Scott Brown Republican, wins Senate seat in Mass.  race.  This is the first time in almost 40 years that a Republican has held that Senate seat.  I think the people are sending a message to Washington.

Are they listening?

They better listen or in the 2010 elections, the Republican will take congress again. What a wonderful thought.

I agree -

It's time we stopped thinking "Republican versus Democrat" and start thinking "huge federal government" versus "limited federal government - the way the founders of our country envisioned." I dropped out of the party system too - both have been hopelessly corrupted.

Ok, did anybody see Obama blame Bush for the cute non Democrate dude winning by a massive spanking?  When will he realize he's making alot of us truck driving christiians very happy.  Thank you BO..........

Angie

How very true! And the only way to get back to it is to establish strict term limit laws..

But how do you do that when it is the current pack of office-holding politicians who MAKE the laws???

Kittyrn says ...

Scott Brown Republican, wins Senate seat in Mass.  race.  This is the first time in almost 40 years that a Republican has held that Senate seat.  I think the people are sending a message to Washington.

Are they listening?

Kelly, you bet they were listening. Do they care? No. Those sneaky govt officials are trying to hurry up and pass Healthcare Reform before Brown is sworn into office. There have been recent petitions on the internet to protest this and have Brown sworn in as quickly as possible. These jerks don't care what the people want. They do exactly as they please. I say dump all out of office and start anew. Viva La Revolution!

Kittyrn says ...

Scott Brown Republican, wins Senate seat in Mass.  race.  This is the first time in almost 40 years that a Republican has held that Senate seat.  I think the people are sending a message to Washington.

Are they listening?

Kelly, you bet they were listening. Do they care? No. Those sneaky govt officials are trying to hurry up and pass Healthcare Reform before Brown is sworn into office. There have been recent petitions on the internet to protest this and have Brown sworn in as quickly as possible. These jerks don't care what the people want. They do exactly as they please. I say dump all out of office and start anew. Viva La Revolution!

There are certain provisions upon which just about everyone agrees - no denials for pre-existing conditions, transferabilty across state lines, etc.

All they have to do is write a bill incorporating ONLY those provisions, get it passed, and then....

Later they can bicker over the politically charged crap, instead of trying to pack everything into one disgustingly massive bill, on which no one can agree, and which is thus doomed to failure from the onset.

Anyways, I was happy to see Brown put a cork in it.

Cheers - Tim, R.N.

kellyj says ...

  if they dem's decide to continue their push to socialized medicine chock full of evidenced based practices and rules made by some politicians living in a bubble than i guess our world as we know will no longer exist. i for one take every day like a gift knowing that tomorrow the work that i do might be so overwhelming that i won't be able to keep up with the demands.  already we have so much charting to do in order to keep JCHAO happy. ever since the advent of computerized charting it seems like every day there is a brand new form to fill out! whew its hard to keep up with those IT people. but back to the healthcare overhaul i think we should have a health care revival not overhaul.  people need to start being accountable for their own actions. i have no issue with those CITIZENS that don't make enough money to buy ins.  but if the dems are not smart enough to include true reforms in the bill than they simply dont deserve to pass or cram this thing down my throat.  last time i checked i am the one paying the bills . so just keeping making these "overhaul" decisions behind closed doors and see how that works out for ya during your reelection.  good luck.

So right you are Kelly. I'm sick of both sides pointing their fingers and blaming the other. But, what really gets my goat is 69% of the American people don't want this kind of reform. Why are these idiots insistant on cramming it down our throats?

Tort reform would be a great step in helping with costs, but since most of the govt are previous lawyers...well why would they do that? Instead they'd rather tax hardworking Americans while the inflation is already pinching us. My husband and I are paying way more for groceries than we did a year ago, and we clip coupons and buy off brands. Something stinks! Now, they want to take half my pay to insure healthcare for all? The Repubs have asked the Dems to restart a new bill, but for some reason these dimwits are acting like there's no time to do so. Better to cram a crappy bill now than to actually re-try and maybe get it right. Of course, the right is being lambasted in the media as the bad guys and the party of"No". Thank God someone is trying to stop this madness. Hence, Mr. Brown and Mass. maybe saending a message.

I will say I agree with Glenn Beck who said that the Dems tax and spend while the Repubs just spend. Both parties are to blame, and need to admit they have a problem. A problem spending the taxpayers money the way they see fit...even if we disagree. Well, get ready for a shake-up. Ron Paul for President anyone?

oh yes me too sick to death of them and their ilk but we have to have some levity in all this and the "healthcare overhaul" discussion has given me quite some laughs.  like the story i read where the teacher said  he had never failed one person ever but he once failed and ENTIRE class!!

he said he gave the first test and told the students that the ALL the test grades would be averaged and the average test score was a B. the students who studied the most were extremely pissed off cuz they gave up their A's to the students who studied little or none.  So the second test the students who had studied lots studied little and the average test score was a D.  Now everyone was pissed off ! So the last test came and nobody studied and the average test score was an F.  and everybody failed the course! Now how is that for a lesson in what spreading the wealth is all about ! HA Ha

Overhaul is for cars and run down not to code buildings NOT healthcare! i suggest to anyone that true reform comes when the politicians on the hill lose a dollar of care in their healthcare plan for everyday they sit around pointing fingers and getting nothing done!

Hey guys, might I remind you of who and what you all are? We are nurses. We are the healthcare givers that have been suffering a nursing shortage since 1998 to what ISNA recently reported currently as a deficit of 3 million nurses. We come from a proud history that contain people who answered the call of the need to reform like Clara Barton, and Florence Nightingale. Each one of you have specific and special experiences that allow you to develop in both your mind and heart. If anyone can advocate for the American people who have heart, it is us. 

It's a nurse that was out of work that started home health care.   Nurses decided people needed education and started community health education.   You all know the stories.

Have any of you been where so many Americans with no access to health care are now?  I have.  And I have not forgotten the despair and fear that I suffered as a result.  I also realized, that when you have absolutely nothing, then at least something, even if it's severely rationed, is better than nothing.  Free care is what saved my baby's life.  Care by a bunch of scared students, while I at the time was a student in nursing myself.  It takes money to give healthcare, but I don't mind giving some free when I can.  We have all probably volunteered some time or other.  Yes?

The main problem I had though, besides lack of insurance, was lack of information.  In several studies I've been reading, ones that define variables why people don't get healthcare and they are much more detailed than the ones from Harvard quoted often by politicians, show that lack of information on getting a primary care physician, and lack of experience were also primary problems, even AFTER they obtained Medicaid.   I took over 3 years after switching to Tricare under my spouse to finally find a doctor who would accept it.  And then, they never pay for anything anyways. 

Have you ever had to fill out those HCFA forms and then open the check from HMO's, Medicaid, or Medicare?  It used to send me to the bank, crying and laughing when I worked for a physician.  They underpay.  When the physician or hospital gets paid less than it costs to give the care, they either accept less of those patients, or hike up the costs hoping to cover the loss by cash payers and better paying insurances.

Insurance makes money by P = (I + p) - (c)    Costs are factored by cost to cover their employees (yes there are jobs involved there) cost of administration (yes they have administrators there) costs of running the business (yes they pay for rent, electricity, marketing etc.) and the costs of paying out the insurance.  I is for investments.  They take the premiums and invest them on the stock market or give loans to help other businesses thrive.  The money made off their investments is what gives them their profits mainly.  p is for the premiums.  Now this money first goes into "float" or the investments.  If the HCFA form is sent for monies based on a pre-determined allowable amount already negotiated between the provider and insurance company, then they have to pull it out of float which can take up to or more than 90 days.  That's why it takes so long and why they pay so little (allowable amounts)

When they make the money off stock and loans they then have this profit that pays into stock holders, like 27 members of Congress that own AIG stock, and also, yes, you guessed it:    401K  Hey, so you're making money off this too, you see? 

Premiums go up during bear markets or they readdress the underwriting to make up for the losses. Underwriting is based on Acuarial Science that includes probability and statistics.  (an effective value)   If that is not enough, they then lay people off, or even sell out to bigger companies, often making your stock worth less. (Our bank stock was cut in half when they sold out)   So be careful what you wish for.

Now, there are studies by many health related economists suggesting our best bet is to ADD a NON-Profit option to compete with what we currently have.  While we discuss the following, please remember this following word:  DIGNITY.

Non- profit co-op assurance programs are already made by religious groups, but they severely ration (due to high cost of care and they pay 100%) and are exclusive.   What if we advocated for our patients, and developed a non-profit co-op assurance program that acted like insurance, where we negotiated a fair price for care, used an idea from the UK to prioritize the care offered geering towards preventive health, added education encouragement, negotiated with pharmacies as insurances do, to lower the price, thus ration less and more effectively.  You all know how to do it.  You do it every day on the floor.  Instead of paying checks straight to the patients as they do, (they'll take a trip to Europe) let's start funds, non-profit.  Banks will help you start these and help you get the information.  You'll need an EIN tax ID number too. Pull in other healthcare workers and do Research, research research, including everything you can find out, even from other countries to get good ideas to pull in.  Let's keep in touch with what happens with the current legislation so we make sure we keep within the law.

Get others involved and start a fund raiser to apply some money to start.  Otherwise it will be empty before you even pay the first bill.  Get help from business professionals or economists to help figure out how much each person will have to pay monthly, or weekly.  This money does not go on the stock market so will not increase.  This money, though, also does not go to stock holders.  It goes straight to the providers.  NO hoop and loops.  You will have to be very very fiscal.

Currently I'm also working with GIS and a technician to make a website to be a virtual social worker.  Clients need to have an organized way of finding out how to find help when they need it.  I have found several other websites, but plan to put everything together.  Where to find a doctor, insurance, free clinics, food, help for electric bills, social worker for WIC, Medicaid, etc, help for housing, emergency funds (yes, those do exist) to consider Maslow's Heirarchy of needs.  I will have freedbs send the messages out to Americans where to find this site once it's up.

We are not dumb led cows to expect ourselves to wait for some politician to tell us how to give healthcare.  Healthcare is our life.  It is OUR calling, not theirs.  You're barking up the wrong tree if you're waiting on them.  We need to ADVOCATE, ADVOCATE, ADVOCATE NOW!

Now my nurse friends, put your differences aside and let's pull together.  What can we do as nurses to advocate to help Americans get access to healthcare.  Start brainstorming.  I'm still doing research while trying to keep up reading these bills.  I'm with you.  Let's just do it.

~~RN~~GIS~~

PS:  I'm also working with a group that is developing Free Direct Broadcast Satellite Television and have been asking for access to help educate the masses about healthcare issues BY the people in healthcare.  It's on  freedbs.org/Channels.html  They will be transmitting for free to all with access to satellites to Canada, Puerto Rico, and US.  Keep in touch.

Both Medicare and Medicaid are fiascos. HHR reports Medicare expenditures were $400 billion while intake was only $381 billion for 55.2 million people. They've been in the deficit for years. Medicaid when added up, ends up at expenditures of $400 billion for 50 million people. Around 40% doctors won't even take Medicaid.

There is no such thing as services for free.  It's all a mess.

To get people to be able to get into insurance or co-op programs, they still have to have money, and to have that they must have jobs.  To have business, there must be capability of new technology that is held by American businesses to make them more competitive on the global market.  The government can not do that.  A bunch of what?  Lawyers are going to create technology?  Lawyers are going to create business opportunities? 

When you want to start a business, you go to someone who has built up businesses.  This government is hiring kids straight out of Ivy League colleges or out of former government administrative positions. 

Freedbs is going straight to the experts.  Technicians, Engineers, and businessmen/women.  They are working together to build business back up GROUND UP.

You've got to have the job before you can pay for your healthcare.

Well, the so called"Summit" only showed how arrogant and determined Mr. Obama is about getting this bill passed. he was petulent and rude!

People aren't saying "I'm worried about mt healthcare." People are saying "How do I pay my house note." When will I have a job?". That's what's angering alot of Americans. Obama wants a legacy on this. He wants to be known as the father of healthcare at the expense of this country. He will be a 1 term Prez if he rams this with reconciliation. What a tool. It's all about him.

Does he care about Americans really? I mean this whole past year has been him apologising to our enemies. They think he's stupid. Terrorists are planning attacks b/c they know this guy is a narcissist.

We need reform, but not his way.

Well, from what I can tell Murtha is still dead.  They've had time to grow azaleas by now;  and havent appointed a new congressman yet.   My azaleas started blooming actually, so that's where I got that info-my front yard.  From this article it looks like they cant vote on major bills at this time.    http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/vacancies_pr.html?pr=district&vid=29     Maybe my interpretation is wrong but if not, it could be good and allow our government time to read the bill!   Go Nov 2010 elections!