

It's one thign to lie under oath, it's another to do somethign the opposition party opposes. But Barack Obama and his fellow Chicagoland Thugs don't care. All they want to do is spill opposition blood and prevent any from raising a finger in dispute should they trample all over the US Constitution.

Palin: Lies Exposed

There are some lies out there about the woman I am going to be voting for for President either in 2012 or 2016 (the timing being up to John McCain). I felt like gathering all of them together and answering them all in one place, so that my friends, and others, can find them and refute them all in one place.

The Lie: Sarah Palin wants to force Creationism into the Classroom

Why it's Wrong: Sarah does not want to force schools to teach Creationism, she doesn't want teachers to shut down all debate on the issue if someone asks about it. By shutting down debate, you encourage people to go and look to the other side, and because they have not been taught about the problems with the theory, they cannot argue against it, and think it MUST be right because they cannot argue against it. While she might honestly believe in Creationism, she is right to encourage the debate. It is the lack of debate over the "Issue" that has lead people to believe that the Earth is only 6,000 years old and that God created it in Seven Days, and thus we need to debate it openly and honestly.

Proof of Claim: http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/sliming_palin.html

The Lie: Sarah Palin was a member of the Alaskan Independence Party

Why it's Wrong: The head of the AIP based this off some bad Paperwork, and has since said that it is totally inaccurate. He husband registered twice (however, due to his not putting himself out there to campaign, unlike two other spouses in this race, we will not touch that), She attended the Convention in 2006 (She was governor then, the most probable reason) and recorded a video greeting for this one (again, governor of the state).

Proof of Claim: http://donklephant.com/2008/09/09/debunking-palin-rumors/

The Lie: Sarah Palin fired a Librarian after she refused to Ban Books

Why it's Wrong: Sarah asked that Librarian a "What If?" question, in case books that where beyond the pale where published. As the Chief Executive of a city, the Mayor has the right to say "No, I don't want us to purchase that book." However, she didn't ban any books, and the Book List that has been published includes books that weren't even published yet.

Proof of Claims: http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/p/palin-banned-books.htm

The Lie: Sarah Palin slashed funding to a teen mother program

Why it's Wrong: According to their IRS forms, it was tripled.

Proof of Claims: http://www.guidestar.org/pqShowGsReport.do?partner=justgive&npoId=332976

The Lie: Sarah Palin lied about her Earmark Record

Why it's Wrong: Sarah requested aid from the Federal Government for Sewer Projects, Public Transportation, she was for the Bridge to Nowhere, until she saw how much it ACTUALLY cost, and then said No Thanks, she did ask for government funds from the Feds, but she did not go overboard the way many have, and seems (so far) to have only requested aid for what the state or city could not take care of themselves. Remember that one of those quoted in the below stories saying she sought earmarks is Ted Stevens, one of many Establishment Republicans who she tried to take down, and is currently under investigation for corruption.

Proof of Claims: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/washingtondc/la-na-earmarks1-2008sep01,0,6108885.story

The Lie: Palin and her Reverend think the Iraq War is God's Will

Why it's Wrong: If you look at the literal wording of what was said, they where praying for the safety of our soldiers, and prayign that this war does not go against God's Will. To quote Sarah Palin in a quote from the Huffington Post

"Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending (U.S. soldiers) out on a task that is from God," she exhorted the congregants. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."

Hmm, asking to do God's Will, and to make sure that our actions are God's Will. How is that controversial?

Proof of Claim: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/02/palins-church-may-have-sh_n_123205.html (please don't actually go there, I don't want that kind of publicity...)

There are more out there, and I will post them as they come. If you see any, post them in the comments and let me know, I will look them up and debunk them if there is anythign at all out there talkign about it.

Rally in KC: Cross Posted to Climate Heretic

Well, that was fun. I went to the John Knox village today to hear Sarah Palin, and her running Mate John McCain (wait, did I get that backward..?) It was a long road to get there, First, I had to deal with a car wreck on I-435 that had reduced five lanes to one, backing up TWO highways. All the while, the rain was coming down, badly.

Then, I forgot about the lack of progress on US-69 and the Flying Ramp onto I-435. Annoying really. Finally, after getting on 435, braving the Bermuda Triangle of KC, and crossing into Lee's Summit, I finally arrived in Lee's Summit for the Rally, only to find that the line was stretched around four blocks and two corners.

Tryign to find a parking spot, I saw sixteen Palin look-a-likes. Wow, talk about a Fashion Icon. Finally, I find a parking lot that wasn't charging ten dollar donations for parking, and pulled in. I hoofed it up to the line, where I watched it stretch around another two corners. Chances of Getting In: Low.

Waited in line with a group of women, bashing Obama, chatting politics, trying to figure out what the people behind us are gonna o abotu not being able to get in.

Then the Cops come by, looking things over, making sure no one is getting too rowdy. They told us about an overflow area, and we took off, dragging a couple dozen people with us. People where handing out anti-McCain propaganda, should have brought somethign to burn it, but nope, didn't think of it.

Arrived in Overflow area, Rock This Town playing, int he second row. The Overflow area got crowded quickly as line deserters joined us. So crowded, seven people have climbed a tree. Wow, that is crowded. Press isn't too bad, people still observing space. Not sure how long that will last when signs get passed out.

And here come the signs, and here comes the press. And here coems the rain, drizzling on us, but oh well, better to stay here and hear the speech than to leave to soon and not get to hear it, doubt Rush is gonna JIP the speech today, jsut a campaign rally.

The Secret Service have come out in numbers. Wow, three of them movign through the crowds, checking bags, wanding, making sure no one's got a gun.

There they are, McCain and Sarah. People are screaming for Sarah, and she is just looking a litle flabbergasted, and she thought she was popular in Alaska...

Pressing flesh with us, John McCain is coming our way, Sarah and her husband are going the other way. WooHoo!!! I shook hands with John McCain!

He's coming back, tiem to shout out, "United States Naval Academy." May not go there, but I still support them, one of the hrdest schools int eh country and all. He talked to me!!! Guess he thoguht I had attended the school or something, and he thanked me for my service. Sorry John, I am going Coast Guard, not Navy. Still awesome.

Sarah is taking the stage inside, crowd is copying us, too busy chanting her name to let her speak. We got ourselves a REAL rockstar on out ticket.

She's talkign about the War in Iraq, Iraq War Vets are cheerign her on, mentions her son and how she wants a good commander in chief for that, very well done Sarah, keep playing that card, it's one of your best, they can't say you don't have a personal stake in it.

Good line, too bad I didn't get it jotted down completely: Choose between those who pursue change for the sake of their careers and those who seek careers to brign about change. Well said Sarahcudda.

Talking abotu Tax Cuts now: "Our reforms worked and we took off." Talking about the Tax Cuts and their effect on the economy. Glad we got someone who knows first hand the effects of lowered taxes ont eh people and the economy. Gonna make it hard for Biden and Obama to hit McCain on that.

Oh wow, she put the Alaska State "Checkbook" online. I hope she does the same thing for the Federal Budget, more transparency is always a good thing.

Heh, hitting Obama for getting $1 Billion in Earmarks in 3 Years. $333 million a year or $912 thousand a day. Wow, that's a lot of wasted money. I am glad that Palin has cut $0.5 Billion in Earmarks in her own state.

Talking about their $40 Billion Natural Gas pipeline through Alaska and Canada to the Lower 48. Talking about Nuclear Energy, Alternative Fuels, Drill here drill now. Sounds like Pickens plan to me. Must be because he is across town today, and will probably hear about it. If Pickens backs her, could be a HUGE political coup.

Says that American energy, with American workers and American energy will bring security and an improved economy.

McCain's turn, got a bigger cheer inside than outside, must be because Sarah told us to cheer for him. (Sorry McCain, but it is the way it is...) Telling Washington and us that "Change is coming." Guess the Obama people can keep hoping for Change, while we actually do somethign about it.

Claims he is going to drain the swamp (Heh, funny considering that's what D.C. actually was before we built the capitol there) and take on Special Interests. Claims that Earmarks breed corruption. He's right there, rtoo bad he won't have Line Item Veto like Sarah did back home in Alaska...

More of the Pickens plan coming through. Talking about how we need to stop buying oil from overseas, and stop sending $700 Billion to nations that are not friendly (If not hostile in Iran's case) toward the United States. No argument there.

Talking about using Tax Cuts and Incentives to help grow business and create jobs. Smart man, that McCain. Crowd goes wild at that one, we like having out taxes cut.

McCain asks if he can give us some straight talk. Crowd goes into chant about straight talk, McCain asks if we rehearsed that. Gets some good laughs from that.

Straight talk is about Lowering Taxes, Growing Business, Shrinking Government, etc. Gets a huge cheer from the people. Again, we like it when the Government lets us have more of our money.

Opposses Public Healthcare, wants to help Insurance Companies create responsible, low cost insurance costs. That gets huge roar, thoguht I heard a joke abotu going to the DMV for Healthcare out here, got a bigger one.

Obama supporters across the street from us. 15 or so. They are chanting and carrying on, the McCain supporters leaving are heckling them. I let loose with a few "Our Momma beats Your Obama." Gets laughs from our side and some death glares from the other side. Next time I am gonna find a copy of Glenn Beck's "Obama National Anthem" to play as loud as I can against our opponents. Might find some other ones as well, that will be fun to play to drown out our opponents.