She was so happy to finally get affordable healthcare, this constituent wrote a thank you letter to her congressman. Here is a story you will never see on Fox News. And since Fox won’t cover it, you will never hear any Republicans in Washington talking about it.
After her husband died in February 2012, Amy Bowman was diagnosed with breast cancer. She tells her story that she was eventually able to continue 0n her husband’s insurance for a year. But cancer is a serious pre-existing condition and Amy knew that getting insurance after her year was out would be almost impossible.
After searching, Amy was able to continue her insurance at another company, but they monthly price for her policy was extremely high. On a monthly basis, Amy Bowman’s insurance policy was almost $1500.00. But she was able to sign on and shop for healthcare on the marketplace provided by Obamacare, and received a health policy with provision for dental benefits, for about half of what she was paying before.
The picture below correctly identifies the nonsense the Republican Party and their supporters are pushing these days.
You know, the I love my insurance even though it boils down to be me paying my insurance company hundreds of dollars every month for services I think I should get, but will not get if or when I’m sick, and may even get dropped by my insurance carrier if I ever think of filing a claim plan… so please let me keep it!
The artist below shows one of these dumb Americans – he must be a Republican – obviously standing in a thunderstorm with what amounts to a piece of stick over his head, trying to protect himself and his family from the rain.
And here comes the president, Barack Obama, with a Knirps Big Duomatic Automatic Umbrella, Solid Black, retails for a whole lot of money, but the dumb American can get it for just about what he is paying for that piece of stick he’s holding above his head… in the thunderstorm. What would he do?
What do you do? You and your family are soaking wet. You get the opportunity to shelter yourself from the storm… what do you do?
Do you accept the Knirps Big Duomatic Automatic Umbrella Solid Black offer that is sure to protect you and your family? Or do you stay soaked to the bones, catch a nasty case of pneumonia and die from your dumb ignorance in thinking that a piece of stick would save you from getting wet in this thunderstorm?
What do you do?
The smart ones, we’ll call them Democrats, would gladly accept the Knirps Big Duomatic Automatic Umbrella Solid Black, and his/her family would be able to go see their doctor, get regular preventative checkups, and live a long and healthy life, mainly because they wouldn’t have to go bankrupt to pay medical bills.
The dumb ones, we’ll call them Republicans, would bitch, moan and complain that they want to keep their stick and the president is trying to give them a better umbrella. The dumb ones would also gladly go bankrupt when they find out that pneumonia or even the common cold is not covered by their loving stick, oops, I mean their loving garbage insurance policy.
Hey, at least they would be buried as a Republican, and they would be able to tell all their friends that they stood up to that black dude in the White House who was doing everything he possibly could, to save them from that thunderstorm.
But wait! You can tell your friends anything, when you’re dead!
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, witnessed firsthand some of the problems involved in providing healthcare to his state. And with that knowledge in mind, Governor Deval Patrick decided to write this letter to the members of the Massachusetts Congressional Delegation.
The Members of the Massachusetts Congressional Delegation:
As you consider current proposals to change the Affordable Care Act (ACA), I write to remind you about what we have learned from health care reform in Massachusetts, and to inform you of some of our experiences so far with implementing it.
We have seen firsthand the positive changes brought about by a strong individual insurance market with protections that ensure a basic level of care. Individuals are protected from being dropped from insurance when they need it most, or being denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition. Benefits must meet minimum standards, and there are limits on individuals’ exposure to out-of-pocket costs for needed health care. And the rest of us are protected against having our premiums inflated or our taxes tapped to pick up the tab for the uninsured or underinsured. With these basic features in place, we have achieved near universal coverage, better health and slower growth in health costs. With the ACA, the same can and will happen for the country.
Much has been made of the fact that some Americans have had their current policies canceled by their insurers. Some of that, we know, is in the normal course of annual insurance renewals. Some is because the existing policies do not provide the minimum level of coverage required by the ACA. So long as the means for individuals to learn about and enroll in affordable alternatives is available, through an improved website, a call center or otherwise, the transition of people from non-compliant policies to compliant ones should proceed.
Nonetheless, the public has been poorly informed about this transition, and too many consumers are unable to enroll conveniently in compliant plans. For some, the temporary delay proposed yesterday by the President may be appropriate. Our experience in Massachusetts tells us that our health plans and their customers have prepared for the transition and are unlikely to need or to use the additional time.
However, any delay in requiring plans to meet the basic standards of the ACA must only be temporary. Leaving non-compliant plans to remain permanently in place means we revert to the status quo: a broken health care system where many people carry policies that don’t cover them when they get seriously ill, and where those with comprehensive coverage pay for those uninsured or underinsured in higher premiums and taxes. Permitting plans to be permanently non-compliant means the pool of individuals who do purchase plans through the marketplaces will likely be sicker on average, and their options will be more expensive and constrained. And it will disrupt the market-based model on which premiums and policy options hinge.
We benefit in Massachusetts from broad, bipartisan support for health reform and the willingness of our legislature — encouraged by business, labor, industry, patient advocates and others — to make refinements to our plan as we go. The President does not enjoy that collaboration with the Congress, and the American people suffer as a result. If you wish to take further legislative action to ensure the successful extension of the benefits of the ACA to all our citizens, I would humbly propose that you consider granting the administration broader authority to make adjustments to the ACA by regulation so long as such regulations advance the fundamental goal. That way any administration can make changes in the details of implementation quickly in response to lessons learned along the way.
The fundamental goal of the Affordable Care Act is to give all Americans access to reliable, quality health insurance at a reasonable cost. Guaranteeing a basic level of coverage for everyone is the first step towards fixing our broken health care system and promoting a healthier population. We have seen in Massachusetts how well it works and how important it is. While the transition is challenging for some, I urge you not to lose sight of the long-term good for all as you consider any changes or adjustments to the Affordable Care Act.
For these reasons, I urge you to oppose any bill that extends access to non-compliant plans beyond a short transition period.
Michele Bachmann is a government employee. That being said, all government employees are already covered by government provided health insurance, arguably the best insurance in the nation.
But if you listened to Michele Bachmann on CNN, you’ll walk away feeling sorry for the poor soul, because according to what Bachmann told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, she lost her insurance because of Obamacare.
Bachmann, a member of Congress, wants you to believe that she is a member of the 5 percent of Americans who have garbage insurance.
If nothing else, the press is having a field day, or a month anyway, with the government shutdown and now the contretemps over the health care website and law. I’m sure you’ve read the articles and have seen the overblown videos from both sides of the political divide. There aren’t more for me to add.
What’s been lost in the tree-to-tree debate is the forest of actual health care and the health of United States citizens. Yes, President Obama should have said that those people whose insurance policies do not meet the minimum standards set by the ACA would indeed need to upgrade them. That inattention to detail is exactly what can derail a noble point, especially given the rabid opposition he faces in Congress. But the larger point is that more people will have better health plans, and, presumably, better health.
The other issue that’s been buried is the relative success of the exchanges in states that have functioning representative democracies and not one-party GOP monopolies who don’t seem to care whether their poorest residents get Medicaid relief or, in the case of New Jersey, a governor who aspires to national office. In states such as New York, Oregon, Kentucky and California, people are signing up for health care and, for the most part, are finding it both easy and cost-effective to do so (OK, OK…here’s a link).
Which proves that the law is working and that it’s here to stay and that ultimately it will do what it set out to do and the GOP knows it. That’s why they only have the political issue to focus on. By next October, the ACA will be a net plus for the Democrats. The website will be fixed and more people will be demanding that all states fully cover their Medicaid populations.
There will be no place to hide for those who believe that it’s an American right to be sick and have other people pay for it, or for those who perversely call it freedom when people are denied access to a government entitlement like Medicaid, or who say it’s un-American for the government to provide access to checkups, physicals, reproductive health or to have insurance companies cover people with preexisting conditions.
I’ve always believed that if you do the right thing, eventually the people in your orbit will notice and reward you for it, even if at times you are punished for your good deeds. The health care law and the sentiment behind it is worthy, moral, ethical and in the best sense of the word, healthy. This, in the end, is what will ensure its success.
In an exclusive interview on MSNBC last night, President Obama apologized to the American people for the “if you like your insurance you can keep it” claim.
Asked by interviewer Chuck Todd of MSNBC if he believed he owed an apology to the five percent of Americans who are losing their garbage plans because of regulations in ObamaCare that require all insurance companies to provide real insurance to the American people, the president replied;
“I am sorry that they are finding themselves in this situation based on assurances they got from me,” he told NBC News in an exclusive interview at the White House.
“We’ve got to work hard to make sure that they know we hear them and we are going to do everything we can to deal with folks who find themselves in a tough position as a consequence of this.”
The president stated that he is doing everything he can to fix the rollout problems with healthcare.gov.
“I’ve assigned my team to see what we can do to close some of the holes and gaps in the law, because, you know, my intention is to lift up and make sure the insurance that people buy is effective — that it’s actually going to deliver what they think they’re purchasing.”
You know it was just a matter of time before the most honest news reporter in today’s media got around to discussing President Obama’s claim, “if you like your insurance policy, you can keep it.” Jon Stewart of Comedy Central admitted that the president’s claim was “somewhat dishonest,” especially given the fact that a small portion of Americans with garbage insurance plans are forced to upgrade to better plans because of Obamacare.
But when Stewart looked at this dishonesty and compared it to what Republicans and the conservative media have said about Obamacare, Stewart concluded that Republicans are “lying like motherf*ckers!”
“Yes, the president has been somewhat dishonest about the promise of his health care program,” Stewart admitted. “But here’s the weird part — his opponents have been lying like motherf*ckers about its effects.”
Why don’t the real so-called reporters report the truth like a host at Comedy Central? This is why people are tuning in to a comedy station to get their news!
Why would anyone want to keep an insurance policy that give them absolutely nothing in the unfortunate event of them getting sick, is beyond my level of understanding. But for the 5 percent of Americans who have received cancellation letters from their insurance companies, these Americans are apparently angry. And the Republicans are using this anger as their launching pad for yet another Obamacare is the worst thing to ever happen to the United States of America campaign.
You all have heard the president made this claim time and time again while campaigning fo the Affordable Health Care Act, akso known as Obamacare. The president said, “nothing is going to change for those people with insurance. If you like your insurance you can keep it.”
The president’s only mistake when he made that statement was not anticipating that there are people out there who loves garbage. And given the opportunity to get rid of the garbage for some quality insurance, these people would prefer the garbage instead.
What Mr. Obama should have done was made an exception for these garbage collectors. He should have said something like, if you like your insurance you can keep it, especially the garbage collectors. You wouldn’t know what to do with quality insurance anyway.
Yes, Mr . Obama should have let these people know that they are special. That they belong in a special class all by themselves, and that the rest of the country knows how special they really are.
Health insurance is not a political game. For many, it is literally the difference between life and death. And given the opportunity to choose life, sensibility should overcome partisan gamesmanship. Instead, it’s the other way around with Republicans and the garbage collectors of the insurance industry complaining that they cannot choose death instead.
So you all know that Republicans and Conservative media have used Jon Stewart as their latest weapon against Obamacare. It is a well know fact that the Obamacare website, healthcare.gov, needs more work. The website was not ready for primetime and like the rest of the media, Jon Stewart has voiced his disappointment in the site’s roll-out and the fact that urgent improvements are needed.
Jon Stewart is disappointed at the roll-out of healthcare.gov? That was all the Republicans and the Conservative media wanted to hear. Like swarms of locust, Republicans jumped on Stewart and used his disappointment as proof that Obamacare is already a failure!
Well Stewart has a message for these so-called reporters!
“Making fun of something–that’s nothing new for us….so don’t act like us making jokes about a certain program or President is evidence that politician or issue has reached some kind of tipping point for action…although that apparently is exactly the case that they are making.”
Stewart continued…
“Don’t you use our jokes as evidence that the thing you hate must be stopped. Cause I’m sure when we joke about sh*t you like, you’re more than happy to ignore them.”
He then ended his segment in a song, with the main point being, “Go F*ck Yourself!”
Thanks to an incomplete report from CBS detailing the story of 56-year-old Florida resident Dianne Barrette, Fox thought they would use Barrette’s story to show the perils of Obamacare. But instead, Fox showed what CBS intentionally left out of their report.
Barrette’s story?
As reported by the main stream media Jan Crawford of CBS, Barrette received a letter from her insurance company telling her that they were cancelling her insurance plan mainly because of new regulations under Obamacare. Barrette told the network that on her old policy, her insurance bill was about $54 a month. But with the cancellation , her insurance company is offering her a new policy costing around$600 a month.
Eager to get this story out and prove that President Obama lied when he said, “if you like your present plan you can keep it,” Jan Crawford of CBS failed to do her basic research into the story. They put the story out for the masses and viola! Barrette’s story and her unfortunate situation with Obamacare was the talk of Conservative media.
If CBS was honest, they would have included that Barrette’s plan was garbage. She had no hospitalization coverage and any service she requested, her insurance only paid $50.00, leaving Barrette to cover the balance, whatever that balance was. This part of Berrette’s story was not told… until Berrette made a trip over to, of all places, Fox News.
In her interview on Fox, host Greta Van Susteren went out of character for a Fox employee. Sustern asked Berrette some basic questions and concluded that I’ll plan was indeed garbage. Greta all also concluded, that a better a plan might be available to Barrette on the Obamacare marketplace.
VAN SUSTEREN: I must say though that your policy is like, you know, if you are walking across the street and someone runs a red light, you are in deep trouble under your existing policy.
BARRETTE: That is true.
Stories like Barrette’s are being told all over conservative media, and unfortunately they’re following the CBS method of storytelling, leaving out vital information that will help consumers better understand the new healthcare law.
Why are all these people getting cancellation notices from their insurance companies?
Because of Obamacare. That’s the answer. But not because these are great policies, but because Obamacare has set a set of standards that all insurance policies must meet. And if a consumer like Barrette has a policy that doesn’t meet these new standards, then according to Obamacare, she is being shortchanged and the insurance company must offer her a policy that will actually help.
That doesn’t seem like a bad thing to me. Too bad CBS couldn’t tell the full story!
Gina Loudon, one of the brains at WotldNetDaily predicts that Obamacare will be so devastating, women, gun owners, veterans and gay people, will kill themselves in fear, thinking they will have to turn over personal information to the government.
As a behavioral expert, I have already heard from people that there is just certain information they don’t feel like they can discuss with a counselor any longer. From older people, I have heard that there are medical conditions they don’t feel they can discuss with their doctors for fear of it being disclosed. From constitutional experts, I have heard that Obamacare essentially leaves constitutional rights, especially the Bill of Rights, in tatters.
Liberty has eroded to such a degree that some wonder if it can ever be restored. But personal liberty, the bright light that distinguishes us as the freest nation of all time, has been permanently dimmed.
This administration has withheld health care without ever revoking a medical device. It has taken guns and lives without overturning the Second Amendment. It has caused suicides and deaths with only the weapon of Obamacare. It has made criminals of otherwise law-abiding citizens, while criminals go free. It has done all of this with the silent threat of what can happen under a system that gives more power to government than it has ever had before.
If you’re a gullible Republican, then you’re probably writing all this down. You’re expected to memorize this talking point and use it every chance you get.
For the sensible ones out there, carry on! Buy your healthcare, and may you live a long and healthy life.
We use cookies to improve your experience on our site. By agreeing to this, we can analyze browsing behavior and unique IDs on this site. Declining or revoking consent may affect certain features.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
