Fred Thompson: Romneycare At A Glance

Upper Cumberland Daily News ^ | 120607

[Fred]

Fred Thompson Release:

- This is Romney's health care plan of which he claims authorship and credit. - The plan guarantees Planned Parenthood a seat at the decision-making table. - The plan provides taxpayer-funded abortions for a copay of $50. - The plan penalizes individuals not buying health insurance coverage and small businesses not offering health insurance to their employees.

Romney Is Quick To Take Credit For Massachusetts' Health Care Plan

- "I love it. It's a fabulous program." (GOP Primary Debate, Reagan Library, Simi Valley, CA, MSNBC, 5/3/2007) - "But I helped write it and I knew it well..." (GOP Primary Debate, Reagan Library, Simi Valley, CA, MSNBC, 5/3/2007)

KEY ASPECTS OF ROMNEY'S MASSACHUSETTS HEALTH CARE PLAN...

(1) Guarantees Planned Parenthood A Seat At The Table. Romney's legislation created an advisory board and guarantees, by law, that Planned Parenthood has a seat at the table. Romney's plan established a MassHealth payment policy advisory board, and one member of the Board must be from Planned Parenthood. No pro-life organization is represented. (Chapter 58 Section 3 (q) Section 16M (a), http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/seslaw06/sl060058.htm )

(2) Provides Taxpayer-Funded Abortions . Abortions are covered in the Commonwealth Care program that Romney created as Governor. Under the program, abortions are available for a copay of $50. (Menu of Health Care Services: http://www.mass.gov/Qhic/docs/cc_benefits1220_pt234.pdf )

- Romney used his line-item veto authority to strike eight sections of the bill that he found objectionable, including the expansion of dental benefits to Medicaid recipients. Yet, he did not strike Planned Parenthood's guaranteed Board representation and he did nothing to prohibit taxpayer-funded abortions as part of his plan. ("Romney's Health Care Vetoes," Associated Press, 4/12/06)

(3) Punitive Toward Small Businesses. Small Businesses are fined $295-per-employee if they do not provide health insurance coverage to employees. (Steve LeBlanc, "Mass Lawmakers Ok Mandatory Health Bill," Associated Press, 4/5/06)

(4) Punitive Toward Individuals. Individuals not obtaining health insurance coverage lose their personal state tax exemption in 2007, which will cost them an estimated $219 in higher taxes. In 2008, uncovered individuals are assessed a fine equal to 50-percent of the cost of a standard insurance policy, which could be as much as $2,000. (Michael Tanner, "No Miracle In Massachusetts," Cato Institute, 6/6/06; Steve LeBlanc, "Timing Of Health Care Law's Penalties Could Pose Risk For Romney, MA," Associated Press, 11/9/07; William C. Symonds, "In Massachusetts, Health Care for All?" Business Week, 4/4/06 )

[big'ol_freeper]

You are telling me I should be ashamed when you support a candidate who has facilitated the slaughter of innocent human beings throughout his political career? You need to go look in the mirror and see who should be ashamed because it ain't me!!

U.S. Army Retired

[seekthetruth]

Just in case anyone missed this interview! GO FRED!
http://fredfile.fred08.com/blog/2008/video-fred-thompson-on-fox-news-010608/

[ChessExpert]

This seems like a legitimate shot at Romney. But could Romney really dictate all aspects of legislation while Governor of Massachusetts? I’m going to reserve judgment on this until I see a more complete and balanced discussion. Post 70 in interesting.

[Diogenesis]

RomneyCARE=Socialized Medicine which will cost Massachusetts at least $146 MILLION
(some estimates as high as $650 MILLION) the first year,
also causing Massachusetts health insurers to have projected
increased health premium increases of at least 8 to 18+ percent the first year.

No wonder Romney did not allow a vote by the citizens.

[Colofornian]

So in your world, any slug who refuses to get insurance and then has say, a heart attack, will go the emergency ward and get the treatment becuase he cannot be denied under the law. And guess who's going to pay for that treatment. You and your fellow taxpayers.

Romney's already on record as saying that only 7% of MA citizens were uninsured. In yesterday's debate, Romney furthermore said that 1/4th of these (of the 7%) already were earning $75,000 a year. So first of all, some of these "slugs" you reference are wealthy "slugs."

I would say that another 3% of the MA population (who were uninsured) are probably in the $35,000 to $75,000 range & could also have probably afforded at least a scaled-down form of insurance...which would leave just over 2% of the MA population who couldn't actually afford insurance.

So, here we have such draconian mandates for many beyond the 2% all to cover just over 2% of the population.

[GeorgiaDawg]

Fred better get in gear or he is toast.

[big'ol_freeper]

I'm going to reserver judgement on this until I see a more complete and balanced discussion

Huh. Mitt...is that you?

U.S. Army Retired

[Bob]

But could Romney really dictate all aspects of legislation while Governor of Massachusetts?

He could have, at a minimum, line-item vetoed the requirement for a Planned Parenthood rep to be on the health board. He didn't.

[The Pack Knight]

I'd heard of most of this, but the following is something I hadn't noticed before.

Small Businesses are fined $295-per-employee if they do not provide health insurance coverage to employees.

That's exactly what we need. More Americans need to be dependent upon their employers for more of their basic necessities. I think small businesses should be fined for not feeding and clothing their employees, too. Maybe we should encourage businesses to set up company towns, mint their own money, and force their employees to buy everything from the company store while we're at it.

It's incredible that an alleged businessman and champion of free enterprise came up with this excrement.

[Reagan Man]

Before folks had health insurance, if you went to the hospital and incurred charges, you owed the hospital a payment for services rendered. If you didn't pay the bill, the hospital would send a collection agent after you, or in some cases they would take you to court and sue you. That is still how things are handled today for Americans without health insurance.

The current policy of government intervention into the health care business has removed that standard old fashioned approach. Bottom line. Government has no business in the health care business. Period.

[Prophet in the wilderness]

But, his supporters will say " stop attacking Mitt, he's so accomplished with great hair, he so conservative .. " BS.
Mitt can't be trusted.

[Petronski]

Subversive? No.

Affordable? Maybe.

[NavVet]

Standby for the Romneybots to rally to the defense of this Mitt’s version of Hillary Care.

[cva66snipe]

And TennCare would have gone broke years earlier and everyone, including the children would have been unfunded.

IT WAS FEDERAL DOLLARS what part do you not yet understand? As for the children? The only obligation should have been to children of deceased or disabled workers. If it had went broke then that would have resolved a lot of issues. Here is what you do not understand. It was more or less Universal Health Care. It was a dumping programs so big name insurers would not have to take persons with such things as Hypertension. Now you explain this to me I'm all ears. How come when I became disabled and lost my employer's coverage I was turned down for coverage? Under Medicaid I would have been covered. I got on it not because of my disability but because of Hypertension. You're from Cali and know very little about Tennscares history and the corruption it brought. You don't know about the doctors in this state being blackmailed by a Big Name insurer to either sign on or loose their business in the private sector.

Now then if it was simply a matter of a state issue then why pray tell did he have to go to Washington DC for funding and waivers?

[fieldmarshaldj]

My point is that ultimately the blame rested with the Governor. If Fred had been and done squat, then you’d have reason to saddle him with it. It is state officials that deal with state policy, not federal (even if there was ultimately some overlap here). He wasn’t about to start a civil war with Scumquist.

[Signalman]

Out here in CA, we have lots (thousands, millions?) of uninsured individuals who use Public Hospitals to take care of them because they have no other place to go. The Public Hospitals must treat them. And the taxpayers pay the bill.

So one way or another, those of us who have private insurance pay for those who don’t.

[big'ol_freeper]

See #71. You would have to be a sick puppy to support someone who has furthered the Culture of Death throughout his political career. There's a bottom line for you.

U.S. Army Retired

[fieldmarshaldj]

Thank you, you explained that far better.

[NavVet]

First of all “nothing” is much much preferable to imposing socialized medicine.

Second of all, everyone I know has coverage and if they are really too poor and don’t have it through work, they are covered by medicade. (Another bloated beuacracy, we don’t need to supplament with another). Mitt and Hillary want to penalize us all based on this made up 47 million uninsured figure.

And third, Fred and many other conservatives advocate market based solutions that will address the underlying problems of overpriced health care. It is the govt. mandated third party payer system that has caused prices to sky rocket. Just look at those procedures that aren’t covered by insurance, the prices for things like laser eye surgery and lypo has actually went down over the last decade.

[Colofornian]

This seems like a legitimate shot at Romney. But could Romney really dictate all aspects of legislation while Governor of Massachusetts? I’m going to reserve judgment on this until I see a more complete and balanced discussion. Post 70 in interesting.

OK, there's two components here: (1) the $50 abortion subsidy; (2) A Planned Parenthood League rep included as a permanent member of the "payment policy advisory board." On this post, I'll just address documentation for the second point:

April 12, 2006--Mitt signs his "Commonwealth Care" into existence, thereby expanding abortion access for poor women. As governor, Romney could exercise veto power to portions of Commonwealth Care. Did Romney exercise this power? (Yes, he vetoed Sections 5, 27, 29, 47, 112, 113, 134 & 137). What prominent section dealing with Planned Parenthood as part of the "payment policy advisory board" did Romney choose NOT to veto? (Section 3) That section mandates that one member of MassHealth Payment Policy Board must be appointed by Planned Parenthood League of MA. (See chapter 58 of the Acts of 2006, section 3 for details).