Obama and Sevelius (dumb and dumber)

[need4x4]

So today Sebelius (health and human services secretary) continued the obama lie and more lies show.

She wants health insurers to justify the premium increases on company web sites.

Nice. Does she not know the companies have to pre justify the rate increases with the insurance departments of the states?

Answer, yes she knows that.

These increases are justified because of the requirements the government puts on the insurers. It is simple math.

Hard for Obama and his people, but not hard for anyone else.

It's the government causing this problem Stupid!!!!!!!!!!!!

Obama experiment is going very badly.

Not to Sebelius, be careful, some writer from the new york times might actually use his/her brain and make you look stupid if you don't watch out. Oh, ya, that won't happen.

 

[NeMont]

Need4x,

Sec. Sebelius is a former Insurance Commissioner and is pretty up to date on her insurance knowledge. I attended an industry get together where she was the keynote speaker. She does know what she is talking about. At least she spoke and understood the insurance language. She also took on BCBS of KS and defeated their attempt to merge and become a for profit entity so she know how to win a fight.

Also not every state requires that rates need to be justified. In fact most states are called file and use states not file and approve states.

While I don't agree that a federal rate commission will reduce rates or hold them down saying she is stupid is not a very accurate reading of her and her talents. One thing guaranteed she is not stupid.

Nemont

 

[Forthewall]

What a typical Lib response Nemont! Everyone knows that Sebelius is a part of the Obama Admin, as such she is horribly unqualified to be the Sec. of Health & Human Services. (dumb and dumber)

Unlike Michael Steele, Sebelius was a choice of simple political expediency, not talent. This was a political tactics played by Obama and Axlerod to stack D.C. with women to steal votes away from Palin in 2012. Stupid Sebelius knows that ALL the insurance companies already must justify rate increases with the states. Now she wants them to state the reasons to the public, TO THE PUBLIC..."REASONS"!

If privately owned Insurance companies raise rates and make more profit for shareholders, legally, why should I care? Might as well live in Russia or China, this is just more BIG government interfering in the private market. Here's a justification for ya madame Sec., "Because we want to make more PROFIT off your health". How's that for ya Czar Sebelius?

Look, what is it that she doesn't get? The 1,000 Health Insurance Execs make up the top 2% of wage earners in our country and pay the most in taxes. If those Execs don't make money, we actually lose money as Taxpayers and the luxury economy suffers. Who really thinks these Execs enjoy multi-million dollar bonuses anyways? They only do it as a way to give back to the federal government.

If Health Insurance companies spend .30 cents or even .50 cents on the dollar for things other than health care like bonuses, vacation houses, private jets, luxuries resort hotels for executive conferences, or lobbying it's only stimulates the economy. Bottom line, all that matters is that shareholders make money.

Health Insurance companies should be commended for loving America and recently investing back into the economy. They currently have assigned 3,000 lobbyists to defeat the Health Care Bill. Between all the 5-Star restaurants, limos, hotel rooms, air flights, hookers, suits, and giveaways along with millions in targeted television advertising. Insurance Companies have stimulated the economy to the tune of $800 million dollars in 2009 alone. Tell me that's Unamerican!

So Sebsillious was the Keynote Speaker, big deal, anyone can read off a teleprompter ..did you make sure to check her hands for crib notes?

I looked up "Sebelius" at wikiword and it says, A Greek word meaning: A woman who drools; a village idiot; or a woman that is guaranteed to be totally stupid about insurance.

I think we need to just get rid of the Dept. of Health and Human Services all together. Throw the bums out! Sarah Rocks in 2012 Dontchya know!

 

[piper]

The real question is, did need4x4 come up with this all by himself, or was he relaying a rant by Limbaugh,Beck or maybe Hannity? Come on, tell us where did it come from, and what else comes from that place?

 

[NeMont]

Well I don't know about all of that, what I do know is that she is not stupid.

I disagree that health insurance companies have 30% or 50% loss ratios. I wish that were true, if that were true every self funded plan in the entire country would be running massive surpluses. They are not, most self funded plans, ie those plans that only use Third Party Administrators and do not have a profit motive are also seeing double digit increases. It is not just Wellpoint out in California.

I think we all agree that we need health care reform. The problem is that with a complete lack of Republican participation the bill is written to satisfy every democrats wish, regardless of how crazy or how trivial. The other problem is that this bill will most likely pass but guess when the first baby step of reform will start? 2014 so any Democrat voting for it will have this hung around their necks like a noose in the 2010 and 2012 elections.

The Republicans could have made the bill a good bill but they chose to usher in a boycott. We will see who wins the politics of it but the American people come out losers either way.

Nemont

 

[Forthewall]

I thought I would add a little levity, guess that failed.

Must still be cold over there, Spring is coming!

We lost a long time ago. The best solutions to this crisis were met with cries of socialism and fear. Partisanship and rhetoric have seized the day as we witness the largest lobbying effort ever put forth by an industry. While one political party holds an obstructionist Waterloo agenda, the other has compromised the intentions of the Bill. Too bad were such defeatists, I would of thought we could have designed a better system than Canada.

 

[need4x4]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-07-10 AT 12:23PM (MST)[p]She looks stupid spinning her request for justification on web sites.

The point Piper, as can be seen from reading and comprehending is the Government via all the requirements it puts on the insurance plans, is the main driver of cost increases.

Then, when an increase comes, the government blames the regulated!!!

Your post piper, puts forth nothing regarding the topic.

What type of filing is required in California???????

Nemont, please take a breath. How anyone can blame the bill on the Republicans is well (discribed best by words not allowed here), they were shut out of the process by three people who are deviod of reality.

This experiment is going very poorly.

 

[piper]

I don't think Sevelius looks dumb at all, maybe its the web sites your visiting? and I don't believe that regulation of insurance companys is the main driver behind out of control health care costs, not even close.

 

[NeMont]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-07-10 AT 02:10PM (MST)[p]Need4x4,

I don't know that I place all the blame on Republicans. It is a fact that in the Senate they could have fashioned the bill that would have been at least 50% to their liking. That is the old half a loaf idea.

The problem is that by one side writing and passing the a major piece of legislation dealing with such a broad issue with just one sides input is that you get a crappy bill from a crappy process.

I don't love that the democrats approach but health care has to be dealt with whether or not the Republicans decided to participate or not. I don't like that the democrats blame everything on the insurance companies. It is not a pure insurance problem.

To believe that Republican participation in the crafting of Health Care reform was frozen out is untrue. It was true in the House but in the House it is run by the Speaker. That is why the Speaker of the House is such a powerful position, they write the rules of how the House operates. In the Senate there is a whole different story. 5 or less Republicans senators could have written enough of the bill to make it acceptable to the Republican base. It is not just Democrats losing their health insurance or being priced out of the market. Every one of those Senators have constituents who are squeezed by either the cost of care or lack of access or both.

I don't believe they even needed to abandon their principles of smaller government or reduced spending to get a Health Care bill through that would have helped all Americans including the Republican base. Instead we have 18% of the American economy about to be completely changed by a 100% Democrat written and passed bill. I don't know about you but I would have liked some Conservative input on a bill of this nature. Unless you believe that Health Care in this country is working great for everyone.

Nemont

 

[NeMont]

FTW,

We have had a very long and cold and gloomy winter. In February it never once got above freezing (only the 2nd time that has occured since records have been kept) and we had fog on 24 of 28 days. 97 straight days and counting of snow on the ground. Thank god for ice fishing or I would be stir crazy.

Nemont

 

[need4x4]

LAST EDITED ON Mar-07-10 AT 04:28PM (MST)[p]Are you sure the Republicans decided not to participate.

That is crazy.

Read the bill.

They weren't allowed to participate, except for the show obama put on the other day. And that was a farce, even liberals agreed about that.

Obama's double talk and lies are now so over used that even the dems don't believe a word he says.

 

[need4x4]

Piper, do you think that gasoline prices are constructed from regulatory costs?

This would be either yes or no.

 

[piper]

Im not sure what your calling regulatory costs, environmental regs? taxes? I don't think the big spike in fuel costs that occured several years ago were due to regulatory costs, If they were, inlighten me please. I know the higher cost of diesel was because of more recent refinery regulations. Are you saying there shouldn't be regulations?

 

[440sixpack]

The democrats blame the insurance companies, the republicans blame the democrats. everyone wants somebody to blame but nobody wants to talk about the real issue and that's the cost of health care. we have the highest cost in the world, that seems like an issue worth looking at to me. so in the end we'll have somebody to blame and no fix for our debacle , just like a reality show ,if it wasn't so serious it would be comical.

 

[NeMont]

Need4x4,

So you are saying that every committee chairman in the Senate takes his marching orders from the White House? I don't buy that one for a moment.

In the House absolutely the Republicans were froze out of the process because of the way the House operates. Republicans did the exact same thing when they were in the majority in the House.

In the Senate it is a far different process. Now I do think the Democrats in general and the White House in particular missed the mood of the country. I think there was a sense that they didn't need any Republicans on board so perhaps they didn't let them play but a good Republican leader could have embarassed the Democrats at every turn if they had been dishonest in their dealings. In the clubby world of the Senate there was more room to work together, it is the upper house, the House of Lords where the real work gets done.

To say Republicans were froze out of this is to believe the tripe that the Republican leadership is feeding you. They did not want to participate in any meaningful helpful way.

Are you saying Health Care in this country is not a pressing issue?

Nemont

 

[gleninaz]

It is a very pressing issue but no one on either side has the balls to sit down and address limitations on Medicare, the impact of treating 20 million illegals in ER, waste caused by defensive medicine or a free market approach to competition for health and pharma companies. California had $1.5 billion in unfunded cost for illegal immigrant healthcare in 2007 and Texas was $1.3 billion. Has to add up to a significant part of the premium increases. I don't see either party willing to take an honest approach to healthcare. Try means testing for Medicare and any other entitlement and see how many people show up at the meeting.

 

[440sixpack]

You're right, and you're arguing with yourself now.

Obama and the dems crafted a bad bill, the republicans siezed on it as a political opportunity and so now we're either going to end up with a bad bill or no bill. Obama's biggest mistake of all was pushing this as far as he has, if he wins he's going to get hammered on because it's a bad bill, if he loses he's a loser, it's a no win situation and that's what the republicans have worker and not worked to achieve.

In the end it's us who lose just as Buffet implied, too bad we're so stupid we accept incompetence from the dems and partisan political wrangling from the repubicans as what we call leadership. we deserve what we're getting.

 

[piper]

Gleninaz- Why is it so hard to get?. There is no silver bullet on the right wing free market approach to health care. No or limited competition means capitalism doesn't work for the vast majority, it only works for those that make out the bills. There is no incentive to lower costs in the current system, got a cost problem? want more profit? make out a bigger bill. Thats how it works. Crossing state lines, capping law suits, bla bla, its all hogwash. Capitalism is great, but as far as health care goes, because of many reasons its not working well. Get rid of all laws regarding drugs and doctors and prescriptions, get the government completely out, no medicare, no nothing, to heck with communicable diseases, no military insurance, no laws regulating insurance, no nothing, that might work better, but do you think its going to happen? other than that we probably should join the rest of the world and thereby start to become a competitive country, fix the mess , because it might be too late soon. How does the unfunded health care costs on illegals compare with the total 2400 billion dollar health care costs of this country? I hate what goes on also, but be honest, fixing that problem, is like holding a dixie cup under a broken sewer main.

 

[NeMont]

why is competition so limited?

 

[piper]

Your better qualified to answer that than I. I remember Ronald Reagan used to say that government was inherently inefficient because there was no competetion, I think health care is similar. I guess we just don't shop for health care like other things. Maybe if we could get Walmart to take over health care and have insurance just for catastrophic problems? but there is still the indigent population to deal with.