Liberty In Peril

                                                                                              formerly,

                                                                                       The Llano Ledger

Obamacare 1                                           4-29-16  And Continuing  ©2016 All Rights Reserved

4-14-17

The healthcare community is incapable of policing itself.  CBS News reports:

"A surgical assistant posing as a cosmetic surgeon in Colorado pleaded guilty to felony charges in court Friday, CBS Denver reports.  Carlos Hernandez Fernandez, 37, pleaded guilty to second degree assault and criminal impersonation -- both felony charges -- along with unauthorized practice of physician, a misdemeanor.  Hernandez Fernandez was arrested in August 2016 and accused of impersonating a doctor and performing procedures on unsuspecting women."

How can this happen?  Doctors at the facility, other hospital personnel, achingly clueless? Couldn't spot an impostor?  That incompetent?

“This was a man who was holding himself up to be a licensed doctor and he wasn’t, and he was performing surgery and procedures without a license,” Lynn Kimbrough with the Denver district attorney’s office said at the time of his arrest. Kimbrough said at least four women had “suffered serious bodily injury because of the procedures.”


4-14-17

In follow up to an earlier edition of this publication and elsewhere, CBS News reports:

"A Michigan sports doctor accused of sexually assaulting dozens of women and girls has lost his medical license for at least three years.  Larry Nassar must pay $100,000 if he reapplies. His license was revoked Thursday by Michigan regulators, three months after it was suspended."

Too little, much too late.  Criminal and civil cases remain pending against this charlatan.


3-31-17

The following is a throw back to what healthcare used to be.  Needs to return to.  Somewhere along the path, medical professionals lost their way.  Forgot that they take the Hippocratic Oath, not the hypocritical, self-serving one.  CBS News reports:

"It’s Friday morning in Boston, which means Dr. Jim O’Connell is making his rounds.  He might be a little more comfortable inside a warm exam room, but that’s not where his patients are. O’Connell is Boston’s only doctor left still making house calls to the homeless."

You read it right.  Stunning, isn't it?

"Nearly 600,000 Americans are homeless, and many have health problems with no access to care. O’Connell and his nationally renowned team of “street doctors” are doing something about it, treating about 700 regular patients."

Amazing, isn't it?  At a time of explosive cost increases in the cost of insurance, deductibles, co-pays, and exponential increases in the cost of 'services.'

"O’Connell and his team of psychologists and social workers spend their days walking around downtown where his patients live -- in parks, under bridges and on the outskirts of town."

Remember house calls?  Decades ago?

"During his morning rounds, O’Connell himself usually sees about 20 patients. He knows where most of his patients sleep and knows who to ask if they are missing.  “I feel like I’m a country doctor in the middle of the city, you know?” he said."

Imagine that.  Think this guy couldn't have more than lined his pockets?

"O’Connell went to Harvard Medical School at the age of 30. After finishing his residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, he was on his way to a prestigious oncology fellowship when the city of Boston received a grant, along with 18 other cities, to improve their health care system for the homeless."

Took the route far, far less traveled.  Placed desperately needed care ahead of personal financial gain.  Virtually unheard of any longer.

"At the suggestion of his chief, O’Connell took what was supposed to be a one-year position as the founding doctor of the new health care program for Boston’s homeless. That turned into a 32-year career as head of the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, now the country’s largest of its kind.  “You start to realize, ‘You know what, I’m just a doctor. And what I can do is I can get to know you and ease your suffering, just as I would as an oncologist,’” O’Connell said. “You could not find a more grateful population.”

Indeed.  There is desperate need for change in our formerly great country.  Not just in healthcare, but across the board.  We've lost our way.  At least, this exceptional doctor found his.  More need to do the same.  Not just in healthcare, but across all professions and trades.

"O’Connell said he doesn’t think about what life would be like as a highly paid oncologist.   “I never think about it anymore,” he said.  Some things are more valuable than money. Just ask the man who gets everything from patients who have nothing at all to give."

Hat's off, Doctor.  As well as to CBS News for telling the story.


3-10-17

Republican fascists in the House have finally come up with a plan to 'repeal and replace' Obamacare.  No one is happy.  Republicans remain far from united.  Democrats, ferociously opposed.  NPR reports:

"The Republican plan to reshape the Affordable Care Act — what they call "repeal and replace" — kills the requirement that everyone buy health insurance by eliminating the tax penalty for those who don't have coverage. It also makes significant changes in the financial assistance people can receive to buy a health plan."

Guts financial assistance.  Does nothing to rein in provider greed.  Will certainly benefit the top 1% off the backs of the middle class and those on the bottom of the food chain.  All, cleverly designed to provide tax breaks to the top of the food chain, -- at a time of record corporate profits and cash reserves.  No question, the American Way.

"The bill would offer tax credits, refundable in advance, to people with incomes below $75,000. But those credits will be lower in many cases than the subsidies now offered in the ACA."

How else can the top 1% so easily line their bottomless pockets?  Off the backs of the middle class and the bottom.

"Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., and Richard Neal, D-Mass., the ranking Democrats on the Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means committee issued a joint statement saying the bill would "rip healthcare away from millions of Americans, ration care for working families and put insurance companies back in charge."

Indeed, that's true.  Forget?  It's a determinedly zero-sum, winner-take-all game Republican nazis play.  Have become so proficient at.  ... Right, TL?

"But it's far from clear that Republicans in the House are unified in their support of the bill. Members of the far-right Freedom Caucus have said they oppose giving tax credits to people who don't pay any federal income tax."

This, despite the fact these goddamned GOP nazis and their corporate benefactors 'make' their money off the backs of the bottom and middle class.  That is, they steal it.  Unlivable wages.  Shoddy overpriced products that aren't worth a shit.  Energy, food, and healthcare costs cleverly designed to gouge.  The list can go on and on.  ... Right, TL?

"And with only a slim majority in the Senate, only a few Republican defections could defeat the bill there."

Makes your heart bleed, doesn't it?  Insult to injury?  Get this:

"Four Republican senators wrote a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying they were concerned an early draft of the House plan would not adequately protect people who have insurance through Obamacare's Medicaid expansion. And Sen. Rand Paul was among three conservative Republicans who criticized an earlier version of the bill as "Obamacare lite."

Imagine that.  Couldn't be, could it?

"Under the proposed bill, tax credits would start at $2,000 a year for individuals under age 30, rising to $4,000 for those over 60. The proposal, first seen in a Feb. 10 draft of the bill, has been criticized as too meager to cover the full cost of a health insurance plan that provides full benefits."

Full benefits?  Don't exist other than for members of Congress, the corporate management suite, and others in the top 1% of the food chain.  The GOP plan would go nowhere near sufficiently subsidizing truly worthless plans for the masses that include enormous deductibles.  Forget?  The insurance middle men exponentially drive up the cost of care, -- to line their bottomless pockets.  How else can these bastards so easily enrich themselves?

"But the proposed tax credits could potentially pay for insurance that protects only against a catastrophic health event."

Generous of the GOP nazis, isn't it?  They get theirs, you get f--ked.  The American Way.

The GOP plan also defunds Planned Parenthood.  The Washington Times reports:

"Planned Parenthood has firmly rejected a proposal by President Trump offering to preserve federal funding for the women’s health organization if it stopped providing abortion services."

The Trump nazi and his henchmen simply can't accept the fact abortion is a constitutional right as affirmed by the Supreme Court.  The Trump nazi, his henchmen, and fascists in the Republican Party remain hell bent on eviscerating the First Amendment Establishment Clause, church-state separation, that is, freedom from religion.  In direct violation of their oaths of office to protect and defend the United States Constitution.

"Mr. Trump reportedly confirmed Monday to The New York Times that an informal proposal was made to Planned Parenthood offering to maintain federal funding — about $500 million each year — if the organization ended abortion procedures. Sources told the newspaper that White House officials even suggested there could be an increase in that funding if they accepted the deal."

Mr. Trump remains an achingly delusional, duplicitous nazi.  What else would be expected of this goddamned misogynist fascist?

"Dawn Laguens, Planned Parenthood’s executive vice president and chief brand officer, told The Times that no federal funds are used to pay for abortions.  “Offering money to Planned Parenthood to abandon our patients and our values is not a deal that we will ever accept,” she said. “Providing critical health care services for millions of American women is nonnegotiable.”

F--k the nazi Republican Party.  National socialists, fascists.  Remain an exigent threat to all civil and constitutional rights and liberties.  ... Right, TL?

Have to admire Planned Parenthood for indeed standing tall against the Trump nazi:

“Planned Parenthood is proud to provide abortion—a necessary service that’s as vital to our mission as birth control or cancer screenings,” she tweeted. “We won’t back down in the face of threats or intimidation, or turn our backs on the patients who count on us. Not today, tomorrow, not ever.”

Indeed.

"In a longer statement, Ms. Richards said, “The White House proposal that Planned Parenthood stop providing abortion is the same demand opponents of women’s health have been pushing for decades, as a part of their longstanding effort to end women’s access to safe, legal abortion. Planned Parenthood has always stood strong against these attacks on our patients and their ability to access the full range of reproductive health care. We are glad that the White House understands that taking away the preventive care Planned Parenthood provides is deeply unpopular and would be a disaster for women’s health care.”

    "Fact: Federal funds do not pay for abortion. At Planned Parenthood, we don’t agree with this harmful policy—but it’s the law & we follow it.
    — Cecile Richards (@CecileRichards) March 6, 2017"

Never, ever, never confuse the Trump nazi, his henchmen, and fascists in the Republican Party with the truth.  Remain too damned aggressively stupid, hopelessly ignorant.  -- Not that the goddamned Democrats are any better, however.  Where the hell have they been since the assassination of JFK?  Where?

Interesting quote from Fox News:

"In a response to the report of the proposal, Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards says the group "will always stand for women's ability to make decisions about their health and lives, without interference from politicians."

Indeed.  Quite amazingly, the Trump nazi was for abortion rights before he was against them.

The following is highly indicative of the abject cluelessness, Aryan arrogance, bottomless haughtiness of Republican nazis.  Get this.  ABC News reports:

"Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, suggested that low-income Americans may need to make a choice between buying a new cellphone and purchasing health care while speaking to CNN on Tuesday, “Americans have choices and they’ve got to make a choice,” Chaffetz said on CNN’s “New Day.” “And so maybe rather than getting that new iPhone that they just love and [they] want to go spend hundreds of dollars on that, maybe they should invest in their own health care."  He continued, "They’ve got to make those decisions themselves."

The poor and lower middle class don't buy smartphones, you clueless piece of GOP human excrement.  They can't afford to.  Even if they could, the cost of a smartphone is a tiny fraction of the cost of health insurance, you diabolical, haughty piece of shit.  When are you and your committee going to provide the Trump nazi the same investigative treatment you afforded Hillary Clinton when she was secretary of state?  You remain no more than a partisan piece of crap, Congressman.  Like the Trump nazi, out of touch with reality.

NBC News reports:

"They rarely agree on much, but health care experts on the left, right and center of the political spectrum have found consensus on the House GOP's Obamacare replacement: It won't work.  While their objections vary depending on their ideological goals, the newly introduced American Health Care Act (AHCA) is facing an unrelenting wave of criticism. Some experts warn that the bill is flawed in ways that could unravel the individual insurance market.  The bill, experts said, falls far short of the goals President Donald Trump laid out: Affordable coverage for everyone; lower deductibles and health care costs; better care; and zero cuts to Medicaid. Instead, the bill is almost certain to reduce overall coverage, result in deductibles increasing, and will phase out Obamacare's Medicaid expansion."

This, coming from Left, Center, and Right.

"It's very likely people will lose insurance coverage if the GOP plan became law, taking full effect in 2020. Possibly a lot of people.  Like any health care bill, including the current system, there are winners and losers within this shift. In general, younger and higher-income people looking for insurance on the individual market are poised to gain. Older, sicker and lower-income patients are the bigger losers."

The Republican Way, isn't it?  Reverse Robin Hood.  Steal from the bottom and middle class, give it to the rich.


3-10-17

Republican national socialists routinely place profit ahead of principle.  Profit trumps human tragedy.  ABC News reports:

"An author fighting ovarian cancer who may not have long to live has offered up her husband in a tear-jerking essay: "If you're looking for a dreamy, let's-go-for-it travel companion, Jason is your man."  Amy Krouse Rosenthal described her illness and her marriage in a "Modern Love" column published Friday in the New York Times. It didn't take long for her essay to go viral online.  Rosenthal, 51, wrote that she's gone weeks without real food and falls asleep mid-sentence because of the morphine she needs. Despite feeling weak, she said she had to write the essay while she still could, because she wanted him to fall in love again after she is gone."

Human tragedies, like the above, could be ameliorated, -- if our priorities went vastly beyond accumulation of wealth.  ... Ever see a hitch on the back of a hearse?

"He is a sharp dresser," Rosenthal wrote. "Our young adult sons, Justin and Miles, often borrow his clothes. Those who know him — or just happen to glance down at the gap between his dress slacks and dress shoes — know that he has a flair for fabulous socks. He is fit and enjoys keeping in shape."

Have to wonder how her husband reacted.  Had to have been devastated.

"Rosenthal, who has authored two dozen children's picture books and a recent memoir, said she has been married to Jason Rosenthal for 26 years. She lives in Chicago, according to her website .  She wrote that on Sept. 5, 2015 — when their daughter had just left for college, making them empty-nesters, they went to the emergency room, believing she had appendicitis. Instead, it was ovarian cancer."

When will we finally get our priorities straight?  This horrendous disease should have long since been conquered.  Instead, we fight war after war to line the pockets of the corporate management suite, shareholders, and their bought and paid for lackeys at all levels and branches of government.

Kicker?

"If he sounds like a prince and our relationship seems like a fairy tale, it's not too far off, except for all of the regular stuff that comes from two and a half decades of playing house together," she wrote. "And the part about me getting cancer. Blech."


3-3-17

The pharmaceutical community continues to gouge the sick and dying.  CBS News reports:

"More than 29 million Americans live with diabetes, and for some six million of them, insulin is a life or death medication."

Didn't stop the greedy bastards from increasing the looting:

"Between 2002 and 2013, the price of insulin more than tripled, to more than $700 per patient. A federal lawsuit accuses the three insulin manufacturers of conspiring to raise their prices. The drug makers deny the allegations."

As usual, the hopelessly greedy bastards are lying.

"Those high prices, combined with rising insurance deductibles, mean many people who rely on insulin are feeling sticker shock. Even doctors say without a way to pay, some patients are left facing impossible choices, reports CBS News correspondent Anna Werner."

As in the following:

"Like 74-year-old Kathleen Washington. Some months, her insulin runs over $300 a month – more than she can afford.   “I must pay my mortgage,” Washington said.  If it’s a choice between the mortgage and the insulin, “It’s going to be the mortgage,” she said."


3-3-17

Ever hear of Dr. Larry Nassar?  This son of a bitch has been in the news quite some time.  NBC News reports:

"The Michigan doctor accused of molesting dozens of former patients was hit Wednesday with a slew of new sex-abuse charges — the latest development in a scandal that has rocked the Olympic gymnastics world and one of America's biggest universities.  "This guy is disgusting. This guy is despicable," Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said as he announced the new charges against Dr. Larry Nassar.  "He is a monster."

The question to be asked is how did this go on as long as it did?

"Schuette filed 22 counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree linked to nine victims; two were under age 13 when they were allegedly abused. Nassar's attorneys declined to comment on the new charges.  "Dr. Nassar preyed on these young girls, just little girls," Schuette said. "Dr. Nassar used his status and authority to engage in horrid sexual assaults under the guise of medical procedures."  In graphic detail, the court documents outline how Nassar, without gloves or permission, allegedly penetrated the girls with his fingers at his office and a local gym."

No nurse or other chaperone present?  Why not?

"Police said more than 80 women and girls have filed complaints against Nassar and more accusers are coming forward by the day, and Schuette asked anyone who thinks they were abused to contact authorities. He said there will "absolutely" be more charges as police work their way through the mountain of reports."

Where were the parents?  This is horrendous behavior.

"Last week, a Michigan judge ordered Nassar to stand trial on a charge of molesting a family friend, starting when she was 6 years old, after a preliminary hearing where the victim described how he turned games of hide-and-seek into abuse sessions. "Almost every time I was there, for a couple of years, something occurred," the woman, now 25, testified as Nassar sat stone-faced in striped jail garb."

Classical pedophilia.

"He is being held without bail on federal charges of possession of child pornography: at least 37,000 images and GoPro video that allegedly showed him groping girls in a pool. Last week, he was indicted on a new federal charge of trying to destroy evidence for allegedly erasing and trashing hard drives that were found in a garbage bin only because sanitation pickup ran late."

How can this go on for years and no one knows other than the victims?  Especially, in the last two decades when this problem has come front and center?

"Some lawsuits also name famed coaches Bela and Marta Karolyi because abuse allegedly took place under their watch at their Texas training facility, known as "the ranch." The Karolyis deny any role in or knowledge of abuse and said they were unaware of complaints against Nassar until recently."

That's difficult to believe.

"Nassar, 53, has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges. His attorneys have said any procedures he performed were accepted osteopathic medicine practices."

Is that right?  Think so?  Consider the following from CBS News:

"More than 60 women have filed complaints so far, and some believe that number may reach into the hundreds.  Now, for the first time, three former members of U.S. national teams, one an Olympic medalist, describe – in what you should be warned is disturbing detail –the treatment they received from Dr. Lawrence Nassar – a man they trusted and felt so comfortable with, they called him, “Larry.”

"The following is a script from “USA Gymnastics,” which aired on Feb. 19, 2017. Dr. Jon LaPook is the correspondent. Andy Court and Sarah Fitzpatrick, producers. Deborah Rubin, associate producer."

Fair warning.  The following excerpt is exceptionally tough reading:

"Jamie Dantzscher says she started seeing Dr. Nassar around 1995, after she became a member of the U.S. junior national team.  Jamie Dantzscher: I started having really bad lower back pain on my right side on my back. So I went to him for my back pain.

"Jon LaPook: What specifically would he do?

"Jamie Dantzscher: He would put his fingers inside of me and move my leg around. He would tell me I was going to feel a pop. And that that would put my hips back and help my back pain.

"Jon LaPook: How old were you then when he first did that procedure?

"Jamie Dantzscher: I was either 13 or 14."

Think that proper osteopathic medical practice?

"Jessica Howard: I was 15 years old and I had a hip problem. A very severe hip problem. And  USA Gymnastics suggested that I go to the Karolyi Ranch to work with their doctor."

"The Karolyi ranch outside Houston, Texas, is a mecca for elite gymnasts who have given up any semblance of normal childhood to pursue their Olympic dreams.  Run by the legendary coaches Bela and Martha Karolyi, it’s where members of the U.S. national team for artistic gymnastics come roughly once a month for several days of intensive training.  The girls stayed in cabins on the property, and Dr. Nassar would be there to provide medical treatment."

The above is precisely why it's difficult to believe the Karolyis didn't know what was going on.

"Jessica Howard:  He started massaging me. And-- he had asked me not to wear any underwear. And then he just continued to go into more and more intimate places.

"Jon LaPook: And when that happened, what, what was going through your head?

"Jessica Howard: I remember thinking something was off but I didn’t feel like I was able to say anything because he was, you know, this very high-profile doctor. And I was very lucky to be at the ranch working with him."

The above sound like proper osteopathic medical practice?  No nurse or other chaperone present?  What does that tell you?  Must not be forgotten these women were kids when this abuse occurred.  Where were their parents?

"Dr. Nassar has pled not guilty to the charges against him in Michigan. In a statement from his lawyers, he has defended his treatment as legitimate. There is a rare therapy for back and hip pain where specialists massage areas inside the vagina. But for a minor, it’s expected such a procedure should involve a chaperone and use of a glove."

Not only for a minor, but women as well.  What male doctor conducts such 'procedures' on any female without a chaperone present and gloved?

"Jon LaPook: Did he use a glove?

"Jamie Dantzscher: No.

"Jon LaPook: And how many times did you have this kind of a procedure?

"Jamie Dantzscher: I mean, it happened all the way to the Olympics in Sydney, till I was 18.

"Jon LaPook: From the time you were around 13 or so until 18?

"Jamie Dantzscher: Yes.

"Jon LaPook: And it was just-- in your mind, normal medical treatment?

"[Jamie makes expression]

"John Manly: You’ve got a 52-year-old man placing his hand in the vagina of nine-year-olds ungloved for no good reason. Wrong.

"California attorney John Manly represents the women we interviewed and more than 40 others – one as young as 9 years-old, and most under 18 at the time they say they were abused."


3-3-17

Serious problems like the above remain throughout the healthcare industry.  Consider the following.  CBS News reports:

"Authorities say a Pennsylvania nurse recorded videos of naked female patients.  Lower Makefield police say 45-year-old James Close, of Abington, who works at Penn Medicine Dermatology, was arrested on Feb. 13 after a 17-year-old patient noticed a phone on the ground had been recording her while naked."

Couldn't be, could it?  Think more careful vetting of personnel would eliminate ongoing issues like the above?  Don't bet on it.

"Investigators say they found more than a dozen videos on the suspect’s phone of the underage girl and other patients after obtaining a search warrant.  Police say the videos date from Jan. 18 until Feb 13."

Pitiful.  Think this shit didn't go on well before that?

“It’s very disturbing. You have a trust with people in the medical profession,” said Matt Weintraub, Bucks County District Attorney."

That's the problem.  Unbridled trust.  Not only with doctors, -- many of whom consider themselves gods, but the rest of the healthcare industry as well.  All these professionals are no more than overpaid technicians.  You are ultimately in charge of your care, not them.

“We are appalled by the action of this former employee and we are cooperating fully with the investigation,” said Susan Phillips, a spokeswoman for Penn Medicine."

A politically correct statement, but remains severely lacking.  How did this go on as long as it did without being discovered?  How?


2-24-17

The following story is appalling.  Hard to believe it can occur as long as it did.  CBS News reports:

"Former neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch has been sentenced to life in prison for a series of botched spinal surgeries, reports CBS Dallas."

Clearly, regulation of the healthcare industry is nowhere near sufficient or effective as necessary.  Under the Trump nazi, who callously embraces little to no regulation, this problem will likely not only continue but worsen.

"It only took a jury an hour to give Duntsch to the maximum penalty.  Thirty-two patients in all were involved. Two were killed and two were paralyzed.  The district attorney’s office called it an historic case with respect to prosecuting a doctor who had done wrong during surgery."

How did it go on this long undetected?  Where were his colleagues who had to have known this was going on?  What responsibility do they share for this atrocity?

“This is a great day,” said Dallas County DA Faith Johnson during a news conference shortly after the verdict. “We have done something historic. We are so elated about the life sentence.”

Where have you been all this time, Counselor?  None of this happened overnight.

"The former North Texas neurosurgeon was convicted of intentionally injuring the patients he was supposed to be helping."

You think?

“Really, who he is was someone who called himself a cold blooded killer,” said Justin McCants of the Dallas County DA’s Office. “Someone who calls himself a god at times. Who believed he was a god at times.”

Again, how did this go on for as long as it did?  How will you prevent this from ever happening again?


2-24-17

Yet, another wake up call. The Washington Post reports:

"President Trump’s embrace of discredited theories linking vaccines to autism has energized the anti-vaccine movement. Once fringe, the movement is becoming more popular, raising doubts about basic childhood health care among politically and geographically diverse groups."

This presents an exigent health threat to the public.  To all of us.  Especially, children.

"Public health experts warn that this growing movement is threatening one of the most successful medical innovations of modern times. Globally, vaccines prevent the deaths of about 2.5 million children every year, but deadly diseases such as measles and whooping cough still circulate in populations where enough people are unvaccinated."


2-24-17

Another wake up call.  ABC News reports:

"A former employee of Tiffany & Co. says the jewelry maker pushed her out after she had her breasts and ovaries removed to avoid getting cancer.  Lisa O'Rourke alleges in a federal lawsuit that the New York-based company discriminated against her because she carries a gene mutation that put her at high risk for developing cancer, and she was compelled to have surgeries that her lawyer says were life-saving.  Tiffany is fighting the lawsuit, filed in November in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, and said it believes the allegations are "completely without merit."

We'll see.  Consider the following:

"She took a leave to have her ovaries and breasts removed in January and February 2014, and said she told Tiffany there would be more surgeries down the line.  She returned to work that May, she said. When time came for a third surgery in July, she said she was initially asked to reschedule and told she did not have enough accrued time to take more leave under the Family Medical Leave Act, but was eventually told her job would be held. She returned to work the next month after an unpaid leave.  That October, she alerted the company she would need another leave for the fourth surgery. A month later, she was told her job was being eliminated. She said she was offered a different job with less compensation and responsibility, but she declined it."

Fascinating, isn't it?

"Her lawyer said it's a case of discrimination due to her genetic condition.  "They needed to make reasonable accommodations," Kathleen Hagerty said.  The lawsuit asks for unspecified punitive damages, back pay and attorney's fees.   O'Rourke said she's not in it for the money, but is motivated in part by her two daughters, who have a 50 percent chance of inheriting the gene mutation."

This is the same preventative surgery Angelina Jolie chose to have.

"If they do inherit this gene, they will someday decide how they want to proceed, and I would be heartbroken if they had to endure the same type of discrimination that I did," she said. "At a time when one should focus on getting better, I had the added worry of losing my job and not being able to financially support my family."

A woman should be free to choose without having to worry about her employer.


2-24-17

Once in awhile, the courts get it right.  As a strong supporter of the Second Amendment, was nonetheless supremely offensive to this writer when Republican fascists desperately tried to muzzle physicians in Florida from asking clients about guns in the home.  First, it is a free speech issue.  Second, the way to approach this issue is to quickly inform a doctor it is none of his or her goddamned business.  Offensive free speech countered with additional offensive free speech.  LOL.

The reason for doing this is the fact a record is kept of anything you tell a physician.  That information is stored digitally.  Making it ripe for hacking, sharing with government jackbooted goons, the corporate management suite, etc..  Get denied a job?  Insurance coverage?  Think it might not have been for what you told or did not tell a physician?  Wake up.

NPR reports:

"A federal appeals court says doctors in Florida must be allowed to discuss guns with their patients, striking down portions of a Florida law that restricts what physicians can say to patients about firearm ownership.  In a 10-1 decision, the full panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the law, known as the Privacy of Firearm Owners act, violates the First Amendment rights of doctors."

Indeed, it does.  Yet, such inquiry by a physician is offensive.  Resist.  Do so ferociously, but peacefully.  -- If the physician doesn't like it, find another doctor.  You are in charge of your healthcare.  Not the physician.  He or she is no more than an overpaid consultant.  Forget?  You run the show. Not the doctor.

"The National Rifle Association, which lobbied for the law's passage, has weighed in on the legal fight. As The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported, the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action sent members a letter about the case in 2015.  "Physicians interrogating and lecturing parents and children about guns is not about gun safety," the letter read. "It is a political agenda to ban guns. Parents do not take their children to physicians for a political lecture against the ownership of firearms, they go there for medical care."

Indeed, that's true.  Simply tell an offending doctor thanks for your concern, but it's none of your goddamned business.

"The decision upheld a portion of the law that explicitly prevents doctors from discriminating against patients who own guns."

If there is resultant discrimination, find an attorney and sue the living shit out of the bastard.  They'll quickly get the message.


2-24-17

The intentional glaring lack of transparency regarding pricing in the healthcare industry extends to the funeral business.  NPR reports:

"In a months-long investigation into pricing and marketing in the funeral business, also known as the death care industry, NPR spoke with funeral directors, consumers and regulators. We collected price information from around the country and visited providers. We found a confusing, unhelpful system that seems designed to be impenetrable by average consumers, who must make costly decisions at a time of grief and financial stress."

This is no more than intentional looting of the public.  Blatant gouging.  Rampant not only in the death industry, but in healthcare as well.  Bottomless, unbridled greed.

"Funeral homes often aren't forthcoming about how much things cost, or embed the information in elaborate package deals that can drive up the price of saying goodbye to loved ones."

The bloodsucking bastards are amoral.  That is, have no morals at all.

"While most funeral businesses have websites, most omit prices from the sites, making it more difficult for families to compare prices or shop around. NPR reporters also found it difficult to get prices from many funeral homes, and federal regulators routinely find the homes violating a law that requires price disclosures."

The same occurs in the healthcare industry, -- with the exception that the healthcare industry is unfettered with having to disclose pricing.

"A federal regulation called the Funeral Rule is supposed to protect consumers who have lost loved ones. Among other things, it requires funeral businesses to provide potential customers with clear price information.  But an NPR investigation found that the rule goes only so far in protecting consumers, and that its promise of transparency often goes unfulfilled."

Why isn't the law enforced?  Government lackeys bribed to look the other way?


2-10-17

Growing discontent within the GOP vis a vis Obamacare.  CNN reports:

"Donald Trump vowed as a candidate to kill Obamacare in short order. But more than two weeks into his presidency, some Republicans are starting to ask: What happened to repealing the law quickly?  The sentiment is beginning to simmer within the influential conservative wing of the Republican Party and hints at what could be the opening of an intra-party rift as the GOP's mission to overhaul the country's health care system appears to be losing steam."

Happening for good reason.  Republican national socialists have no viable replacement.

Subsequent to writing the above, CBS News reports:

"President Trump is giving an extended timeline for when his administration could be expected to roll out a new plan to replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), former President Obama’s landmark healthcare legislation.   In an interview with Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly that aired Sunday, Mr. Trump made the vague assertion that it could take “’til sometime into next year.”

Again, the Trump nazi is stalling for time, moving the goal posts and delaying implementation since he and his henchmen still have no clue:

"Asked if Americans could expect a replacement plan in 2017, the president said, “yes, in the process and maybe it’ll take till sometime into next year but we’re certainly going to be in the process.”   He added that it’s “very complicated,” but urged Americans to remember that “Obamacare is a disaster.”

Certainly, turned out to be since national socialists in the GOP would not allow a single payer system.  ... A system that's worked remarkably well in Canada and Europe.

“Obamacare doesn’t work so we are putting in a wonderful plan,” Mr. Trump said."

What's that, precisely, Mr. 'President?'  Still no clue?

“It statutorily takes a while to get.  We’re going to be putting it in fairly soon. I think that yes, I would like to say by the end of the year -- at least the rudiments -- but we should have something within the year and the following year.”

Fascinating, isn't it?

So is the take from NPR:

"When it comes to health care, it seems that President Trump is learning that same lesson. Trump and Republicans in Congress are struggling with how to keep their double-edged campaign promise — to repeal Obamacare without leaving millions of people without health insurance.  During the campaign, Trump promised to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act immediately upon taking office. Last month, in an interview with The Washington Post, he said he had a replacement law "very much formulated down to the final strokes."  But on Sunday, he dialed back those expectations in an interview with Fox News."

Indeed, he did.  Think his rabidly clueless populist supporters will approve?

"It's in the process and maybe it will take till sometime into next year, but we are certainly going to be in the process. It's very complicated," Trump said.  He repeated his claim that Obamacare has been "a disaster" and said his replacement would be a "wonderful plan" that would take time "statutorily" to put in place. And then he hedged the timing again.  "I would like to say by the end of the year, at least the rudiments," he said.  Trump's recent hesitation comes as Republicans in Congress tame their rhetoric surrounding the health care law."

Think this will sit well with his sick sycophants?  The dopey bastards who voted for this piece of shit?  Not that Hillary was a better choice, however.  At least, moreover, she wasn't a national socialist like the Trump nazi.

Physicians have an interesting take on the pending healthcare crisis.  NBC News reports:

"Congress should improve Obamacare without taking away what's best about it, doctors said Thursday.  Doctors who treat women and children, as well as general practitioners, made a daylong dive across Senate offices to make the case for keeping important aspects of the Affordable Care Act.  And they rebuked Republicans in Congress for talking up repeal without having a plan for replacement in place."

Should Republicans fail to provide a viable replacement immediately upon repeal, they will not be returned to office.  Providers will see an egregious loss of income.  The sick and dying will suffer even more than they already are.  So will their families.

"Currently insured individuals should not lose their coverage as a result of any action or inaction by policymakers," five medical organizations said in a statement released as part of the lobbying push.  "Acceptable reform must continue to ensure access to comprehensive, safe, and affordable care," said Dr. Thomas Gellhaus, president of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists."

Sadly, Obamacare came nowhere close to providing this.  One of the reasons?  Endless provider greed.


2-3-17

The medical community is not happy with the Trump nazi's immigration executive orders.  NBC News reports:

"President Donald Trump's new immigration orders are harmful and will worsen the plight of children fleeing for their lives, pediatricians said Wednesday.  And they will scare the children of immigrants already living in the country, causing toxic stress, the American Academy of Pediatrics said in a strongly worded statement.  "The Executive Orders signed today are harmful to immigrant children and families throughout our country," AAP President Fernando Stein said. "Many of the children who will be most affected are the victims of unspeakable violence and have been exposed to trauma.  "Children do not immigrate, they flee," Stein said. "They are coming to the U.S. seeking safe haven in our country and they need our compassion and assistance. Broad scale expansion of family detention only exacerbates their suffering."

The Trump nazi and his henchmen couldn't care less about the human toll.  Forget?  No nazi does.  Yet, these pieces of shit claim to be Christians.


2-3-17

Trouble in paradise?  Republicans are profoundly conflicted vis a vis replacement of Obamacare. The Washington Post reports:

"Republican lawmakers aired sharp concerns about their party’s quick push to repeal the Affordable Care Act inside a closed-door meeting Thursday, according to a recording of the session obtained by The Washington Post.  The recording reveals a GOP that appears to be filled with doubts about how to make good on a long-standing promise to get rid of Obamacare without explicit guidance from President Trump or his administration."

Say what?  Not all on the same page?  Haven't long since worked it out?  Need guidance from the Trump nazi?  A thieving son of a bitch who's looted unpaid contractors to build his business empire, fleeced students at Trump University, used Trump Foundation funds to line his pockets?

"Senators and House members expressed a range of concerns about the task ahead: how to prepare a replacement plan that can be ready to launch at the time of repeal; how to avoid deep damage to the health insurance market; how to keep premiums affordable for middle-class families; even how to avoid the political consequences of defunding Planned Parenthood, the women’s health-care organization, as many Republicans hope to do with the repeal of the ACA."

As bad as Obamacare truly is, Republicans have no clue.  Think hard.  Harder.  If middlemen are involved, a.k.a. insurance companies, you exponentially increase cost of care.  Forget?  The insurance cartel corporate management suite has to handsomely line its pockets and those of shareholders.  Coupled with the greed of providers, this is precisely why Obamacare is on the skids.

The GOP can't seem to understand the only viable solution to this problem is single payer universal coverage.  As in Canada and Europe.  It is the only way to rein in bottomless provider greed.  Again, precisely, one of the principle reasons Obamacare is failing.  Equally pointedly?  Proof positive there is no such thing as a 'free' market.

That concept is a ruse implemented by the corporate management suite to line its pockets, while hopelessly deceiving a gullible, aggressively stupid, achingly ignorant public.  To provide the illusion that consumers some way, some how have some meaningful control of their lives.  For all practical purposes, they don't.

-- Too busy just trying to survive one day to the next.  The market is owned, operated, manipulated by those with the wealth.  To line their pockets.  Get their cookies off abusing power.

“We’d better be sure that we’re prepared to live with the market we’ve created [with repeal],” said Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.). “That’s going to be called Trumpcare. Republicans will own that lock, stock and barrel, and we’ll be judged in the election less than two years away.”

Indeed.  Long-term readers will recall this point has been repeatedly made in this publication and elsewhere.


2-3-17

At the root of the problem above is endless corporate greed by providers.  So well insinuated into the system that only a single payer can ultimately remedy the problem.  Precisely, why healthcare works so incredibly well in Canada and Europe.  When GOP nazis claim otherwise, they're lying.  NPR reports:

"The long arm of the pharmaceutical industry continues to pervade practically every area of medicine, reaching those who write guidelines that shape doctors' practices, patient advocacy organizations, letter writers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and even oncologists on Twitter, according to a series of papers on money and influence published Tuesday in JAMA Internal Medicine."

This has to end.  The proverbial back of corporate greed has to be broken.

"The findings of the papers provide further evidence showing how conflicts of interest help shape health care, a subject ProPublica has explored through its Dollars for Docs series since 2010. (Check whether your physician receives money from drug or device companies through ProPublica's search tool.)"

Entire system reeks.  Desperately needs revamp top to bottom, bottom to top.  Won't happen with GOP national socialists ruling the Oval Office, Congress, and the courts.  Just more of the same.  ... Until the house of cards collapses.


2-3-17

Further proof of the above?  GOP nazis in Arkansas are again stupidly, figuratively shooting themselves in the ass.  ABC News reports:

"Arkansas is poised to become the third state to ban a commonly used second-trimester abortion procedure under restrictions lawmakers approved Thursday that are expected to face a legal challenge.  The majority-GOP Senate voted 25-6 to ban the procedure known as dilation and evacuation, which abortion-rights supporters contend is the safest and most common procedure used in second-trimester abortions. The legislation now goes to the desk of Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who said he will sign it into law as soon as Thursday afternoon."

These goddamned Republican nazis never seem to tire of forcing their outrageously perverse ideological and religious views on all.  In direct violation of the First Amendment Establishment Clause, that is, church-state separation, freedom fromreligion.  These haughty GOP self-righteous fascist bastards insist on practicing medicine without a license.  Yet, keep getting returned to office.


1-13-17

Republicans will be in for some rough sledding vis a vis repeal of Obamacare.  Get this.  NPR reports:

"An overwhelming majority of people disapprove of Republican lawmakers' plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act without having a ready replacement for the health care law, according to a poll released Friday."

Fascinating, isn't it?

"And judging by the letter-writing and lobbying in the first week of the new congressional session, many health care and business groups agree.

"A poll released Friday by the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that 75 percent of Americans say they either want lawmakers to leave Obamacare alone, or repeal it only when they can replace it with a new health care law. Twenty percent of those polled say they want to see the law killed immediately.  But Drew Altman, CEO of the Kaiser Family Foundation, says the poll shows lawmakers don't have a strong mandate to repeal Obamacare."

If the GOP is not extremely careful about how they repeal the Act, they won't be returned to office.

"Most of the American people said they're either against repealing it or they're against repealing it unless Republicans put a replacement plan on the table," Altman says. "They want to see what comes next before they see the ACA repealed."  Americans are about equally divided over whether Congress should repeal Obamacare, the poll shows. But of the 48 percent who want the law rolled back, about 60 percent want lawmakers to wait until they have an alternative plan."

There is no way Obamacare would have ultimately succeeded.  The Act failed to rein in profound provider greed.  Think the ultimate solution won't be single payer?  Has worked well in Canada and Europe.  Certainly, according to care recipients there.  Not so, to GOP nazis who wish to continue to line the pockets of their corporate masters.

"And Obamacare isn't even people's top health care concern. The vast majority — 67 percent — say their top priority is finding a way to lower their health care costs."

That view certainly reinforces the need for a single payer system.  ... Since insurance companies must line their pockets and those of shareholders.  Act as middle men, raising the cost of care.

"The poll findings come just days after Republicans in the Senate took the first step toward repealing President Obama's signature health care law. They voted on Wednesday to move ahead with a budget resolution that will allow them to take funding away from Obamacare, which will effectively gut the law because the subsidies to buy insurance, and the penalties for not doing so, will disappear."

Interesting, isn't it?  The GOP seems intent on causing a crisis, despite the fact patience would have resulted in the ultimate failure of Obamcare, -- of its own weight.

One GOP lawmaker got more than she bargained for.  CBS News reports:

"A Republican congresswoman’s Obamacare poll didn’t turn out the way she likely hoped it would."

Indeed, it didn't.

"Tennessee Rep. Marsha Blackburn, a stalwart critic of the Affordable Care Act, tweeted out the poll on Tuesday:

    "Do you support the repeal of Obamacare? RT if you do, and share what you want to see as the replacement.
    — Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) January 3, 2017

"And by the time it was over, nearly eight thousand respondents had overwhelmingly voted “no” and in favor of keeping the law, which is on the chopping block in the new Congress."

This is precisely why Republicans better have a replacement ready to go upon repeal.  Otherwise, they likely won't be returned to office.

In follow up to the above, Trump now says they will.  We'll see.


12-30-16

Yet another indication Obamacare is failing?  Abject aggressive stupidity of federal officials?  NPR reports:

"The federal government will pay more than $100,000 to give someone a kidney transplant, but after three years, the government will often stop paying for the drugs needed to keep that transplanted kidney alive."

Only in America.


12-23-16

Obamacare remains on the ropes.  The Washington Times reports:

"Taxpayers will dole out nearly $10 billion more next year to help people buy Obamacare health care plans through the insurance exchanges, according to a study released Thursday that highlighted the spiraling costs of President Obama’s signature achievement."

This failed law does absolutely nothing to rein in bottomless provider greed.  One of the reasons why it's failing.

"The federal government will spend $42.6 billion to subsidize customers’ Obamacare plans, up from $32.8 billion this year, the Center for Health and Economy said, amid widespread questions over the law’s ability to survive."

It won't.  Can't.


12-23-16

Interestingly, a carefully constructed study indicated the obvious.  Female physicians provide better care.  NPR reports:

"In a study that is sure to rile male doctors, Harvard researchers have found that female doctors who care for elderly hospitalized patients get better results. Patients cared for by women were less likely to die or return to the hospital after discharge."

That comes as a surprise?  How?

"Previous research has shown that female doctors are more likely to follow recommendations about prevention counseling and to order preventive tests like Pap smears and mammograms.  But the latest work, published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine, is the first to show a big difference in the result that matters most to patients: life or death.  The study's authors estimate "that approximately 32,000 fewer patients would die if male physicians could achieve the same outcomes as female physicians every year."

Why should that come as a surprise?  Female physicians are far more empathetic.  Don't consider themselves gods.  Take the time to listen.  All this despite the fact there is a continuing gender pay gap.  Why should a male doctor be paid more when he is likely to consider himself a god?  Come off like a pompous jackass?  Tell someone to suck it up?  Rather than display empathy?


12-16-16

Think you had a bad day?  A really bad day?  Fox News reports:

"Eric Schmitt-Matzen volunteers as Santa Claus at a local Tennessee hospital.    A 60-year-old Tennessee man who spends time volunteering as Santa Claus at a local hospital granted a 5-year-old terminally ill boy his final wish this holiday season, and held him as he died in his arms.  “I spent four years in the Army with the 75th Rangers, and I’ve seen my share of [stuff],” Eric Schmitt-Matzen told USA Today. “But I ran by the nurses’ station bawling my head off. I know nurses and doctors see things like that every day, but I don’t know how they can take it.”

Indeed.  Seatbelts on.  Gets harder, much harder.  Truly tough stuff. Keep reading.

"Schmitt-Matzen, a mechanical engineer and president of Packing Seals & Engineering in Jacksboro, Tennessee, had arrived at the unidentified hospital and met the boy’s mother and family members, who were also unidentified. A nurse had called with the special request and given him a toy to offer the child during his visit, USA Today reported.  “When I walked in, he was laying there so weak, it looked like he was ready to fall asleep,” Schmitt-Matzen told the news outlet. “I sat down on his bed and asked, ‘Say, what’s this I hear about you’re going to miss Christmas? There’s no way you can miss Christmas! You’re my No. 1 elf!’”

Think any of this boy's caregivers would have traded places with this most extraordinary Santa?

“’They say I’m going to die,’ he told me. ‘How can I tell when I get to where I’m going?’ I said, ‘Can you do me a big favor?’ He said ‘Sure!’ 'When you get there, you tell them you’re Santa’s No. 1 elf and I know they’ll let you in.’ He said, ‘They will?’ I said, ‘Sure.’”  “He kind of sat up, and gave me a big hug and asked one more question: ‘Santa can you help me?’ I wrapped my arms around him. Before I could say anything, he died right there. I let him stay, just kept hugging and holding on to him,” Schmitt-Matzen told USA Today."

Our priorities? Misplaced.  Values?   Gone.  Principle? What's that?  If this continues, our country?  Doomed. Wake up.

Kicker?  How this most extraordinary man dealt with the seemingly impossible?

"The boy’s death left Schmitt-Matzen questioning whether he could continue donning the signature white beard and red suit, but he returned for other sick children and saw the effect it had on them.  “When I saw all those children laughing, it brought me back into the fold. It made me realize the role I have to play. For them and for me,” he told USA Today."


12-16-16

Amazing how a grave mistake in childhood can haunt a physician an entire lifetime.  NPR reports:

"Dr. Joseph Linsk grew up on Atlantic Avenue in the uptown section of Atlantic City, N.J., in the early 1930s. It's an area where he's spent most of his life and where he practiced medicine starting in the 1940s, specializing in cancer and blood diseases.  Now 94 years old, the former hematologist and oncologist is failing in health, as he battles Parkinson's disease. This grave illness, however, is only one part of a perennial struggle Linsk faces. For more than 80 years, he has kept a secret. And it's one about which we're kindly requesting your help."

Think it ever too late to right a wrong?

"At his Atlantic City home over the Thanksgiving weekend, Linsk was recorded by his son, Richard, as part of StoryCorps' annual effort called the Great Thanksgiving Listen. During that recording, Dr. Linsk shared that well-guarded secret he had held onto for almost his entire life.  "When I was 8 years old, I was running in the schoolyard and my arm struck the eyeglasses of one of the students. And he began to cry," he recalls. "He was going to tell his father. It would cost $2 to fix the glasses. And I was frightened to death — where was I going to get the $2?"

Amazing how something that occurs in childhood can seem so overwhelming at the time.  Lead to a cover up that can result in unanticipated ramifications, cost peace of mind an entire lifetime.

"Linsk knew he had to find a way to make up for his playground fumble.  "We had a cleaning lady by the name of Pearl, a black woman. And I knew that every week, she'd get $2 for her services," he says. "On this particular day, I was so terrified, I took the $2, and took it to the teacher and settled the problem of the broken glasses."

Big mistake.  Big, big mistake.  Think not?

"But what he thought had fixed one problem, created another."

Always does, doesn't it?

"When Pearl finished her day's work, she went for the $2 and they weren't there. And my mother said there was no question that Pearl took the $2 and didn't admit it. And my mother was so angry that she told Pearl not to come back anymore," Linsk says."

Gets worse:

"His action had a domino effect. Word leaked out that Pearl was a thief."

Unforeseen consequences of a lie.

"Pearl, who had several children, couldn't get another job, Linsk says. "I was the only one who knew the true story. And I didn't tell anyone. And I was smitten with grief at what I had done."  "I kept that secret to the age of 94, which is hard to believe, but the event never left me."

Never does, does it?  The retired doctor is looking for Pearl's family.  NPR has asked anyone with information to contact StoryCorps at StoryCorps.org.


12-16-16

No question, Obamacare is failing.  Of its own weight.  Think not?  CBS News reports:

"A trip to the emergency room can be traumatic enough, but researchers warn that many insured patients may be in for another shock when the medical bills arrive.  Even if patients go to a hospital included in their health insurance network, the emergency room physicians might not be. That could mean an unexpected expense."

Talk about a royal f--king:

"Cooper and fellow Yale researcher Fiona Scott Morton analyzed insurance claims for more than 2 million ER visits around the country. They found that roughly 2 of 10 in-network visits involved a doctor not in the patient’s insurance network.  “The result is a large physician bill that the insurer doesn’t cover or only partially covers, leaving the patient to pay the balance,” they wrote in Thursday’s New England Journal of Medicine."

Surprise, surprise.


12-16-16

Think matters won't exponentially worsen when the GOP repeals Obamacare with no replacement in place?  Already, providers are demanding payment up front.  NPR reports:

"At many doctors offices and hospitals, a routine part of doing business these days is estimating patients' out-of-pocket payments and trying to collect the money up front. Eyeing retailers' practice of keeping credit card information on file, "there's certainly been a movement by health care providers to store some of this information and be able to access it with patients' permission," said Mark Rukavina, a principal at Community Health Advisors in Chestnut Hill, Mass., who works with hospitals on addressing financial barriers to care."


12-2-16

No question, the healthcare profession needs to be reined in.  NBC News reports:

"Charges that a doctor who treated America's Olympic gymnasts molested a young girl at his home are "the tip of the iceberg," Michigan's attorney general said Tuesday.  Police revealed that about 50 gymnasts and patients of Dr. Larry Nassar have filed sexual abuse complaints against him, but those cases are still under investigation.  For now, Nassar has been charged with three counts of criminal sexual conduct for "predatory, menacing criminal acts involving a minor, a young girl under the age of 13," AG Bill Schuette said at a press conference."

Why do we tolerate this shit?  This happens all over the country to all age levels.  Yet, medical boards fail to remove licenses of these goddamned quacks.  Quite the opposite.  Protect them.


12-2-16

Think providers, insurers, etc. aren't deliberately shitting on the constitutional right to sue? Wake up.  NPR reported recently:

"San Francisco Bay Area companies say Sutter Health is strong-arming them into a contract that would help the hospital system secure its power over prices and potentially raise the cost of medical care for their employees in the future."

By shitting on the constitutional right to sue.

"Dozens of companies have received a letter, via their insurance administrators, asking them to waive their rights to sue Sutter. If they don't, a fact sheet included in the letter says, the companies' employees who get care through Sutter's network of hospitals, doctors and medical services will no longer have access to discounted in-network prices."


12-2-16

Think medical professionals don't lie for one another?  Wake up.  NPR recently reported:

"Almost two decades ago, Dr. Lars Aanning sat on the witness stand in a medical malpractice trial and faced a dilemma."

Could have stood tall.  Instead, lied.

"The South Dakota surgeon had been called to vouch for the expertise of one of his partners whose patient had suffered a stroke and permanent disability after an operation. The problem was that Aanning had, in his own mind, questioned his colleague's skill. His partner's patients had suffered injuries related to his procedures. But Aanning understood why his partner's attorney had called him as a witness: Doctors don't squeal on doctors."

Still don't.  Sounds like the Blue Wall, doesn't it?

"The attorney asked the key question: Did Aanning know of any time his partner's work had been substandard?  "No, never," Aanning said.  Now, Aanning, in a stunning admission for a medical professional, has a blunter answer: "I lied."


11-25-16

Hopelessly greedy medical providers securely remain on the gravy train.  Think not?  Wake up.  NPR reports:

"The number of doctors who each prescribe millions of dollars of medications annually in Medicare's drug program has soared, driven by expensive hepatitis C treatments and rising drug prices overall, federal data obtained by ProPublica show.  The number of providers who topped the $5 million mark for prescriptions increased more than tenfold, from 41 in 2011 to 514 in 2015. The number of prescribers — mostly physicians but also nurse practitioners — exceeding $10 million in drug costs jumped from two to 70 over the same time period, according to the data."

Obama had no way to rein in the greed.  Think Trump does?  How?  By removing some 20 million off Obamacare?  With no viable way of replacing this coverage? Hear the rumble?


11-18-16

Trump appears to be waffling on repeal of Obamacare.  The Washington Post reports:

"President-elect Donald Trump is already signaling that he might backpedal on his promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act, telling the Wall Street Journal Friday that he’d consider hanging onto popular Obamacare provisions such as “the prohibition against insurers denying coverage because of patients’ existing conditions, and a provision that allows parents to provide years of additional coverage for children on their insurance policies.”  “I like those very much,” he said. Three days into his transition, and it looks like the real estate tycoon is becoming a politician."

Indeed, he may be.  Than again, the fascist has nothing to replace it with.  He knows repeal with no replacement would likely quickly cause a healthcare crisis the likes of which have not been seen before.

"His apparent reluctance to scrap the entire ACA is understandable. In the long run, waffling on repeal will probably be less painful than causing a health-care catastrophe. Trump capitalized on Republicans’ long dislike of the Affordable Care Act by focusing on news, in the last weeks of the campaign, that premiums would increase sharply for many Americans purchasing insurance through its exchanges. But he didn’t promise a pared-down health-care regime. He promised to repeal and replace Obamacare with a plan that would cover everyone, offer more choice and cost less."

That's precisely the problem talking out both sides your ass while running for office.  Reality quickly bites.  Left himself in a no-win situation.  Tough, isn't it?  Think the clueless idiots who elected him will be forgiving?


11-11-16

Obamacare continues to have enormous problems.  Back in the middle of October, ABC News reports:

"Minnesota's Democratic governor said Wednesday that the Affordable Care Act is "no longer affordable," a stinging critique from a state leader who strongly embraced the law and proudly proclaimed health reform was working in Minnesota just a few years ago."

The handwriting is on the wall.  Obamacare is failing, seemingly destined to fall of its own weight.  Will likely succumb with or without GOP repeal.


11-11-16

Further proof of the above?  The fact uncontrolled provider greed remains unchecked?  The Washington Post reports:

"A year ago, a study about U.S. hospitals marking up prices by 1,000 percent generated headlines and outrage around the country."

The handwriting's been on the wall for quite some time.

"Twenty of those priciest hospitals are in Florida, and researchers at the University of Miami wanted to find out whether the negative publicity put pressure on the community hospitals to lower their charges. Hospitals are allowed to change their prices at any time, but many are growing more sensitive about their reputations."

This remains a problem all across the country.

"What the researchers found, however, was that naming and shaming did not work. The researchers looked at the 20 hospitals’ total charges in the quarter of a year before the publicity and compared them to charges in the same quarter following the publicity. There was no evidence that the negative publicity resulted in any reduction in charges. Instead, the authors found that overall charges were significantly higher after the publicity than in previous quarters."

So what else is new?  Greed rules.  Reigns supreme.  ... You don't know that?  What 'free' market?  The market is owned, manipulated, controlled by those who have the wealth.  Zero-sum game.  Winner-take-all.


11-11-16

Think politics doesn't affect medicine?  NBC News reports:

"Politics in the exam room? A new study suggests patient care may vary depending on whether the doctor is a Democrat or a Republican — at least when it comes to some hot-button health issues like firearm safety."

It's none of the provider's goddamned business.  Their job is not to be pro-active.  It's to deal with medical issues as they arise.  Gutlessly volunteer firearms information to a provider?  Becomes part of the electronic record.  Available to any hacker, the corporate management suite, as well as the long arm of the law.  It's none of their goddamned business until and unless a crime is committed.

"Health care has long drawn partisan political fights, like state laws surrounding abortion, or Florida's law restricting doctors from discussing guns with patients. But there's been little research on the doctor-patient side of those controversies. Can physicians leave their own political ideology at the door during something as simple as a checkup?"

Providers still consider themselves to be gods.  Not just the technicians they truly only are.  This won't change until you, the public, refuse to tolerate this bullshit.  Make it clear to providers your personal life is none of their goddamned business, unless you choose to make it theirs.  Most of the information requested is irrelevant to why medical consumers present themselves at the office of a provider in the first place.  You decide what information you share. Not them.


11-11-16

Think medical professionals have your best interests in mind?  NPR reports:

"For years, medical interns have been limited to working no more than 16 hours without a break to minimize the chances they would make mistakes while fatigued. But that restriction could soon be eased.  The group that sets the rules for medical residents proposed scrapping the 16-hour limit for interns, doctors in their first year of on-the-job training after finishing medical school. The new rule would let these new doctors work for as many as 28 hours at a stretch."

Think this change is in the best interest of those seeking care?  Or, just the bottom line?


11-11-16

Clearly, the increasing cost of healthcare is causing horrendous problems for the federal government.  Yet, it's attempt to rein in costs is nearly non-existent, tepid at best.  To date, achingly ineffective.  Precisely, why Obamacare is on the ropes.  Medicare as well has more than its share of cost containment issues.  ABC News reports:

"Medicare on Friday unveiled a far-reaching overhaul of how it compensates doctors and other clinicians. The goal is to reward quality, cost-effective care instead of just paying piecemeal for services."

Think it has a snowball's chance of working?  Carefully consider the following:

"The complex regulation is nearly 2,400 pages long and will take years to fully implement. It's meant to carry out bipartisan legislation that was passed by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama last year."

Have the President and Congress read all 2,400 pages?  Think so?

"Whether it succeeds or fails, it's one of the biggest changes in Medicare's 50-year history."

Apparently.  Medicare, however, has had more than its share of issues over the last half century.

"While the concept of paying for quality has broad support, the details have been a source of trepidation for some clinicians, who worry that the new system will force small practices and old-fashioned solo doctors to join big groups. Patients may soon start hearing about the changes from their physicians, but it's still too early to discern the impacts."

Think providers won't do all they can to ensure their pockets continue to be lined by taxpayers?  That consumers continue to be fleeced?

"The Obama administration sought to calm concerns Friday. "Transforming something of this size is something we have focused on with great care," said Andy Slavitt, head of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services."

No more than lip service.


11-11-16

Compounding Obamacare woes have been consumers leaving the government-run portals.  This, in addition, to insurers leaving the system.  Fox News reports:

"While premiums are set to rise by double digits on the ObamaCare exchanges, millions of Americans already have made the decision to abandon the markets altogether and shop for health care on their own – a trend the administration is fighting to reverse."

The system is failing.  Obama and his henchmen are growing increasingly concerned.

"Unclear is whether the bad headlines surrounding the health care program will prompt even more insurance-shoppers to bolt the state and federal exchanges, which are one-stop portals like HealthCare.gov where customers can pick from qualified health plans."

One issue fuels the other.  Precisely, why the federal government is so concerned.


10-28-16

Think the insurance industry is not egregiously out of control?  Well-regulated by its bought and paid for shills in government?  Wake upThe Washington Times reports:

"A terminally ill California woman says her insurance company denied her coverage for chemotherapy treatment but offered to pay for her to kill herself, shortly after California passed a law permitting physician-assisted suicide."

Callous, isn't it?

"Stephanie Packer, a wife and mother of four who was diagnosed with a terminal form of scleroderma, said her insurance company initially indicated it would pay for her to switch to a different chemotherapy drug at the recommendation of her doctors.  But shortly after California’s End of Life Option Act, which authorizes physicians to diagnose a life-ending dose of medication to patients with a prognosis of six months or less to live, went into effect, Ms. Packer’s insurance company had a change of heart."

Surprised?

“And when the law was passed, it was a week later I received a letter in the mail saying they were going to deny coverage for the chemotherapy that we were asking for,” Ms. Packer said.  She said she called her insurance company to find out why her coverage had been denied. On the call, she also asked whether suicide pills were covered under her plan.  “And she says, ‘Yes, we do provide that to our patients, and you would only have to pay $1.20 for the medication,’” Ms. Packer said."

That's cold.  Heartless.  Aryan arrogant.  ... How thoughtful of the callous, hopelessly greedy corporate bastards.

"Ms. Packer said her doctors have appealed the insurance company’s decision twice, to no avail. She said the assisted-suicide law creates an incentive for insurance companies to deny terminally ill patients coverage.  “As soon as this law was passed — and you see it everywhere when these laws are passed — patients fighting for a longer life end up getting denied treatment, because this will always be the cheapest option,” she said."

Yes, of course.  It's all about the money.  Profit.  Bottom line.  Multi-million dollar stock options for the corporate management suite, etc..  Unbridled greed.  What appears to be the most important reason Obamacare is doomed to failure is the fact The 'Affordable' Care Act did absolutely nothing to rein in ubiquitous gouging perpetrated by providers and the pharmaceutical houses.  No more complicated than that.


10-28-16

Obamacare premiums are expected to rise 22% nationwide on the average next year.  Certain areas of the country will get hit much harder.  Think this bodes well for the President's signature program?  The Obama Regime claims government subsidies will increase.  Guess who pays?  Haven't a clue?  Deductibles are also rising.  This, coupled with a reportedly 100% increase in premiums over the last four years Obamacare has been in existence are certain indication greed has not been reined in.

The 'Affordable' 'Care' Act is not affordable.  Never was.  Even with subsidies courtesy of looted taxpayers.  Out of pocket expenses remain hellacious for the sick and dying.  Should Republicans remain unsuccessful repealing Obamacare, it will likely fail on its own.  One of the greatest problems we have in this country has been the unwillingness to rein in greed, end the gouging.  Across the board.  In every industry, and/or service.  All commerce.  Clearly, no such thing as a 'free' market.  Never has been despite claims to the contrary.

The market is manipulated, hoodwinked, deceived, mercilessly looted, owned by those with the wealth, that is, the power to do so.  Zero-sum game.  Winner-take-all.  A ruse.  No more than a Ponzy scheme egregiously out of control.   Ayn Rand Atlas Shrugged remains no more than a ruthless myth.  Cruel joke.  Intended to loot the bottom and middle class.  Line the pockets of the corporate management suite, the rich, that is, the top 1% of the food chain.  No longer works because the bastards have foolishly managed to strangle the Golden Goose through their bottomless greed.


9-30-16

The public remains clueless regarding changes in healthcare.  Get this.  CBS News reports:

"It’s a brave new world for health care consumers. Patients are faced with an avalanche of new technologies and developments that are supposed to revolutionize the way they manage their health care.  But according to a study released last week from the PwC Health Research Institute, the revolution is slow in coming.  “Most [consumers] don’t shop for care, ask about prices, email with their clinicians or use telehealth options. Most don’t send their physicians data from their activity trackers. Most remain skeptical of the value of electronic medical record systems despite their ubiquity in examination rooms,” says the report, entitled “Surviving Seismic Change: Winning a Piece of the $5 trillion U.S. Health EcoSystem.”

The first problem facing consumers of healthcare is the fact they continue to tolerate condescending, patronizing attitudes still prevalent among too many providers.  The word 'patient' itself is condescending.  Patient for what?  'Client' would be far more appropriate.  Providers don't seem to understand care receivers are the ones truly in charge of their care.  Not the provider.  The provider is no more than a highly-paid consultant. Not a god.

The receiver of care makes the ultimate decision, not the provider.  Care receivers need to smarten up.  Question all pricing.  On everything.  Force providers to justify cost.  Care givers don't seem to understand many of their clients will not participate in telehealth options, activity trackers, etc. because their data is vulnerable to theft.

-- Not only by hackers, however.  Government jackbooted bastards in blue and their government handlers can seize such data via court order.  Also, data is shared with the corporate management suite for marketing purposes.  There is no privacy.  Data is compromised constantly.  No one does anything about this problem.  Often, providers don't not even report such data theft and privacy intrusion by government goons to the ultimate owners of that data, you, the public.  Why do you tolerate this?


9-23-16

Received the following from Planned Parenthood:

In response to the Supreme Court, the Obama administration is reconsidering how faith-based nonprofits can opt out of Obamacare's no-copay birth control coverage requirement while still ensuring that employees get no-copay birth control directly from insurance companies. But these faith-based nonprofits, if they get their way, will prevent their employees from accessing no-copay birth control, period.

Add your voice to tell the Obama administration to stand strong against these attacks on no-copay birth control — and that no boss should be able to prevent their employee from accessing this essential health care service.

Protect access to no-copay birth control

Dear U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),

In 2016, I cannot believe our nation is having a debate over whether or not women should have access to affordable birth control. Allowing employers and universities to refuse to allow their insurance plans to cover birth control, when they are providing insurance for other services, is allowing discrimination -- plain and simple.

* Personalize your message:

"It's time to enforce church-state separation as prescribed by the First
Amendment Establishment Clause, that is, freedom from religion.
Tim Chorney, Publisher
Liberty In Peril
libertyinperil.com"

I strongly support the current policies that make sure every woman has
seamless access to no-copay birth control regardless of where she works
or goes to school or the religious views of her boss or school
administrators. I ask HHS to make sure that the no-copay birth control
accommodation (workaround) guarantees women uninterrupted coverage for
all forms of birth control and does not allow bosses or schools to block
 women's access to birth control.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,
Tim Chorney
Buchanan Dam, TX 78609-0151

'Religious' healthcare providers and other employers seem to have conveniently forgotten providing care is not a right, but a privilege.  If they cannot do so in good conscience, it's time to get out of the business.  They have no right to force their perverse ideological and religious views on anyone.


9-2-16

Even when the President continues to do what benefits his corporate masters, Republicans still proverbially look a gift horse in the mouth.  The Washington Times reports:

"President Obama plans to use parole authority to go around normal rules and try to admit thousands of entrepreneurs to the U.S., the administration announced Friday, once again testing the limits of executive power on immigration.  Parole is usually used in specific humanitarian cases, such as temporarily admitting someone in dire need of medical treatment, but Mr. Obama argues it can also be used more broadly to try to boost the U.S. economy by letting wealthy entrepreneurs buy their way in."

The President, indeed, behaves like a Republican and the GOP has a problem with it?  Amazing.  Stunning.  Yet, the President remains inconsistent.  Has remained silent at time of writing vis a vis the most recent example of price gouging in the pharmaceutical industry.  NBC News reports:

"Mylan CEO Heather Bresch said she shared Americans' frustration with the spiraling cost of drugs like her company's EpiPen in a CNBC interview Thursday morning, but her comments hew closely to the company's marketing strategy."

The hell she does.  She's lining her pockets off the misery of a long suffering public gouged by her industry.

"I know this is a complicated conversation around healthcare and insurance," Bresch said, a remark very similar to one she made to investors on the company's quarterly conference call earlier this month and reflects the company's long-term marketing strategy."

No.  It's not.  It's just more of the same goddamned bullshit we've heard for decades by the hopelessly greedy egregiously f--king the achingly needy, the sick, and the dying.  It's called the American Way.  An Ayn Rand Atlas Shrugged mentality that even its author highly questioned before her death.

"We're continuing to try to do our part on educating on that supply chain, and we all know it's complex and our healthcare and insurance is complicated," she said in response to an analyst question about whether rising patient costs would affect Mylan's bottom line."

More outrageous, Aryan arrogant bullshit coming from a CEO lining her bottomless pockets, those of the corporate management suite, and shareholders.  Have no problem with bottomless corporate greed?  Think again.  NBC News reports:

"Mylan's EpiPen, which counteracts the allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis, has seen a more than fivefold price increase since 2008, with some customers paying more than $600 for a package of two of the auto-injection devices."

This goddamned corporation has received quite a bit of flak over this issue.  Tough shit.  It's response leaves much to be desired:

"Mylan is taking "immediate action" to ensure availability of EpiPens, CEO Heather Bresch told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Thursday.  "I think that we responded this morning, first and foremost, ensuring that everyone who needs an EpiPen has an EpiPen," Bresch said.  Mylan on Thursday announced plans to boost access to its EpiPen Auto-Injector by expanding already existing programs for patients who are facing higher out-of-pocket costs.  The company is reducing the cost of EpiPens through the use of a savings card which will cover up to $300 for the EpiPen 2-Pak."

Big of them, isn't it? They're still gouging.  Nothing changes that fact.  Not the only pharmaceutical they're f--king the public on:

"Beyond that, "Mylan has taken some exceptionally large price increases in 2016," Wells Fargo senior analyst David Maris wrote in a report in June.  "Mylan has raised the prices more than 20 percent on 24 products, and more than 100 percent on seven products," Maris wrote.  He warned that the Netherlands-based drugmaker — whose CEO Heather Bresch saw her compensation increase by nearly 700 percent from 2007 to 2015 — could draw "greater regulatory scrutiny and headline risk" as a result of such price boosts."

Doesn't end there, however:

"They include a stunning 542 percent increase for the drug ursodiol, which is a generic medication used to treat gallstones.  Maris also flagged a 444 percent increase in another generic drug, metoclopramide, which is commonly used to treat GERD, or gastroesophageal reflux disease as well as gastroparesis. Dicyclomine, a drug used to treat irritable bowel syndrome, had its price jacked up by 400 percent by Mylan."

Nor there:

"The price of one of Mylan's biggest selling generics, tolterodine, was increased by 56 percent this year, the Wells Fargo analyst said. Tolterodine is used to treat overactive bladders."

Think the greed ends there, however?  It doesn't.  Just continues unabated.  Get this.  Think the Senate panel investigating hasn't been bought off?  Wake up.  NBC News reports:

"A political committee for Mylan has donated to most of the Senate committee that has asked the drugmaker to explain price increases for allergy treatment EpiPen and could grill executives in a hearing on the matter.  The Mylan Inc. PAC has given $13,500 to four current members of the Senate Judiciary Committee since 2014, including $5,000 to ranking Democrat Patrick Leahy of Vermont and $5,000 to the Senate's likely next Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York. Since 1999, the PAC has donated more than $60,000 to 11 current members of the 20-person judiciary committee. Most of those donations came after 2008."

This is precisely the problem.  The corporate management suite owns its lackeys in government.  Justice?  What's that?  Incredibly, Mylan now plans to market a generic version of the very same drug, EpiPen, the very same drug it has a patent on.  The very same life-saving drug it's looting the shit out of the truly desperate on.  Imagine that.  The American Way.


8-26-16

Obamacare is in dire straights.  Think not?  Insurance companies are pulling out.  Premiums continue to skyrocket.  NBC News reports:

"Aetna Inc warned in July that it would exit much of the individual Obamacare health insurance market if the government challenged its deal to buy rival Humana Inc, according to a letter it sent to the U.S. Department of Justice."

Interesting, isn't it?  Think it doesn't smack of blackmail?  There is renewed call for a single payer, public option.  Republicans will never let it fly.  Would likely result in lower healthcare costs since there wouldn't be a middle man, that is, the insurance industry that has to make a profit.  Care is cheaper in Canada as well as in Europe.  Despite assertions to contrary by GOP national socialists, the quality of care in Europe and Canada is no worse than it is here.

CBS News reports:

"While that’s a blow to the federal Obamacare program and the customers who relied on Aetna’s plans, there are also an estimated 24 million people in the U.S. who still lack health insurance. That means the uninsured outnumber the 20 million people who have gained health insurance in the nearly three years since the health-insurance marketplaces first opened, according to a recent report from The Commonwealth Fund."

Republicans have no alternative.  None at all.  The 'health''care' system is not sustainable.  Is crushing under its own weight.  Both parties have no viable solution.  None at all.  Meanwhile, greed reins.  Until that changes, there will be no relief.  There can't be.  Certainly, not under current conditions and parameters.  The premiums, out of pocket costs, co-pays, etc. are not affordable.  With or without subsidies.  Think not?  CNBC reports:

"When currently uninsured people were asked why they still don't have coverage, almost half said insurance is too expensive for them."

That is the bottom line. It simply is unaffordable.


8-19-16

Obamacare continues to have financial difficulties.  NPR reports:

"Large employers expect health costs to continue rising by about 6 percent in 2017, a moderate increase compared with historical trends that nevertheless far outpaces growth in the economy, two new surveys show.  "These cost increases, while stable, are both unsustainable and unacceptable," said Brian Marcotte, CEO of the National Business Group on Health, a coalition of very large employers that got responses from 133 companies."

Will likely grow worse as greed exponentially increases.  Be interesting to see what happens after the election.


8-19-16

In yet another blow to Obamacare, Aetna is pulling back.  NPR reports:

"Insurance giant Aetna will stop selling health insurance through most of the exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act in 2017 because the company said it is losing money in many of those markets."

The handwriting remains on the wall.  Too bad the President and the Democrats remain achingly oblivious.


8-5-16

Obamacare seems to be in serious difficulty.  The Washington Times reports:

"More than two thirds of Obamacare’s health co-op’s have failed, yet Democrats who pushed the experiment during the 2010 health care debate are refusing to cede ground to corporate plans, saying the best Plan B is the “public option” that many of them wanted in the first place."

Interesting, isn't it? This apparently is the fall back position for Democrats.  Especially since Obamacare appears to be in dire straits.

"Sixteen of the original 23 co-ops have withdrawn from the Affordable Care Act’s web-based exchanges, mostly recently in Oregon, Connecticut and Illinois, despite $1.7 billion in taxpayer loans to the failed plans."

Again, this is evidence the program is in trouble.  Greed is what's driving all this.

"Democrats pushed the co-ops, or Consumer Operated and Oriented Plans, during the Obamacare debate of 2009 as a fallback to attempts to win passage of the public option — a government-run plan to compete with private companies in the new marketplace. Yet many of the co-ops had a hard time competing for market share, and in some cases the nonprofit plans appeared to underprice their products and then drown in medical claims."

Clearly, Democrats want socialized medicine.  Apparently, they'll eventually get it.  Why?  Greed.  Unbridled greed in the healthcare community.  They never get enough.  Apparently, never will.  Even if Obamacare eventually winds up on the ropes, think the greedy bastards in the medical community will wake up and smell the coffee?  Snowball's chance.

"Yet the 2016 Democratic Party Platform says health care is a “right, not a privilege,” so the party is doubling down instead of retreating from taxpayer-funded alternatives, highlighting the influence of primary challenger Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont, who pulled presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton to the left before backing her."

What the hell did the national socialist promoters of Ayn Rand Atlas Shrugged unbridled, laissez-faire capitalism expect to happen?  These clueless Republican fascist sons of bitches still can't understand they're strangling the Golden Goose.

“This campaign is about moving the United States toward universal health care and reducing the number of people who are uninsured or underinsured,” Mr. Sanders told the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia late Monday. “Hillary Clinton wants to see that all Americans have the right to choose a public option in their health care exchange.”

What ole Bernie is talking about here is indeed socialized medicine ala Europe, Canada, etc..

"While the public option stops far short of the Medicare-for-all system that Mr. Sanders envisioned, it goes further than what Mrs. Clinton supported earlier in the primary."

Indeed, it does.

"Congressional Republicans, meanwhile, are heading in the opposite direction. They say it is time to scale back the government’s role in health care and recoup whatever money they can on the failed co-ops, underscoring how far apart the parties remain as President Obama hands his signature law over to his successor."

As long as the greedy bastards in the top 1% take it all, the Republicans remain happy, falsely believe all is well.  It's not.  Far from it.  Precisely, why an unwanted dreaded second American revolution remains catastrophically looming on the horizon.


8-5-16

As repeatedly covered in this publication, data you wittingly or unwittingly provide corporations online, can be used against you.  And is.  Consider the following from NPR:

"But we leave behind other trails of health data, too, from apps and activities that are sometimes only tangentially health related. When I walk down the street, an app on my phone logs steps as it bounces against my thigh. When I swipe a loyalty card at the pharmacy, the over-the-counter medications that I buy become bits of data attached to my name. Medical information can be gleaned from all this and more, says Nathan Cortez, a professor of law at the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law."

Think that isn't used against you when seeking employment, or to line the pockets of the healthcare industry?

"Those data aren't always protected. A recent report from the Department of Health and Human Services showed that the vast majority of mobile health apps on the marketplace aren't covered by the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act. "HIPAA is pretty narrow as far as these things go. It applies only to traditional entities [like hospitals, doctors and health insurance providers], and it's not surprising. HIPAA was written by Congress in 1996 before we had health apps," Cortez says."

Wake up.  You're being screwed.  Too cowardly or aggressively stupid to care?


8-5-16

In the interest of privacy, The Washington Post has published five myths vis a vis healthcare privacy:

Myth No. 1
HIPAA prohibits communicating with patients’ loved ones.

Myth No. 2
Same-sex marriage rights are critical to equality under HIPAA.

Myth No. 3
HIPAA provides extra protections for mental health information.

Myth No. 4
HIPAA stops doctors from reporting threats.

Myth No. 5
HIPAA is the reason for medical privacy.

Your privacy is only as good as you insist.  Give them personal information regarding yourself or your condition, it can and will be ultimately shared with government and the corporate management suite.  Ever been denied insurance or a job?  Wake up.  Never, ever, never forget the following:

"In practice, HIPAA provides a federal floor of privacy protections, not a ceiling. It defers to state laws that are “more stringent” or protective of patient rights. State laws that create additional safeguards for conditions deemed especially sensitive — whether HIV/AIDS, communicable diseases, cancer or mental illness — remain in full force. Neither does HIPAA override other federal laws. Thus, for example, substance-abuse programs subject to 1970s-era federal confidentiality requirements continue to follow those stricter standards in the vast majority of cases."

It remains a patchwork.  When information remains centralized, it's subject to hacking.  Worse, it makes it extremely easy for government goons to access with or without a warrant.  Also becomes easily available to the corporate management suite.8-5-16

In the interest of privacy, The Washington Post has published five myths vis a vis healthcare privacy:

Myth No. 1
HIPAA prohibits communicating with patients’ loved ones.

Myth No. 2
Same-sex marriage rights are critical to equality under HIPAA.

Myth No. 3
HIPAA provides extra protections for mental health information.

Myth No. 4
HIPAA stops doctors from reporting threats.

Myth No. 5
HIPAA is the reason for medical privacy.

Your privacy is only as good as you insist.  Give them personal information regarding yourself or your condition, it can and will be ultimately shared with government and the corporate management suite.  Ever been denied insurance or a job?  Wake up.  Never, ever, never forget the following:

"In practice, HIPAA provides a federal floor of privacy protections, not a ceiling. It defers to state laws that are “more stringent” or protective of patient rights. State laws that create additional safeguards for conditions deemed especially sensitive — whether HIV/AIDS, communicable diseases, cancer or mental illness — remain in full force. Neither does HIPAA override other federal laws. Thus, for example, substance-abuse programs subject to 1970s-era federal confidentiality requirements continue to follow those stricter standards in the vast majority of cases."

It remains a patchwork.  When information remains centralized, it's subject to hacking.  Worse, it makes it extremely easy for government goons to access with or without a warrant.  Also becomes easily available to the corporate management suite.


7-29-16

The 'Justice' Department is doing all it can to protect and defend egregiously failing Obamacare.  Has lined up against two mergers that might have dealt a death blow to this atrocity imposed by the Obama Administration.  NPR reports:

"The Justice Department is suing to block two proposed mergers between major health insurance companies, saying the deals violate antitrust laws and would lead to higher health care costs for Americans."

That's happening anyway.  Precisely, why Obamacare looks at the moment doomed to failure.  The merger would simply accelerate matters.


7-22-16

The Statesman recently published an expose on sexual assault perpetrated by physicians.  Most of these bastards are older male doctors who consider themselves gods.  They're not.  No more than glorified technicians.  Younger doctors are not as likely to view themselves as such.  Female doctors seem to be much better, far more caring physicians, far less likely to abuse the people they care for.  Don't have the ego problem the men have.

If you experience anything untoward, leave the doctor's office immediately.  Report it to law enforcement as well as to the Texas Medical Board.  If you live in another state, again, complain to police and contact the medical board in your state.  The problem in Texas is that the Board coddles corrupt, abusive, inept doctors.  Does so, allegedly, because of the cost of educating a physician.  AppallingPitiful. Galling.

Contact a lawyer.  Sue the living shit out of the bastard.  At the very least, it will go down on and become part of the bastard's professional history.  Sadly, these criminal quacks are not only f--king those they 'care' for with poor to no healthcare, looting the shit financially out of them, but also sexually assaulting those most vulnerable.

It's time to not only imprison these pieces of shit, but to permanently remove their licenses to practice medicine.  Anywhere in this country.  Should they wish to practice overseas, the history of these quacks needs to be immediately, easily available to foreign agencies responsible for regulating the medical profession.

Above all, readers, never forget you are the one ultimately in charge of your care. Not the doctor or other healthcare professional.  They're no more than technicians.  While it is usually wise to follow their advice, question anything that seems untoward, unnecessary, or highly questionable.  A good healthcare professional welcomes questions, concerns. The quack does not.  Also, as adults, you have the absolute right to refuse any or all care should you so choose.


7-8-16

Amazing how some in the medical profession still don't seem to understand they're no more than consultants, -- not gods.  Would, however, be foolish usually not to follow the advice of a physician should it seem reasonable.  Then again, you make the ultimate decision.  Not the doctor.  You.  The healthcare recipient.

Use of the descriptor "patient" needs to change in the profession.  Implies subservience.  At least when an older doctor is involved.  Instead, the primacy of the care receiver, who ultimately makes the decision regarding his or her care, is prime mover.  Not the doctor.  "Client" would be far more appropriate.  Things have gotten so bad some physicians will not do as the healthcare recipient has requested.  This is a problem.  It's called assault, -- under some conditions.

Consider the following.  NPR reports:

"Episiotomy, a once-routine surgical incision made in a woman's vaginal opening during childbirth to speed the baby's passage, has been officially discouraged for at least a decade by the leading association of obstetrician-gynecologists in the United States.  [With damned good reason.]

"Nonetheless, despite evidence that the procedure is only rarely necessary, and in some cases leads to serious pain and injuries to the mother, it is still being performed at much higher than recommended rates by certain doctors and in certain hospitals."

This has been an issue in the profession for quite some time now.  What makes it outrageous is when a woman does not consent and the butcher performs one anyway:

"In one recent case, Kimberly Turbin, a 29-year-old dental assistant who lives in Stockton, Calif., is suing her former obstetrician for assault and battery after he performed an episiotomy on her in 2013. A video of the birth, with Turbin begging the doctor not to cut her, has been viewed more than 420,000 times.

"After the episiotomy, Turbin says, "I had major, major, major, major pain."

This, an example of a 'physician' who apparently considers himself or herself a god.  They're not.  No more than a technician.  There may be situations where this procedure is indeed indicated.  So be it.  If the woman does not consent, however,  it's assault and battery.  What could her doctor have been thinking?  There was no emergency.  Had there been, the outcome could have been different.  Still, the care receiver makes the ultimate decision.  Not the care giver.  Apparently, some in the profession still can't seem to understand this.

This is the end result of a 'physician' who considers himself or herself a god:

"In June, a Superior Court judge in Los Angeles County ruled that Turbin's lawsuit against her former obstetrician can go to trial in the fall. Meanwhile, Turbin says she is terrified of getting pregnant again.

"If I go back to that day, there's nothing I could have done," she says. "That doctor was going to cut me, no matter what."

No one should have to live with this.  It's Aryan arrogance at its very worst.  Unacceptable.  Make sure your physician is willing to adhere to your wishes.  Or, find another physician.  You ultimately control what happens to you and your body.  Not them.  -- A female physician is less likely to do as she pleases rather than as you wish her to do.

Most female physicians do not consider themselves gods, unlike their male counterparts.  At least the older ones (males).  Sadly, there should be no gender difference when it comes to the care giver.  There still is in way too many examples.  This must change.  Sue the shit out of the butchers if they commit malpractice.  The only way this bullshit will end.  "Pretty please with sugar on it" just doesn't make it.


7-8-16

The Senate continues to play politics despite over 800 cases of Zika in the continental United States.  Democrats blocked a Republican $1.1 billion bill to fight the disease, 6-28-16.  Seems GOP national socialists added outrageously unacceptable non-related riders to deny new funds for Planned Parenthood in Puerto Rico.  The haughty fascists also wished to please their corporate masters by easing pesticide spraying regulations.

Fortunately, the bastards couldn't get the 60 votes necessary to egregiously f--k women out of desperately needed healthcare in Puerto Rico.  Worse?  To subject the entire public to the increased risk to health from chemical pesticides.  Does the party of the top 1% care anything for the bottom 99?  Anything at all?


7-8-16

The Supreme Court wisely refused to review a Washington State challenge to pharmacists being rightfully forced to sell emergency contraceptives to women.  Seems 'religious' druggists have moral objections.  Tough shit.  Being a pharmacist is not a right, but a privilege.  Can't follow the law due to religious objections?  Get the hell out of the profession. You're egregiously unqualified.


7-8-16

Bribery is certainly a problem in the healthcare industry.  NPR reports:

"Where a hospital is located and who owns it make a big difference in how many of its doctors take meals, consulting and promotional payments from pharmaceutical and medical device companies, a ProPublica analysis shows.

"A higher percentage of doctors affiliated with hospitals in the South have received such payments than doctors in other regions of the country, our analysis found. And a greater share of doctors at for-profit hospitals have taken them than at nonprofit and government facilities."

Why is it legal for any healthcare provider to accept a gratuity?  -- A gratuity that is no more than a thinly disguised bribe?  They do this because they can.  You'll spend your last penny to secure an extra moment of life.  The bastards know this.  Take advantage.  The government does nothing to prevent this because their pockets are also being lined.  The bastards in government are all bought and paid for.  Forget?  By their corporate masters.


7-1-16

The f--king shamelessly perpetrated by the healthcare community continues unabated.  NPR reports:

"A study published online Monday by JAMA Internal Medicine found significant evidence that doctors who received meals tied to specific drugs prescribed a higher proportion of those products than their peers. And the more meals they received, the greater share of those drugs they tended to prescribe relative to other medications in the same category."

You think?  Surprise, surprise.  The profession is bought and paid for. You don't know that?  One of the few areas of the economy that is granted carte blanche to shamelessly loot, shake down, and gouge.  Why?  Because they can.  You tolerate it.


6-24-16

Appears Obamacare premiums are about to sky rocket.  CBS reports:

"Premiums for popular low-cost medical plans under the federal health care law are expected to go up an average of 11 percent next year, said a study that reinforced reports of sharp increases around the country in election season.

"For consumers, the impact will depend on whether they get government subsidies for their premiums, as well as on their own willingness to switch plans to keep the increases more manageable, said the analysis released Wednesday by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation."

Interesting, isn't it?


6-3-16

The Washington Post reports health professionals are fighting bad Yelp reviews and others online by disclosing client personal health data and conditions in violation of federal medical privacy provisions.  Direct violation of The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.  Intimate details.  Idiosyncrasies.  Diagnoses, treatments.  All of it.  Not only do medical personnel have direct access to your private data, they are now publicly releasing it when it suits their fancy and personal interests.  To say nothing of access by hackers, employers, law enforcement goons, etc..  Can you say f--ked up?


5-20-16

Fox is reporting Obamacare has taken a hit in court:

"A federal judge ruled Thursday for House Republicans in a challenge brought against the Obama administration over the legality of payments to insurers under ObamaCare.

"U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer ruled the spending unconstitutional -- while putting the decision on hold pending appeal.

"The ruling Thursday marks a win for House Republicans who brought the politically charged legal challenge, and a legal setback for the administration.

“Today’s ruling by the DC federal court is an important step toward restoring the separation of powers and stopping President Obama’s power grab. The Constitution is very clear: it is Congress’ job to write our laws and it is the President’s duty to enforce them,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said in a statement."

Republican House members are celebrating.  Despite the fact they offer no alternative.  Despite the fact the healthcare community is mercilessly looting the sick and dying.  Why?  Because they can.  It's that simple.  Precisely, why if Republicans do not come up with an alternative single-payer system of some kind that remains non-profit and non-government run, government provided healthcare will ultimately become inevitable.  Already quickly approaching this point with Medicaid, Medicare, VA care, other military healthcare programs, etc..

What we have here is unbridled greed, in an exceptionally poorly regulated system, that is little more than laissez-faire capitalism gone hog wild.  While there is regulation, it is extremely poorly defined, executed.  Beholden to the greedy bastards it is allegedly supposed to regulate, control.  Why the hogs at the feeding trough continue to loot, egregiously f--k the sick and dying.  Their targets?  Ultimately, each one of us since we will all get sick and die eventually, egregiously f--ked by this outrageously out of control sad excuse for a 'health' 'care' 'system.'


4-29-16

Texas Sen. Ted "Screws Loose" Cruz finally got something right.  Amazing, isn't it?  Can we stand it?  In follow-up to the United Health fiasco covered in last week's edition of this publication, the following is a snippet from the Cruz newsletter just received:

"On Tuesday, Sen. Cruz issued the following statement after UnitedHealth’s announcement that it would be withdrawing from Obamacare exchanges in most states:

“UnitedHealth has announced it is pulling out of the Obamacare exchanges. That’s the latest in a string of Obamacare failures that have led to American families losing their doctors, having few or no insurance options, and facing skyrocketing premiums and deductibles,” Sen. Cruz said.

“Sadly, none of this comes as a surprise. Conservatives predicted this result years ago, and yet here we are: with health insurance that is worse and costs more, with a system that kills jobs and lowers paychecks, and with a federal government that stands between Americans and their doctors.”

You think?  All well and good, Senator, but what do you and your fellow national socialists in the Republican Party intend to replace it with?  Healthcare 'savings accounts' that remain no more than a goddamned bullshit ruse?  When will you propose radical change that will effectively rein in rampant abject greed as well as deliberate abrogation of medical privacy to line corporate coffers, that is, their bottomless pockets?  Until this happens, you goddamned fascists have nothing to offer the public to replace it.  Nothing at all.  Empty rhetoric.

Tim Chorney, Publisher
Liberty In Peril


Tim Chorney, Publisher
Liberty In Peril
Formerly,
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