Year: 2014

Categories
north carolina Politics

Hospital Billed Patient $80,000 for $750 Treatment

A North Carolina man was billed $80,000 for an 18-hour hospital stay last summer after being bitten by a snake – and almost all of the bill was for anti-venom.

Eric Furguson, 54, of Mooresville, was shocked when he received the massive bill from Lake Norman Regional Medical Center attributing more than $81,000 of the cost to a four-vial dose of anti-venom.

He told the Charlotte Observer he was able to find the same anti-venom online at prices ranging from $750 to 12,000 per vial, a staggering difference for which they demanded an explanation.

Mr Ferguson’s health insurance through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina reduced the total bill from Lake Norman Regional Medical Center to just over $20,000, of which he paid a deductible of about $5,400 – but his wife worried about the cost of being uninsured.

‘What if it was someone that didn’t have the resources to research and didn’t have insurance?’ Wife Laura Ferguson wondered aloud to the paper. ‘What is fair and equitable here?’

When reached by the Observer, the hospital released a statement saying it rarely charges list prices.‘We are required to give Medicare one level of discount from list price, Medicaid another, and private insurers negotiate for still others,’ said the statement.

‘If we did not start with the list prices we have, we would not end up with enough revenue to remain in operation… Our costs for providing uncompensated care are partially covered by higher bills for other patients.

‘In some cases, Lake Norman Regional’s charge is considerably higher than other local hospitals,’ the statement continued, explaining that discounts of about 62 to 65 percent are offered to patients without insurance, according to the Observer.

A lawsuit was filed in 2010 by doctors at Lake Norman and another local hospital accusing the medical facilities of offering kickbacks to doctors who could provide unnecessary treatment.

Parent company Health Management Associates denied the allegations, but declined further comment.

Categories
Mitt Romney Politics

Breaking – Mitt Romney Is Questioning President Obama’s Honesty… Yes, Mr Romnesia Himself!

Remember Mitt Romney? No? Well how about Mitt The Flip Flop Romney, remember him now? Yea? I thought so.

Mr. Flip Flop himself Went On Fox ‘ s Hannity show tonight and actually said that President Obama had lost “integrity and honesty” with the American people. Yes, you heard that right. Romney, the man who gained a reputation of saying one thing to the people on his right then saying the total opposite to those on his left has the nerve to talk about “integrity and honesty.”

And to answer your question, no, Sean Hannity did not burst out laughing at Romney’s performance. He actually managed to keep a straight face, seemed interested in the utter nonsense he was hearing. Hannity played the classic Fox News host, and egged Romney on with more leading questions.

“It’s a very difficult thing to try and reestablish a reputation for integrity and honesty if you’ve lost it in such a dramatic way,” Romney said.

Romney was talking about the now infamous claim by the President, “if you like your insurance you can keep it.” The president has since apologized for making that claim and explained what he meant. But Republicans, even those like Mitt The flip Romney – known for their lies and flip flops – have suddenly become engulfed in truth and morals, to the point where they think they can lecture the president.

What a charade! Their performance typical if the average Republican.

Video

Categories
Featured

Trey Radel – The Republican Congressman Caught with Cocaine is Resigning – Video

And another Republican congressman falls. These are your leaders Republicans. These are the people you have in office. At least Radel recognizes that being caught with 3.5grams of cocaine was wrong and resigned.

Categories
Music

Mass gay Marriage at Grammys Enraged Conservatives – Mass Shootings, Not So Much

The Grammys last night broke a rule. No, not the joining of rapper Kendrick Lamar and Imagine Dragons as they did something never done before – perform a rap song in the form of heavy metal, or is it performing heavy metal in the form of a rap song. Whatever it was, it was amazing, and it was a first according to host LL Cool J.

See it again below. I promise to get into the conservative outrage after the video.

Wow. That was freaking amazing!

But so was the second rule that the Grammys broke last night, and the ourtrage today by the conservatives shows just how big a deal this rule was. Apparently, there was a rule that said never marry gays at the Grammys. That rule is no more as Queen Latifah presided over the joining together of 34 couples. And conservatives are flipping out!

The headline at The Drudge Report this morning spoke of “THE GAYMMYS,” and Twitter was overrun with people discussing the ceremony officiated by Queen Latifah during Macklemore’s performance of the same-sex marriage anthem “Same Love.”

At the conservative site Free Republic, a commenter who confessed to “see[ing] gays at the store” complained about how “[t]hey take every venue, every event, and have to gay it.” Another prayed that “the hands of the demented who applauded this sickeness rot off at their limp wrists.”

Those on the left generally applauded the ceremony. Hemant Mehta, the Friendly Atheist, tweeted:

The ceremony.

Meanwhile, thousands die yearly at the hands of someone weilding a gun. Yet these same conservatives fight tooth and nail to deny sensible regulations, thus, keeping the death rate as high as possible.

Only in America.

Categories
dead Health RIP

Marlboro Man Dead at 72 from Chronic Lung Disease

Eric Lawson, who portrayed the rugged Marlboro man in cigarette ads during the late 1970s, has died. He was 72.

Lawson died on 10 January at his home in San Luis Obispo of respiratory failure due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, his wife, Susan Lawson, said on Sunday.

Lawson was an actor with bit parts on such TV shows as Baretta and The Streets of San Francisco when he was hired to appear in print Marlboro ads from 1978 to 1981. His other credits include Charlie’s Angels, Dynasty and Baywatch. His wife said injuries sustained on the set of a western film ended his career in 1997.

A smoker since age 14, Lawson later appeared in an anti-smoking commercial that parodied the Marlboro man and an Entertainment Tonight segment to discuss the negative effects of smoking. Ms Lawson said her husband was proud of the interview, even though he was smoking at the time and continued the habit until he was diagnosed with COPD.

“He knew the cigarettes had a hold on him,” she said. “He knew, yet he still couldn’t stop.”

A few actors and models who appeared in adverts for Marlboro cigarettes have died of smoking-related diseases. They include David Millar, who died of emphysema in 1987, and David McLean, who died of lung cancer in 1995.

Lawson is also survived by six children, 18 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

Categories
bridgegate Politics

Yet Another Chris Christie Scandal – Abuse of Power Allegations

In the post-Bridgegate world, charges of Gov. Chris Christie’s political bullying have gained more credibility. It’s like when one woman accuses a public figure of sexual harassment, inspiring several others to come forward too.

In the wake of the revelations that Christie’s allies toyed with traffic at the George Washington Bridge, apparently to punish a mayor who failed to endorse him, we heard new allegations from Dawn Zimmer — the Hoboken mayor who says his officials threatened to withhold Sandy aid unless she supported his favored real estate project.

And now, we are reminded of the accusations of Ben Barlyn, a former Hunterdon County prosecutor who says he was fired because he refused to drop a case against a Christie ally. For the past year, he’s been striving to prove his story, paying through the nose for a civil lawsuit against the state while telling it to anyone who will listen.

Barlyn says that after he secured an indictment in 2010 against Hunterdon County Sheriff Deborah Trout, a Republican with political ties to Christie, he was fired and the case hastily killed by Christie’s appointed attorney general at the time, Paula Dow. The real story isn’t the mundane crimes that were alleged: hiring without proper background checks, making employees sign loyalty oaths, threatening critics and producing fake police badges for a prominent Christie donor. It’s the possible abuse of power by the administration’s head prosecutor.

Barlyn is now trying to compel the state Attorney General’s Office to release the grand jury transcripts to prove his case had legs.

He’s not the only one who says so: Four grand jurors and other dismissed prosecutors have come forward to agree. A judge even ordered the release of the transcripts — yet still, the state is refusing to comply. It has filed a torrent of briefs in an effort to suppress the grand jury record, and will continue this fight at a hearing Tuesday.

More NJ.com

Categories
Celebrities Entertainment Music

Did You Miss Beyonce’s Performance at the Grammys? Let Me Sho’ U SumTing

I have no words, except… Jay Z is a very lucky man…

Carry on…

Categories
Politics

The Gun Used to Slaughter 20 Kids is the Heartbeat of These Republicans

Paul Broun

Sad, that since the gun was used to slaughter 20 innocent children in Sandy Hook Elementary school, the AR-15 has become the weapon of choice among diehard Republicans.

The new found love for the Kids-killing gun, is apparent when it is offered as an award in contests held by Republican officials.

U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, who is running in a primary campaign for U.S. Senate, announced Friday he will give away a AR-15 weapon to a lucky supporter of his campaign.

“How would you like to start off 2014 with a brand new AR-15 for free?” reads a bold line in an email the congressman — who represents the 10th district in Georgia — sent his supporters, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

“You see, it’s no secret that the Democrats and liberal media would love to take away our guns and mandate every aspect of our lives, but I refuse to let them get away with that,” he wrote in the email, the newspaper reported. “In fact, today, I have some exciting news for you.”

The lucky winner must be 18 and pass a background check.

On his campaign website Broun said he decided to give away the weapon because “Barack Obama would like nothing more than to ban the AR-15 rifle.”

The contest ends on Feb. 27.

Broun is the second Republican in as many days who is offering an AR-15 weapon to a supporter as they gear up for a primary election.

South Carolina state Senator Lee Bright, who is challenging Sen. Lindsey Graham in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate, will award the weapon to “one lucky Second Amendment supporter” in a contest on his website.

Categories
Abortion contraception Mike Huckabee Politics war on women

This GOP Hypocrite is Against Contraception – Made It Mandatory For Women in His State

I cannot figure out why this blowhard would thrust himself even more into the spotlight when he knows his closet is filled with skeletons.

Yes, I could be talking about any Republican official in this post. Go ahead, name one of them and I will tell you about their particular closet. This post however, is dedicated to none other than blowhard Mike Huckabee.

We all remember about a week ago when Huckabee felt the need, no, the urge to make a speech about the Republicans’ war on women, including his explanation of “Uncle Sugar”, women’s libido and of course, contraception? His entire speech was quite controversial, I’m sure you remembered it. Well as fate would have it, this same Huckabee guy – an outspoken opponent of women’s health especially where providing contraception is concerned – provided mandatory contraception to the women of Arkansas when he was governor.

Huffington Post described Huckabee’s change in position as an “epic flip-flop,” noting that Huckabee defended his view at the time, saying that “Religious employers are not required to comply with this policy. My position is, and always has been, that religious entities shouldn’t be forced to pay for contraception.”

Abortifacients were exempted in the Arkansas legislation, the Arkansas Times noted, but the law appears even more comprehensive than the ACA, mandating coverage under health policies issued by institutions with religious affiliations if they don’t exist primarily for that purpose and don’t primarily employ people of that religion, a standard most religiously-affiliated hospitals and schools do not meet.

Categories
News

Maryland police identify mall shooter who killed 2, injured 5 before taking own life

Darion Marcus Aguilar, 19, of College Park, was identified as the gunman by police Sunday morning. He took a cab to the Columbia mall an hour before the shooting. Police have yet to establish a connection between the shooter and the victims.

HOWARD COUNTY POLICE VIA TWITTER

Maryland police have identified Darion Marcus Aguilar, 19, of College Park, Md., as the gunman in the horrifying mall shooting that killed two people and injured five Saturday.

Maryland police have identified the gunman who killed two people and injured five more in a horrifying mall shooting Saturday before killing himself.

“We may never be back to 100% normal but we are resilient,” said Howard County Police Chief William McMahon said in a press conference Sunday evening.

Darion Marcus Aguilar, 19, of College Park, Md., took a cab to the mall in Columbia at 10:15 a.m. Saturday and then killed Brianna Benlolo, 21, of College Park, and Tyler Johnson, 25, of Ellicott City, who worked at Zumiez, located on the second floor of the Mall in Columbia, above the food court, police said.

BALTIMORE SUN

Police have yet to make a connection between gunman Aguilar (pictured) and his two victims. Cops say he did not have a criminal history.

Police have yet to make a connection between the shooter and his two victims.

“There’s still some speculation that there has been some romantic involvement. We have not been able to establish that,” McMahon said.

These rumors have upset the victims’ families, he said.

TWITTER

Police say Aguilar (pictured) took a cab to the Mall in Columbia at 10:15 a.m. and then killed Brianna Benlolo, 21, and Tyler Johnson, 25.

Authorities searched Aguilar’s house and found a journal where he expressed general unhappiness with his life, according to McMahon.

Police have maintained a strong presence around the mall ever since the shooting. They are making sure patrons recover belongings they left behind and that grief counseling will be available to anyone who needs it.

Aguilar’s house in College Park, Md., on Sunday. Police said the gunman lived with his mother, and that they seized computers and documents from his home.

The mall will reopen 1 p.m. Monday with two memorials to honor the victims.

Police say that Aguilar unleashed terror in this “cornerstone of our community” after waiting in a “confined area” for an hour after arriving.

Five other people — one who was shot in the foot — were treated at a local hospital and released Saturday. Police said the gunman fired between six and eight shots with a 12-gauge shotgun he bought in December.

BRIANNA BENLOLO/FACEBOOK

Brianna Benlolo, 21, was one of two mall employees who were shot at the suburban Baltimore Mall in Columbia.

Police said the gunman lived with his mother, and that they seized computers and documents from his home. He had brought a backpack that was filled with two “unsophisticated” devices that appeared to be attempts to make homemade explosives, McMahon said.

He did not have a criminal history, McMahon said.

Aguilar was found with a large amount of ammunition on him. Police searched the mall overnight Saturday and determined there were no explosives.

FACEBOOK

Tyler Johnson, the 25-year-old victim in the Columbia mall shooting.

Police arrived at the sprawling mall only two minutes after the first 911 calls were placed at 11:15 a.m. and secured the shopping center by 1 p.m.

Benlolo’s grandfather, John Feins, said in a telephone interview from Florida that his granddaughter had a 2-year-old son and that the job at Zumiez was her first since she went back to work after her son’s birth.

 

Police talk in a parking lot outside the Mall in Columbia in Maryland, where a gunman killed two and injured five before taking his own life.

“She was all excited because she was the manager there,” he said.

He said he had spoken with his daughter, Brianna’s mother, earlier in the day, but didn’t know who the gunman was or whether the person knew his granddaughter.

“It’s senseless. It’s totally, totally senseless,” he said.

The shooter killed Briana Benlolo (pictured).

h/t – nydailynews

Categories
Domestic Policies Healthcare Immigration Immigration Reform News Politics

The Six Year Itch

From where I sit, last year was worse for the Republican Party and for progress than it ever was for President Obama. Yes, yes, I know what the conventional wisdom said about the president’s fifth year, but really, I don’t necessarily buy it. As a matter of fact, I think that when all is said and done by 2017, many people won’t even remember what the fuss was all about.

For example, the health care website was a dud in October and November, but as we speak, over 3 million people have signed up for health insurance through the portal and Medicaid, and the goal of signing up 7 million people by the end of March is eminently attainable. The Republican blahblahgosphere will say that not enough young, healthy people have signed up and that the death spiral will begin any time now, but since they’ve been wrong about everything related to the law (remember when the election of Scott Brown meant the end of the ACA?), why would we want to believe them now?

On immigration, the critics say that because there was no final bill last year that this was a failure for Obama. Not if we get a bill this year, and it’s looking more and more likely that we will. Not because it was a bad idea last year, but because the GOP has finally realized that they are national election toast of they don’t do something to help the Hispanic electorate that is running very quickly away from their party.

Likewise for the minimum wage, climate policy, appointees and foreign policy. In every one of these cases, the president won’t get Congress to sign on to his initiatives, but he’s laying the groundwork for later years or, most likely, for his successor who will most likely be a Democrat. At this point, Obama can do the most for this country by executive order and that’s what we’re likely to hear on Tuesday.

Most presidents, if they are remembered at all, are usually known for one or two major laws that transform the country. The ACA will be Obama’s main accomplishment, but I could see him also being remembered for the Consumer Protection Board and the president who saved the American automobile industry. Immigration would put him in the top ten lists of great ones. The right-wing knows this and that’s why their last-ditch efforts to derail anything Obama wants to do will be loud and scary. But that’s all they’ll be for years to come.

In the meantime, we are living through a trying time with a leader that history will remember fondly.

For more please go to:
www.facebook.com/WhereDemocracyLives and Twitter @rigrundfest 

Categories
Chuck Schumer Politics

The Avonte Law would Offer Monitoring Devices for Autistic Children

Sen. Charles Schumer says new legislation proposed in the name of Avonte Oquendo, the 14-year-old New York City boy who disappeared from his school and was found dead three months later, would fund voluntary tracking devices for children who have autism.

Schumer  (D-N.Y.), accompanied by Avonte’s mother and grandmother, Sunday to announce “Avonte’s Law.” The legislation would create a program that provides tracking devices and expands support services for families with autistic children.

Schumer says it would be similar to a federal program that tracks seniors who have Alzheimer’s disease. The $10 million in funds would go to police departments, which would hand out the devices to parents who request them.

“It will help put parents at ease, save precious lives,” Schumer told reporters, including 1010 WINS’ Glenn Schuck. “Avonte’s Law will allow his memory to live on while helping to prevent more children with autism from going missing.

“The technology will allow parents of all children with autism, no matter how much or how little money they have, to enjoy the benefits of a high-tech solution to an age-old problem.”

Avonte’s mother and grandmother weren’t ready to speak to reporters, but their lawyer, David Perecman, told WCBS 880′s Monica Miller that a tracking system would be a fitting tribute to the teen.

“The goal today, because we can’t go back in time, is to make sure … never again,” Perecman said. “And this will help.”

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