The Public Policy
Wicked, Lazy Servants
The federal government should clean up its own Medicare mess before taking on the entire health care system.
The New Testament book of Matthew contains a well-known allegorical tale known as the “Parable of the Talents.” In this story, Jesus told of a man who entrusted his property to three servants while he was away. One servant was given five silver talents; another two; and a third one. The first two servants put that which their master had given them to good use, and doubled his money while he was away. The third servant, who had been given but one talent, buried the valuable quantity of silver to preserve it until his master returned, neither risking its safety nor putting it to good use while its owner was away.
Upon his return, the two servants who had taken that which he had entrusted them with and used it wisely during his absence presented their master with their earnings. He replied to each, “Well done, my good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.”
The third servant, who had merely protected that portion of his master’s wealth with which he had been entrusted, presented the single talent upon the man’s return. Seeing this, the master flew into a rage, chastising the “wicked, lazy servant” for allowing cowardice and irresponsibility to prevent his putting the master’s money to good use and ordering the servant to surrender his talent to the servant who had proved his resourcefulness and trustworthiness by doubling his master’s five talents.
The moral of this New Testament parable — be a good steward of a little and you will be trusted with more, but poor stewardship will lose you the privilege of being trusted with anything in the future — is recalled to mind by the federal government’s current attempt to take over the American health care system. The 33 years Medicare has been in existence have provided the federal government with an opportunity to demonstrate what type of steward its legislators and bureaucrats will be of a national health care program millions of Americans are trusting for their coverage and care.
“Medicare is… a government-run health care plan that people are very happy with,” said President Obama, at a late July town hall meeting in an effort to defend Medicare as a popular and successful example of government health care at its best.
A simple look at the numbers is enough to rebuff Obama’s claim that the program is an example of the federal government being a good steward of American health care dollars and coverage, while also serving to demonstrate the government’s inability to accurately predict the future costs of its programs (a very important fact to keep in mind in light of Congress’ claims that a health care overhaul can be undertaken without costing future generations trillions).
At its inception in 1966, Medicare carried an annual price tag of $3 billion. Its Congressional founders predicted that cost would rise to $12 billion a year by 1990 — a figure that accounted for inflation.
The true cost of Medicare is stunning. In 1990, rather than costing American taxpayers $12 billion, Medicare cost $107 billion — an increase of 800% over the government’s best guess at the program’s cost 23 years before. That cost has increased exponentially as the years have passed since 1990. This year, $484 billion will be spent on mandatory Medicare outlays; by 2018, that number will be $885.1 billion, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. The total amount owed Medicare beneficiaries (American workers who are at least 22 years old and who have paid into the system, meaning they are due Medicare coverage upon retirement) is a staggering $32.3 trillion — an amount over twice America’s GDP, and nearly five times the publicized national debt.
The fact that the federal government has allowed a key health coverage program with which it has been entrusted to fall over thirty trillion dollars in debt should send a powerful message about Washington’s ability (or, more correctly, inability) to be a good steward of Americans’ health care dollars and coverage.
Further, the fact that Congress has refused to do away with a law requiring seniors to enroll in Medicare or forfeit their Social Security benefits — a regulation that is currently being challenged in federal court by a group of plaintiffs led by former Republican Congressman Dick Armey — for fear of losing massive numbers of seniors to private health coverage serves to reinforce both the undesirability of the government-run program. It also demonstrates the federal government’s willingness, when given the opportunity, to force citizens onto the rolls of government care by denying them the opportunity to choose their coverage.
Medicare, the chief example of health care as run by the federal government, is an utter mess that is losing doctors, resorting to anti-choice laws to keep seniors enrolled, and hemorrhaging taxpayer dollars by the trillions. President Obama and his allies in the Democratic-led Congress should demonstrate their ability to be good stewards of the people’s health care dollars and coverage by fixing their own Medicare mess before they seek to expand their grip on America’s health care system as a whole.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (29) | Leave a comment
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Fed Up| 8.17.09 @ 7:11AM
Medicare has been fraught with corruption (like most government programs) almost from the day it was signed into law and we get National Health Care shoved down our throats and the powers to be claim they will eliminate Medicare corruption to pay for government run health care.
This and other good stories rate right up there with Frankenstiens Bride and Superman, they make good movies but lack substance and validity. Its simply make believe!
Pingback| 8.17.09 @ 8:06AM
http://jeffemanuel.net/2009/08/wicked-lazy-servants-government-should-clean-up-its-own-medicare-mess-before-asking-to-be-trusted-with-the-entire-health-care-system/ links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Aaron| 8.17.09 @ 9:15AM
All Americans could read this article and understand every word of it, but the problem is most revert to the state of a four year old putting the fingers in their ears yelling "yaw, yaw, yaw". No one wants to hear the truth! As long as I ignore it will go away and everyone will be happy. Gee, maybe some day we can all get food stamps and govt housing and no one will have to go to work.
Robert Rosencrans| 8.17.09 @ 9:33AM
The city of Washington, D.C. and it's suburbs are full of cynical corrupt bureaucrats, illegal aliens and lying scheming politicians. What more could a citizen desire?
ER| 8.17.09 @ 10:15AM
Massacre tout
richard szathmary| 8.17.09 @ 11:37AM
A contemporary version of this parable would have the first two servants investing their money with, respectively, Bernie Madoff and AIG. Because one promised such a fantastic rate of return and the other was such a solid company.
In such a business environment, the servant who merely squirreled his money away but by so doing at least kept its original value should be well praised by the master when he returns. But in reality he'd probably be chastised by Geithner and Obama for his lack of faith in governmental bailout efforts. Ah well...
Ken (Old Texican)| 8.17.09 @ 11:55AM
Hi Richard
I am an investee..........as opposed to an "investor" in these days.
A whole lot of people judged that we could build a viable long term growth company and invested in us.
We work very hard and very smart to realize profits for them...by serving our customers to the nth degree.
Yeah, we all need to squirrel away a little for a rainy day......BUT!
In these particular rainy days, I find it profitable to spend a little time here on Spectator to help the "ark" that holds us all...stay afloat while the communists strive to drive holes in our bottom.
Best regards
Michael Tomlinson| 8.17.09 @ 12:26PM
Finally, someone is using the mess that is Medicare (Medicaid is just as bad) to show how poorly the Federal government would manage a national health care plan. Obama can't terminate enough seniors or physically and mentally challenged people to make his "death care" affordable as long as Democrats and their bureaucratic minions run the program. Throw Democrat trial lawyers into the mix and in 10 years the CBO's $1 trillion dollars will be $3-$5 trillion.
To really bring down the cost of health care in the US DemocRAT trial lawyers need to be "castrated." We need TORT reform and not more bureaucratic micro-managing of America's health care.
Brian B| 8.17.09 @ 12:33PM
Mr. Emmanuel must have hit the worng key by mistake.
I believe we had this albatross around our neck for 44 years not 33.
--Medicaid is just as bad--
We would be fortunate if medicaid was only as bad as medicare; it's worse.
Brian B| 8.17.09 @ 12:35PM
Jeez.
Looks like I hit a couple of wrong keys myself.
**Emanuel** and **wrong**
Death Panel| 8.17.09 @ 12:41PM
We are not committed to action yet but the panel has come to the conclusion that liberals are not sustainable. Where can we send them where they will do a minimum amount of damage? Mexico (their people are totally screwed with their corrupt leadership and wouldn't notice these carpet baggers), the Galapagos (the islands are already filled with rare fauna that cannot survive elsewhere), Africa (since the colonial days they have already adopted all the schemes of our elites and again this group could not do much more damage), the Muslim world (they would find out what all their touchy feely silliness is worth and the Muslims would know what to do with them). Just ideas at this point.
terri| 8.17.09 @ 1:11PM
A rose by any other name?? Michael Tanner of the CATO Institute cautions that opponents of a government-run “public option” should not be fooled by this “compromise.” It’s suggested that these co-ops would be nonprofits, but many insurers are already classified as “nonprofit” companies–including “mutual” insurance companies and groups like Blue Cross. In addition, states already have the power to set up their own health care co-ops and a number already exist. So, if the “new co-ops” are to operate under the same rules as other nonprofit insurers, why bother? Supporters of government-run health care have no intention of letting the co-ops be independent enterprises. In fact, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) makes it clear, for example, that the co-op’s officers and directors would be appointed by the president and Congress. He insists that there be a single national co-op. And Congress would set the rules under which it operates. As Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) says, “It’s got to be written in a way that accomplishes the objectives of a public option.” If a “co-op” is run by the federal government under rules imposed by the federal government with funding provided by the federal government, that is government-run health insurance by another name. Also check the so called "" Stimulous Bill" death panels already installed and in place"" End run around OUR Constitutional Rights!!!! WAKE UP. They really think WE THE PEOPLE are "TUPID"
Bio-Viruses| 8.17.09 @ 3:33PM
Case about Bird Flu
Paypal donations for criminal charges against Baxter and WHO at jmburgermeister@gmail.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
« “Mass fatality management planning” gets top slot at the up-coming International Swine Flu ConferenceUpdate on the WHO plan for the take over of the USA from July 27th * Contact has been made to the German army to be involved in the FEMA/WHO take over of the USA from July 27th »The S. 666 Biological, Chemical, and Radiological Weapons Countermeasures Research Act, 2003, paved way for government funding of Baxter, Novartis and GSK in bioweapons research
By JB
Senate bill S. 666, the Biological, Chemical, and Radiological Weapons Countermeasures Research Act of 2003, gave incentives to private industry in the USA to conduct research into bioweapons, allegedly to fill gaps in the US biodefense procurement programs.
John Rockefeller was on a key Senate finance committee reviewing the bill which channelled amounts of government money into private biotechnology, pharmaceutical companies such as Baxter in order to develop bioweapons.
The Lieberman-Hatch bill S. 666 introduced incentives for companies to detect and weaponise viruses and also find “diagnostics” against viruses.
The Rockefeller family is also one of the biggest sponsors of WHO.
Also, Arlene Rockefeller, CFA, is an Executive Vice President of State Street Global Advisors and is the Global Equities CIO.
State Street Global Advisors is the largest institutional/mutual fund investment firms owning Baxter.
Baxter International Inc: Majority Institutional Ownership Ownership Information
MD in NC| 8.17.09 @ 6:17PM
Medicare is a giant Ponzi scheme. It's ridiculous. If you're over 65 and you worked long enough to pay FICA/Medicare taxes for 10 years you pay NOTHING for Medicare Part A (hospitalization) and you pay $96.40 per month for Part B (everything outpatient but drugs). Even though the average expenditure per Medicare enrollee is closer to $1000 per month, you pay only $96! The rest is paid for by everyone else's payroll taxes, including minimum wage workers or it's not paid for and is added to the budget deficit. All that in spite of the fact that those over 65 as a group are the wealthiest demographic. So you have poor people making minimum wage, middle income earners, and everyone else subsidizing millionaires over 65 who could pay for private coverage but are forbidden from doing so by Federal law! If any politician who holds up Medicare as an example of what a great job the government is doing was honest they'd have to start by admitting that it's just plain flawed.
And don't get me started on the fact that overall Medicare doesn't pay rates comparable to the private sector so that doctors and hospitals lose money or at best break even every time we treat a Medicare pt.
Texas Dar| 8.18.09 @ 8:37PM
If you put a Apple Pie on the window of congress to cool. You will find out very soon nobody will get a slise of pie.
Goverment has always found a way into the "Piggy-Bank" of somebody elses money.
How quick they forget to put it back. Much less, it wasent thier money "Pie" to take in the first place.
Check-It-Out ! "Kick Them All Out.Com" The Real Answer-2-Change in 2010.....................
If were stilll here........................ ?
prudence first| 8.22.09 @ 3:01PM
It seems to me that following policies like those of the first and second servants is what got us into the current financial mess. Some might even say that it sounds like a breach of fiduciary duty.
What about "putting three talents to good use and burying two talents", or "putting one talent to good use and burying one talent"?
One person's "good use" is another person's foolhardiness, or even "greach of fiduciary duty". After all, those who would put all the nation's economic power in the hands of the federal government consider that to be "good use" of our talents.
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