Real Americans Likely To Be Adversely Affected By Dems Health Care Bill

As Democrats keep the Senate in session for another weekend of debate on Reid substitute amendment to H.R. 3590 - their $2.5 trillion 2,074-page health care reform bill, many in Washington are looking at the debate as a horse race or political power story, forgetting that real Americans across the country will be adversely affected if this bill passes.

Yesterday, 57 Democrats voted to preserve $120 billion is cuts to Medicare Advantage in their health care bill.  Prior to that, the Senate voted 51-47 for an amendment from Sen. John Thune (R-SD) to strike the CLASS Act, a new entitlement in the Reid bill which some Democrats have called “a Ponzi scheme of the first order.” However, the amendment needed 60 votes for approval, so it was not approved.

Yesterday, The Washington Post ran a front-page story looking at Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s attempts to push through his health care bill. The story focused solely on process and Democrat vote-counting (and managed to not quote a single Republican). Indeed, the interest among many inside the Beltway, especially in the press has been on horse race issues, with little discussion of the impact the Democrats’ health care bills could have on Americans.

Fortunately, local news outlets have had a clearer perspective on what exactly is going on in Washington. After Democrats voted Thursday to preserve half a trillion dollars of Medicare cuts in their bill, local papers went straight to the point in their headlines: the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette wrote, “Measure To Undo Medicare Cuts Fails”; The Denver Post wrote,  “Senate Dems Defeat GOP Challenge To Medicare Cuts In Health Care Bill”; and the  Cincinnati Enquirer wrote, “Senate Votes To Keep Medicare Cuts In Health Bill.” In addition, The Miami Herald, the Detroit News, the Omaha World-Herald, the Grand Forks [ND] Herald, the Buffalo News, and The Oregonian all ran an AP story with the headline, “Medicare Cuts Stay In Senate’s Health Care Bill.”

In fact, no less than The New York Times reports from Caribou, Maine, “As they are across the nation, Medicare patients and nurses in this town in northern Maine are anxiously following the Congressional debate because its outcome could affect Medicare’s popular home health benefit in a big way. The legislation would reduce Medicare spending on home health services, a lifeline for homebound Medicare beneficiaries, which keeps them out of hospitals and nursing homes.” Indeed, The Times notes, “Under the legislation, home care would absorb a disproportionate share of the cuts. It currently accounts for 3.7% of the Medicare budget, but would absorb 10.2% of the savings squeezed from Medicare by the House bill and 9.4% of savings in the Senate bill, the Congressional Budget Office says.”

Lisa Harvey-McPherson, president of Eastern Maine Home Care, told the NYT, “Our staff are scared . . . but it’s our patients who will pay the price if Congress makes the cuts in home care.” And Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) added, “Deep cuts to home health care would be completely counterproductive to our efforts to control overall health care costs . . . Home care and hospice have consistently proven to be cost-effective and compassionate alternatives to institutional care.”

Democrats will have another opportunity today to show whether they are going to plow ahead with $42 billion in cuts to home health benefits when Sen. Mike Johanns (R-NE) offers a motion to return the bill to committee and strike those cuts. Americans would do well to note if Democrats again defend major cuts in a bill that polls continually show the country wants them to oppose.

While Republicans remain committed to real health care reform without the Federal Government taking over 1/6 of the American Economy, They remain shutout of any comprehensive discussion and on proposed amendments. On the Democrat side, most appear willing to sell out the medical profession and American Citizens. The question is the degree to which they are willing to go. Here are some of the recent comments regarding their positions on compromise: “Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), One Of The Leading Proponents Of The Public Insurance Option, Warned Friday Evening That He Is ‘Done’ Compromising With Moderates And Will Not Accept Any Further Changes To The Provision.”(“Sen. Brown: I’m ‘Done’ With Compromising On Public Option,” Roll Call, 12/4/09)

SEN. BLANCHE LINCOLN (D-AR): “I Don't Support A Public Option That Is Government Funded Or Government Run, And That Puts The Taxpayers At Risk In The Long Run.” (“Lincoln Talks Health Care, Public Option,” MSNBC’s “First Read,” 12/4/09)

LINCOLN: “If It's Government Run Or Government Funded, I'm Going To Have Some Tremendous Troubles With Being Able To Support Moving Forward On Something Like That.”(“Lincoln Expresses Reluctance On Health Care Bill,” The Associated Press, 10/27/09)

However, Lincoln appears willing to vote for the bill if she get her amendment to the Senate health-care bill approved that would reduce tax breaks on insurance company executives’ pay. In a statement issued by her office, Lincoln, D-Ark., said the plan would not dictate what a business pays an employee, but it would reduce the maximum amount that an insurance company can deduct from its taxes for compensating executives from $1 million annually per executive to $400,000.

SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (I-CT): “If The Public Option Plan Is In There … As A Matter Of Conscience, I Will Not Allow This Bill To Come To A Final Vote.” (“Obama Presses Senate To Act Quickly On Its Health Bill,” The New York Times, 11/9/09)

“Among Those In The Meeting Was Sen. Joe Lieberman, A Connecticut Independent, Who Has Said He Would Filibuster The Bill If A Government Option Was Included. He Left The Meeting Early And Said His Position Hadn't Altered. ‘Generally Speaking, I Didn't Hear Anything That Changes My Mind,’ Lieberman Said.” (“Dems Seeking Compromise On Public Insurance Option,” The Associated Press, 12/4/09)

SEN. MARY LANDRIEU (D-LA): “I Don't Favor A Government-Run National Public Option … I Could Be Open To Either A Fallback Or A Public Option That Plays On The Same Playing Field As Private Business....Something Like That I Could Maybe Consider If It Meant A Deal At The End." (“Democrats Pose Health Bill Hurdle,” The Wall Street Journal, 11/6/09)

SEN. BEN NELSON (D-NE): “I Don't Want A Big-Government, Washington-Run Operation That Would Undermine The ... Private Insurance That 200 Million Americans Now Have.” (“Senate Democrats At Odds Over Health Care Bill,” The Associated Press, 11/22/09)

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