Congress is debating legislation that would do essentially what
Mitt Romney did in Massachusetts: impose a health
insurance mandate, create a network of subsidies, and
micro-manage health insurance policies. Before legislators
take us down the same road, they should consider the
Massachusetts experience. Citizens there are not impressed
with RomneyCare.
In 2006, Massachusetts implemented its own statewide version of
health care reform and 32% of the state's voters consider that
reform a success. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey
of the Bay State finds that 36% consider the plan a failure and
another 32% are not sure.
Those figures have changed little over the past
two months.
Twenty percent (20%) now say that the state's reform effort has
made health care more affordable while 31% say just the
opposite. Thirty-nine percent (39%) believe it's had no impact
on prices and 11% are not sure.
Sixteen percent (16%) say the Massachusetts reform has improved
the quality of care in the state while 24% believe the quality
of health care in the state has gotten worse. Most, 51%, say
there has been no impact on the quality of care.
Should we spend trillions of dollars to do the same thing at the
national level? The answer should be obvious!
Whether people "believe" that health care is more expensive is so
irrelevant as to be laughable. Prices are prices, and what people
believe about them has almost nothing to do with reality.
B. Johnson| 11.28.09 @ 4:51PM
Hopefully, more Constitution-defending patriots will point out
the following about Romneycare versus Obamacare.
Given that the federal Constitution is silent about public
healthcare, the 10th A. automatically reserves government power
to regulate healthcare to the states, not the Oval Office and
Congress. In fact, the USSC has already decided that Congress has
no business regulating the medical practice.
So critiques of Romneycare aside, Romneycare is perfectly legal
under the Constitution while Obamacare isn't.
Amy| 11.29.09 @ 2:27AM
There is no Government-run health insurance company is
Massachusetts. That is what Pelosi and Obama want. How on earth
can you compare Romney's plan to Obama's and Pelosi's? The
problems with Massachusetts are mostly due to the overwhelmingly
liberal legislature and the current governor, Deval Patrick, who
has added so much cost to the program that it has become too
expensive - you cannot blame that on Romney. Not at all.
G Wentworth| 11.29.09 @ 8:10AM
Without Mitt Romney's health insurance, I would not be able to
work. 2 years ago I had a massive brain tumor and then an
infection and more. Today, because of Mitt Romney's health
insurance, I am back to work as a consultant (many companies are
going this way) and make a very good living. If I didn't have
this, I would have had to get medical insurance through a state
program for the poor (and tax payers would have paid it) since no
one would have covered me. And, best of all, I never had to
worrry. So, while theory is fun, reality is more important and
I'm back to being the contributing member of society I want to
be. Thank you Mitt Romney.
Richard Baker| 11.29.09 @ 9:44AM
Amy:
A distinction without a difference.
G wentworth:
Glad you're well. However, if the system goes bankrupt and dies
due to insolvency, what good is it? Throwing money down a hole is
still money down a hole.
Carl Sagan often said, “It strains credulity.” He said it
whenever he encountered a popular concept that millions believed
in with little or no proof. His implication was that many of our
belief systems were without reason, little more than faith, and
unsupportable by facts or observations. For example, space aliens
abducting millions of humans and breeding with us is a concept
that strains credulity, but one that is taken on faith by a large
portion of humanity.
The federal government is now clamoring to create a healthcare
mandate plagiarized from the Massachusetts work of fiction. At
time when even the Boston Globe is forced to report that costs
are increasing at annual rates well into the double digits, that
a couple of hundred thousand remain uninsured, and that the long
term viability of the program is in doubt without, surprise, tax
increases, it is hardly surprising that congress is ready to
clone the program. For your benefit, of course. And none of the
bad stuff evident in Massachusetts is going to happen nationally.
And Frankenstein’s experiment was a complete success too. Strains
credulity, indeed.
First of all, I wouldn't trust ANY bill punched out by the idiots
in congress today. Nor would I trust in the simple honesty of the
Communist, (pardon the shorthand), in the Whitehouse who would
sign the bills.
That's a hellof a note isn't it?
PS: Folks, I hope you will check out the new articles on American
Thinker today. Chilling!
Denver Todd| 11.30.09 @ 9:39AM
I surfed around the Massachusetts healthcare insurance website
and found that the insurance plans they offered were about twice
as expensive as what I am paying now.
The first problem is that we call it healthcare when in reality
its sickness care. If we approached it as sickness care then
people may start to assume some of the responsibility and
understand why the price is the price. Sickness care is expensive
and most of the time you become a long term client, that costs a
lot of money.
Michael Pelletier| 11.28.09 @ 4:35PM
Whether people "believe" that health care is more expensive is so irrelevant as to be laughable. Prices are prices, and what people believe about them has almost nothing to do with reality.
B. Johnson| 11.28.09 @ 4:51PM
Hopefully, more Constitution-defending patriots will point out the following about Romneycare versus Obamacare.
Given that the federal Constitution is silent about public healthcare, the 10th A. automatically reserves government power to regulate healthcare to the states, not the Oval Office and Congress. In fact, the USSC has already decided that Congress has no business regulating the medical practice.
“Direct control of medical practice in the states is obviously beyond the power of Congress.” --Linder v. United States, 1925. http://supreme.justia.com/us/268/5/case.html
So critiques of Romneycare aside, Romneycare is perfectly legal under the Constitution while Obamacare isn't.
Amy| 11.29.09 @ 2:27AM
There is no Government-run health insurance company is Massachusetts. That is what Pelosi and Obama want. How on earth can you compare Romney's plan to Obama's and Pelosi's? The problems with Massachusetts are mostly due to the overwhelmingly liberal legislature and the current governor, Deval Patrick, who has added so much cost to the program that it has become too expensive - you cannot blame that on Romney. Not at all.
G Wentworth| 11.29.09 @ 8:10AM
Without Mitt Romney's health insurance, I would not be able to work. 2 years ago I had a massive brain tumor and then an infection and more. Today, because of Mitt Romney's health insurance, I am back to work as a consultant (many companies are going this way) and make a very good living. If I didn't have this, I would have had to get medical insurance through a state program for the poor (and tax payers would have paid it) since no one would have covered me. And, best of all, I never had to worrry. So, while theory is fun, reality is more important and I'm back to being the contributing member of society I want to be. Thank you Mitt Romney.
Richard Baker| 11.29.09 @ 9:44AM
Amy:
A distinction without a difference.
G wentworth:
Glad you're well. However, if the system goes bankrupt and dies due to insolvency, what good is it? Throwing money down a hole is still money down a hole.
Lazy Jack| 11.29.09 @ 10:03AM
Carl Sagan often said, “It strains credulity.” He said it whenever he encountered a popular concept that millions believed in with little or no proof. His implication was that many of our belief systems were without reason, little more than faith, and unsupportable by facts or observations. For example, space aliens abducting millions of humans and breeding with us is a concept that strains credulity, but one that is taken on faith by a large portion of humanity.
The federal government is now clamoring to create a healthcare mandate plagiarized from the Massachusetts work of fiction. At time when even the Boston Globe is forced to report that costs are increasing at annual rates well into the double digits, that a couple of hundred thousand remain uninsured, and that the long term viability of the program is in doubt without, surprise, tax increases, it is hardly surprising that congress is ready to clone the program. For your benefit, of course. And none of the bad stuff evident in Massachusetts is going to happen nationally. And Frankenstein’s experiment was a complete success too. Strains credulity, indeed.
For more see:
http://www.cato.org/pubs/bp/bp112.pdf
http://thanksforthelaughs.word.....ealthcare/
Lazy Jack
Ken (Old Texican)| 11.29.09 @ 11:37AM
First of all, I wouldn't trust ANY bill punched out by the idiots in congress today. Nor would I trust in the simple honesty of the Communist, (pardon the shorthand), in the Whitehouse who would sign the bills.
That's a hellof a note isn't it?
PS: Folks, I hope you will check out the new articles on American Thinker today. Chilling!
Denver Todd| 11.30.09 @ 9:39AM
I surfed around the Massachusetts healthcare insurance website and found that the insurance plans they offered were about twice as expensive as what I am paying now.
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The first problem is that we call it healthcare when in reality its sickness care. If we approached it as sickness care then people may start to assume some of the responsibility and understand why the price is the price. Sickness care is expensive and most of the time you become a long term client, that costs a lot of money.
Darrell Smith| 8.25.10 @ 5:29PM
Thanks for the post! Health care has been such a big issue recently, it's interesting to see everyone's points of view.
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