Criticism of ObamaCare

Why do most of us have insurance? My answer is quite simple - to cover my back. Since this is a blog, I better do a little better than that.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Insurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for a premium, and can be thought of as a guaranteed and known small loss to prevent a large, possibly devastating loss. An insurer is a company selling the insurance; an insured or policyholder is the person or entity buying the insurance. The insurance rate is a factor used to determine the amount to be charged for a certain amount of insurance coverage, called the premium. Risk management, the practice of appraising and controlling risk, has evolved as a discrete field of study and practice.

http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/insurance:

A contract whereby, for specified consideration, one party undertakes to compensate the other for a loss relating to a particular subject as a result of the occurrence of designated hazards.

In an insurance contract, one party, the insured, pays a specified amount of money, called a premium, to another party, the insurer. The insurer, in turn, agrees to compensate the insured for specific future losses. The losses covered are listed in the contract, and the contract is called a policy.

Bureaucrats muzzle criticism of Obamacare
Examiner Editorial
September 28, 2009

Something quite disturbing is happening in the nation's capital. Bureaucrats in one of the federal government's biggest departments have issued a gag order against what they deem to be unfair criticism of President Obama's health care reform proposals. Not only are these bureaucrats making a mockery of the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech, they are also denying information that millions of elderly Americans have a right to receive.

Here's the situation: Earlier this month, officials with the Louisville, Ky.-based Humana Corp. sent a one-page letter to all of its policyholders who participate in the Medicare Advantage program. The letter was entirely factual and pointed out, among other things, that because of cuts proposed under Obamacare, "millions of seniors and disabled individuals could lose many of the important benefits and services that make Medicare Advantage health plans so valuable."

The Humana letter angered Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., who is the principal author of the Senate version of Obamacare, which indeed includes hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of "savings" that are supposed to be achieved by eliminating waste and fraud in the Medicare Advantage program. When Washington politicians talk about saving money by cutting waste and fraud, hang on to your wallets. It's their way of saying higher taxes are coming.

To make sure Americans don't see through this smoke-and-mirror act, and to stay in the good graces of Baucus, the bureaucrats at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which manages Medicare, ordered Humana and all other private companies participating in the Medicare Advantage program "to end immediately all such mailings to beneficiaries and to remove any related materials directed to Medicare enrollees from your website." They also added this blunt warning: "Please be advised that we take this matter very seriously and, based upon the findings of our investigation, will pursue compliance and enforcement actions. ..."

There is no doubt that any speech about Obamacare by private citizens or companies -- including false speech, according to federal courts -- is protected under the First Amendment. Yet here we see the full power of the federal government being used to crush what some bureaucrats and an angry senator deem as "bad" speech. As Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said: "This episode should be of serious concern to millions of seniors on Medicare who deserve to know what the government has in mind for their health care. But it should also frighten anyone who cherishes their First Amendment right to free speech -- whether in Louisville, Helena, San Francisco or anywhere else."

Senate Republicans say no Obama appointees with pending confirmations will go forward until the gag order is reversed. Finally, some backbone on the right side of "the world's greatest deliberative body."

UPDATE: Baucus title corrected
This editorial originally incorrectly identified Sen. Baucus as chairman of the Senate HELP committee. The Examiner regrets the error.
Reported by the Washington Examiner

I don't mind admitting that I'm a bit lost. From what I hear, our president and most of congress is passing legistration (right now, I might add) so we can all have health care coverage or health insurance. Humana is doing their job by informing their customers important information about their medical coverage. Is our government afraid to tell the citizens of this great nation the truth? Are they ashamed of what their legistration is going to do to senior citizens, such as lose their coverage? Is this the way the government will run it's Health Care Program?

Another thing. I never heard this story on national news, nor read about this in our daily paper. WHY?

Personally, I don't have Humana Insurance, however after reading this editorial, I would certainly consider changing companies. It seems to me that Humana is doing exactly what we would expect our provider to do - look out for our best interest and cover our backs.

This sounds very scary to me and there's no better time to take charge of your own health care. Please visit my website and consider some different options for good health. http://www.ashnow.com/999751



Jackie Whalen
ash_now@yahoo.com
http://www.ashnow.com/999751
DISCLAIMER: This information is for educational purposes only, and not intended to replace the orthodox physician-patient relationship. If you are sick, you are advised to consult a physician, and together, along with your newly gained knowledge, work toward the resolution of your illness.