The American Spectator : Behind the 8 Million Ball

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Behind the 8 Million Ball

By Peter Ferrara on 2.4.09 @ 6:07AM

With or without Tom Daschle, Congress has some dictatorial health-care reform plans in play, all designed to force everyone else to cover 8 million uninsured Americans who are already covered.

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We already spend roughly $400 billion per year on health care for the poor through Medicaid, and its costs are projected to go through the roof in the future. Block grant these program back to the states through fixed finite grants that don't increase when the states spend more. Let the states use this money more effectively to aid the poor in obtaining health insurance coverage. As a nation, we can budget more for this if necessary.

Let the states use some of these funds for uninsurable risk pools, which would provide coverage without any exclusion for preexisting conditions for the small number who are too sick to get private coverage any longer. Charge for this coverage stiff premiums to each applicant to the extent he or she can reasonably pay them, but no more. These reforms create a safety net that will assure essential health care for everyone. Notice this is accomplished without any coercive mandates of any kind. No requirement to buy an expensive government policy, no dictation to insurance companies on what to cover, no dictates to doctors and hospitals as to what care they can provide, no new taxes for workers or employers.

But that is why the new Washington powermongers are not interested. They want the power to run health care, in their own vision. These people are dangerous.

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topics:
Health Care, Congress

About the Author

Peter Ferrara is Senior Fellow at the Carleson Center for Public Policy, Director of Entitlement and Budget Policy for the Heartland Institute, and General Counsel of the American Civil Rights Union. He served in the White House Office of Policy Development under President Reagan, and as Associate Deputy Attorney General of the United States under the first President Bush. He is the author of America’s Ticking Bankruptcy Bomb, now available from HarperCollins.

Letter to the Editor View all comments (10) | Leave a comment

JJ JR| 2.4.09 @ 11:01AM

Y'all,

Cross this Gov't health care vector, superbly chronicled by Peter in this article, with our failure to control illegal immigration--both of which are devised by the left to build their political power--and we have I believe the end of the era of American Exceptionalism and the vibrant, free respresentative republic we all know.

Yes Peter--I see the fascism!

Deane Waldman, MD MBA| 2.4.09 @ 2:18PM

Yes, clearly a bad choice but ALL decisions using the current system will be/are flawed. We need a new system and new way to look at healthcare (as investment not cost item). We must stop trying to "fix" healthcare by addressing only the financing. See website www.theystemMD.com. To CURE (not palliate or anesthetize) healthcare we need a nat'l dialogue followed by a plebiscite to create a consensus for a totally new system. Medicine as changed radically since 1890 but the system has not. Therefore, radical change is indicated and it cannot be imposed from above.

Len| 2.4.09 @ 2:45PM

A Fatal Flaw in this article; The real issue here is that it IS ALL ILLEGAL..YES!!..ILLEGAL. There is no absolutely no authority given by the CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA for any of these actions. If people would stop thinking in the narrative they've been trained to think in and actually read the Constitution they would see that Article 1, Section 8 is very narrow in scope and certainly gives Congress no power to force people into "positive" life choices,nor to force PRIVATE entities to provide for others, and most certainly no authority to take upon itself the responsibility to care for one person at the expense of another. These are criminal actions that should be prosecuted or a la 1775-1776 revolted against.

Dustoff| 2.4.09 @ 3:28PM

Let's see in today's news and man in Japan dies as medics rush him to 14 different hospitals when none of them could take care of him. He bled to death.
England has it's medic units sit outside hospitals with hurt people in them because they can't go higher then the system allows the hospitals to take in. As a retired Fire/Medic this makes me sick and you fools want government run healthcare.

Luonne Dumak| 2.4.09 @ 6:09PM

There is very good book by Dr. David Gratzer called The Cure. There are many ways to begin changing Health care. First allow health insurance to be sold across state lines. Now Health Ins. is very highly regulated. You should beable to purchase insurance at the lowest cost to you. Next Stop the Goverment from mandating what Insurers must insure. Let there be a cafeteria style for buying Insurances. Young people should be able a high detuctible plan. Next start letting people know the cost of tests and procedures so they can compare different Hospitals and clinics. Most important is Tort reform, its has been proven that bogus and unnecesary law suits add at least 10% to the cost of medicne. Dr.s make people go throught many unnessary tests to avoid law suits. There are more things that can be done I'm sure but those are a few ideas. There are to Medical procedures that have gone down in price over the years, eye sugery and plastic sugery. These are not covered by insurance and are more competitive. in the market place.

Jeremiah| 2.4.09 @ 7:28PM

Ferrara's numbers on the numbers of uninsured are entirely false.

The number of uninsured CITIZENS is over 40 million.

Most of the uninsured WORK, but they work at jobs that don't offer insurance.

This is a sick, stupid, weak, costly, and foolish way to do things.

Do the uninsured get sick? Oh, yes. Do they see doctors? You bet. How? They go to emergency rooms, the most expensive way to deliver health care. Who pays? You do.

Be smart people.

Claire Solt PhD| 2.4.09 @ 11:37PM

It is a misnomer to call American medicine a system. It is free enterprise of indep;endent businesses. This is the best way to insure that competition keep;s costs down and introduces innovations.
Can the government which can't implement computers in its agencies design and implement a system? I read that they haven't been able to make medical records work at the VA. So, let's go ahead and spend $24B to spread it nationwide.

People should really take a close look at how the government does with the programs it has. There are lots of problems.

Steve L| 2.6.09 @ 11:30AM

Peter, in light of the markets' performance of late, can you please comment on your previous position (while part of the Advisory Council on Social Security) that Social Security funds should be invested in part in the stock market? Do you still advocate that position or have you rethought it?

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