Posted on 09/26/2012 9:16:09 AM PDT by ConjunctionJunction
WE need death panels.
Well, maybe not death panels, exactly, but unless we start allocating health care resources more prudently — rationing, by its proper name — the exploding cost of Medicare will swamp the federal budget.
But in the pantheon of toxic issues — the famous “third rails” of American politics — none stands taller than overtly acknowledging that elderly Americans are not entitled to every conceivable medical procedure or pharmaceutical.
Most notably, President Obama’s estimable Affordable Care Act regrettably includes severe restrictions on any reduction in Medicare services or increase in fees to beneficiaries. In 2009, Sarah Palin’s rant about death panels even forced elimination from the bill of a provision to offer end-of-life consultations.
Now, three years on, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, Paul D. Ryan, has offered his latest ambitious plan for addressing the Medicare problem. But like Mr. Obama’s, it holds limited promise for containing the program’s escalating costs within sensible boundaries.
The Obama and Ryan plans are not without common ground; both propose an identical formula for capping the growth in Medicare spending per beneficiary. And both dip into the same toolbox (particularly lower payments to providers) to achieve a reduction of nearly $1 trillion in Medicare expenditures over the next decade from projected levels.
That’s where the agreement ends. Mr. Ryan believes that meeting the goal over the long term requires introducing more competition into Medicare through vouchers to purchase private insurance.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
ARABs - Arbiter Resource Allocation Boards.
And no,we don’t need more Arabs.
Thanks Pen.
All of this information has to get to the electorate.
Paul Ryan and Romney have all the ammo they need.
Death panels are generally OK for the individuals who sit on it. ;)
Now that we know what was in the bill it's pretty clear they won't be able to control costs and it will come apart no matter what little tweaks they try. Has any government run program ever cost less than a private sector solution? The fraud alone in Medicare, Medicade and SSI are budget busting.
Well, maybe not death panels, exactly, but unless we start allocating health care resources more prudently — rationing, by its proper name — the exploding cost of Medicare will swamp the federal budget.
Yet, why does this 'need' not apply to the numerous Federal/State entitlement programs?
Why do we not need to start allocating America's resources more prudently...as the exploding costs of entitlements ARE swamping the federal budget for decades.
Do adhere to a society's 'safety net' of a giving, benevolent, altruistic helping hand, an assistance for one to regain their health, their self-pride in regaining (or even initially attaining) a productive contribution to society. Do not adhere to the present evolving 'permanent hammock' wherein one becomes a drain on society's resources, negating all incentives for self worth, self satisfaction.
They use the word "efficiency" to help them be anything but.
Sebelius will call their camps Obama Hospice Centers instead of Auschwitz which sounds too foreign. Of course, Liberals haven’t read history books so they will remain clueless.
Sarah is so irrelevant that a Google search for “Sarah Palin” only gets “about 127,000,000 results”. I hope she’s doing what America needs over the next six weeks before the election. We need every living voter at the polls in each swing state, in each state with a competitive Senate race, and in every single competitive Congressional district. Sarah can do a lot, more than any other conservative, and I hope she will. That’s not bad for an irrelevant woman (amusing how much harsher liberals are on women than on men) who had her 15 minutes of fame.
There was a call to Rush about this OpEd today.
Thanks! I’m glad the word is starting to get out there!
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