RSN: Scott Galindez | Health Care Should Be a Litmus Test for Democrats

18 June 17

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FOCUS: Scott Galindez | Health Care Should Be a Litmus Test for Democrats 
 
Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News 
Galindez writes: "I am so tired of hearing people say they don't support litmus tests. If you can't judge candidates by their positions on issues, then how do you know who to vote for?" 
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RSN: Scott Galindez | Universal Health Care From Prenatal to Grave

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Now Is the Time That We Need Your Support - Today: This is it, right now. We are pulling out all the stops to finish the March fundraiser now. As in right now. Yes we can do that. Today, right now is critical. / Marc Ash - Founder, Reader Supported News

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FOCUS: Scott Galindez | Universal Health Care From Prenatal to Grave 
 
Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News 
Galindez writes: "What many people don't realize is the Freedom Caucus killed Trump/Ryan care because it covered too much. They didn't want their donors from the insurance industry to be forced to pay for things like prenatal care, an ambulance to get you to the hospital, or prescription drugs." 
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Universal Health Care From Prenatal to Grave

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

28 March 17

magine if everyone had health care from conception to death. I'm sure there are members of the Freedom Caucus who want health care for the unborn. It seems they care less about people after they are born. You see, after birth they care more about keeping pictures of dead presidents in their wallets.

What many people don't realize is the Freedom Caucus killed Trump/Ryan care because it covered too much. They didn't want their donors from the insurance industry to be forced to pay for things like prenatal care, an ambulance to get you to the hospital, or prescription drugs. They almost got their way: on the eve of the non-vote, Trump and Ryan agreed to get rid of the minimum coverage regulations that came with Obamacare.

They claimed they were defending our freedom not to have to pay for what we don't need. Nonsense. Your insurance company is not billed for things you don't use. Just because a plan has to cover prenatal care doesn't mean a young man's insurance company has to pay for prenatal care for him.

The Freedom Caucus was not representing you and me. They were looking out for insurance industry lobbyists who wanted to go back to the days when they could sell you junk. The only freedom on their agenda was for insurance companies to have the freedom to let you die.

The politics of health care and insurance are complicated things. Health coverage doesn't have to be. The conflict between the Libertarian philosophy of everyone for themselves and the progressive belief that we should take care of each other is not an easy one to bridge. The solution is very simple, just not likely politically. Single payer is the answer, and I want to take on some of the myths that make single payer a difficult move politically.

Myth: It Will Cost Too Much

Medicaid is a perfect model for what single payer would look like in the end, except that all doctors would see all patients. I know some of you are screaming at your keyboard the right question: why do many doctors not see Medicaid patients? Because they have a better deal and can make more money from patients with private insurers. I hear people argue that if the government were the single payer, then the health care industry would find it easier to rip us off. The exact opposite is true. The government does a better job of negotiating prices with providers. Insurance companies are willing to pay more to get exclusive access for their patients. The government doesn't need to increase the size of their networks. As the only payer, the government could set the prices like they do with Medicaid and keep costs down.

Medical providers would be forced to accept all patients, since there wouldn't be any with insurance that will pay more than the government. So yes, being a doctor would become less profitable. The trade-off would be everyone is insured, so everyone becomes a paying patient. It works all over the world.

Myth: Single Payer Causes Long Lines

Well, I guess it is not a myth. Of course lines are longer: everyone can afford to be in the line. For elective surgeries in countries with universal health care, there are waiting lists. In our current system, there are shorter lines because people go without procedures they need because they can't afford them. Gone would be the days that people went without based on their finances. Of course, people with money come from Canada to get to our shorter lines if they can afford it. It would be hard though to find a Canadian who would trade their "coverage" for ours. They just have to wait a little longer for elective procedures.

Myth: We Will Have to Pay More

You would pay higher taxes, but you would pay no premiums, no deductibles, and you would get your prescriptions for free. I hear you screaming, nothing is free. Of course, it isn't free; we pay for it in our taxes. Gone would be the days when you went into debt to pay your medical bills.

How Do We Get There?

Simple, add a public option to the Affordable Care Act. The government will negotiate plans like they do with Medicaid and not have profit built into their negotiations. They will create plans that the insurance companies will not be able to compete against. We can slowly transition to single payer, working out the kinks as we go. Before you completely dismiss this proposal as too radical, remember even Hillary Clinton supported a public option in the last election. Of course the Republican Congress is not going to approve a public option, but if voters see through the Republican agenda and make 2018 a change election, we can nominate and elect a President in 2020 who will support a public option.

We just have to stop watering down our message to become "electable." The people are ready for change, not more establishment politics. There was a candidate in 2016 who understood that. Polls now rate him as the most popular politician in America.

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Scott Galindez attended Syracuse University, where he first became politically active. The writings of El Salvador's slain archbishop Oscar Romero and the on-campus South Africa divestment movement converted him from a Reagan supporter to an activist for Peace and Justice. Over the years he has been influenced by the likes of Philip Berrigan, William Thomas, Mitch Snyder, Don White, Lisa Fithian, and Paul Wellstone. Scott met Marc Ash while organizing counterinaugural events after George W. Bush's first stolen election. Scott moved to Des Moines in 2015 to cover the Iowa Caucus.

Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/42724-focus-universal-health-care-from-prenatal-to-grave

Progressive Breakfast: The Incredible Shrinking Populist: Donald Trump's Tiny Economic Vision

MORNING MESSAGE

Richard Eskow

The Incredible Shrinking Populist: Donald Trump’s Tiny Economic Vision

On Monday, Donald Trump talked about the economy on television for an hour. That may have exceeded the graduate-level curriculum at Trump University. But the biggest lesson I learned is that Trump contradicts himself more, and becomes more typically Republican, with every passing day.

TRUMP'S ECONOMIC SPEECH ATTACKED ON ALL SIDES

Trump economic speech fact-challenged. AP:“He wrongly accused Hillary Clinton of proposing to increase middle-class taxes and blamed crumbling roads and bridges on money spent on refugees … He overstated the corporate tax burden and declared the jobless rate … a hoax.”

EPI’s Larry Mishel trashes speech:“Donald Trump fashions himself a populist, but his economic plan just recycles the failed policies of deregulation and massive tax cuts for the rich and corporations … There was nothing in Trump’s policy agenda that would ensure that wage growth will be generated by economic growth.”

Republican economist Douglas Holtz-Eakin calls Trump speech “a hot mess” on MSNBC:“He’s saying, for example, we’re going to tax those carried interests for the first time. But the rate at which he’s going to tax them is lower than the rate at which they’re currently being taxed, so he’s actually cutting the tax on carried interest.”

“Trump’s child care plan won’t help poor families” says Politico’s Danny Vinik:“…Trump is proposing a tax deduction, not a tax credit—and that’s a problem … Millions of low-income Americans—the families most likely to be unable to afford child care—don’t pay any income taxes. They won’t see any benefit from Trump’s new proposal.”

Republicans unsettled by Trump infrastructure promises. The Atlantic:“Trump’s devotion to infrastructure draws criticism even from his own economic advisers … [Stephen] Moore ripped Trump’s comments on infrastructure in an op-ed for the Washington Times … congressional Republicans have largely kept quiet about Trump’s promises to spend big on roads, rails, and bridges. House Speaker Paul Ryan … has responded with the rhetorical equivalent of a brush-off … [However,] Trump hasn’t released a detailed infrastructure plan…”

Trump won’t name bundlers. Politico:“Trump has scheduled a blitz of fundraisers across the country in the coming weeks … including one at the home of billionaire Bill Koch, the lesser-known brother of Charles and David … It is a sharp departure from the primary, when Trump claimed he couldn’t be bought … [And] it is Clinton who is more open about her own finances and where the money is coming from.”

Libertarian Gary Johnson touts national sales tax. Roll Call:“Johnson made clear … that he hoped his sales tax plan would attract voters and entice endorsements from uncommitted GOP elected officials and donors … Johnson calls for replacing the income tax with a 28 percent national sales tax on goods and services, and says his blueprint is revenue neutral and includes incentives for low-income families.”

CLINTON MOVES INTO RED TERRITORY

Clinton campaign moves into AZ and GA. W. Post:“Representatives of Hillary Clinton’s campaign phoned state Democratic leaders in Arizona and Georgia on Monday night to alert them of plans to begin transferring funds to hire more field organizers in those states … Polls in both states … show a tightening race … And the money could also help promote down-ballot candidates in Arizona and Georgia.”

Trump weak in Utah. NYT:“…a large Mormon population with a strong distaste for Mr. Trump has left the state up for grabs, and with a substantial Mormon presence spilling into places such as Arizona, Idaho and Nevada, what would normally be a Republican safe zone could be surprisingly competitive … [Gary] Johnson, whose campaign headquarters is in Salt Lake City, has been returning regularly … the Clinton campaign has staff on the ground in Utah, and it is dispatching former President Bill Clinton to the state for a fund-raising event this week…”

OBAMACARE MAKING PEOPLE HEALTHIER

New data shows improving health after Obamacare. NYT:“A new study, published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine, offers another way of looking at the issue. Low-income people in Arkansas and Kentucky, which expanded Medicaid insurance to everyone below a certain income threshold, appear to be healthier than their peers in Texas, which did not expand.”

Louisiana embraces Obamacare. Boston Globe:“Last January, Louisiana voters elected John Bel Edwards governor (the only Democrat governor in the Deep South). On just his second day in office he signed an executive order that made Louisiana the 31st state to expand Medicaid, which is a crucial part of Obamacare … Though applications for the new Medicaid benefit did not begin until June, already 265,723 Louisianians have signed up.”

BREAKFAST SIDES

Class gap emerges with paid family leave. American Prospect:“…it’s far more common in the lucrative tech and finance industries and in the liberal coastal states [to] such policies. But those who are working blue-collar jobs or in the South are far less likely to have access to paid time off to care for newborns or sick loved ones … only about 12 percent of American workers had access to paid family leave.”

Speaker Paul Ryan faces primary tonight. AP:“[Opponent] Paul Nehlen’s star rose after Trump praised him last week on Twitter, then later pointedly withheld his endorsement of Ryan. Trump relented just three days later … He ran well to Ryan’s right, accusing Ryan of betraying Trump and favoring a ‘globalist agenda’ of disastrous trade deals and porous borders.”

Progressive Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to activists. Progressive Breakfast is a project of the Campaign for America's Future.more »

An open casket for Mike

A Father's tribute to the tragic consequences of denying HEALTH CARE to ALL Americans! 

An open casket

This is the final photo of my son, taken six weeks before he died. I hate to even look at it, but there it is. He weighed about 104 -- and he would lose another 15 or so pounds before he finally ...

DAILYKOS.COM

This is the final photo of my son, taken six weeks before he died. I hate to even look at it, but there it is. He weighed about 104 -- and he would lose another 15 or so pounds before he finally starved to death.

I wasn't even going to save the photo because I prefer to remember my son as a healthy, funny, hyperactive clown. But this is what I live with now -- the memory of a gaunt, pain-wracked young man.

If Mike had been able to get the colonoscopies he needed, he would still be the person I want to remember.

Instead, we as a society refuse to extend care to all human beings, and 17,000 people die each year in states that have refused to expand Medicaid to cover people in poverty. In North Carolina alone, that number is 2,800. That's seven people a day. Seven human beings who were loved by their family and friends, just as my son was.

I helped organize a die-in this last week in Raleigh, and the eulogist, Rev. Dr. William Barber II, suggested we have open-casket funerals for the people who die from lack of care so people can see the result of our state's politicians' uncaring attitude toward the lives of the people they are supposed to be serving.

When Emmett Till was murdered in Mississippi in 1955, his mother decided on an open-casket funeral so people could see what had been done to her boy. Well, this is what was done to mine.

These legislators who refuse to expand Medicaid call themselves pro-life, but their policies prove otherwise. They care nothing for life once it has exited the birth canal. They care only about scoring political points, and as the body count mounts, they suffer no consequences for the lives they allow to be snuffed out.

A friend of mine said she wishes she believed in hell so she could picture them there. I just want the unnecessary deaths to stop.

So, I will make this photo public. This is what was done to my son. This is what happens to people who can't get access to the care they need.

In the end, we still pay for this care. My son's surgeries, chemo and radiation cost taxpayers nearly $1 million, when we could have saved his life for about $1,000 a year. When you allow someone to go without needed preventive care and chronic disease management, they become very sick -- and very expensive.

If you live in a state that has so far refused to expand Medicaid, your insurance rates could double -- or more -- this year. Don't blame Obama; blame the anti-lifers you elected to your state legislatures and governors' mansions. They have the care they need and always will, but they deny it to others.

You have the vote. You can send them home and replace them with people who do care.

Meanwhile, consider this photo and how unnecessary his suffering -- and that of those who loved and miss him -- was and is.

http://m.dailykos.com/story/2015/10/31/1443013/-An-open-casket?detail=facebook

RSN: Children Given Lifelong Ban on Talking About Fracking, Corporate Welfare in California, Alaska Legislature Is Suing Its Governor to Block ObamaCare Medicaid Expansion

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Robert Reich | Corporate Welfare in California 
 
Robert Reich, Robert Reich's Blog 
Reich writes: "Corporate welfare is often camouflaged in taxes that seem neutral on their face but give windfalls to big entrenched corporations at the expense of average people and small businesses." 
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Clinton Emails Detail Involvement in 2009 Honduran Coup 
Jonathan Marshall, Consortium News 
Marshall writes: "Her recently released emails show that she sought help from a pro-coup lobbyist for Honduran business interests to establish communications with the new military-backed president. She also approved the continuation of U.S. aid to the illegitimate new regime, blocked demands by the Organization of American States for Zelaya's return, and accepted subsequent presidential elections." 
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New Mexico Police Officers to Stand Trial for Murder of Homeless Man 
Al Jazeera America and Associated Press 
Excerpt: "A New Mexico judge on Tuesday ruled that two Albuquerque police officers must stand trial on murder charges in the on-duty shooting death of a homeless man - which sparked angry protests in the city and helped lead to reforms." 
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Alaska Legislature Is Suing Its Governor to Block ObamaCare Medicaid Expansion 
Peter Sullivan, The Hill 
Sullivan writes: "The expansion is slated to begin Sept. 1. But the legislature is now suing to block the move, calling it an unconstitutional violation of separation of powers." 
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Jeb Bush Comes Out Against Encryption 
Jenna McLaughlin, The Intercept 
McLaughlin writes: "Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush said Tuesday that encryption makes it harder for law enforcement to track down 'evildoers' - and called for a 'much better, more cooperative relationship' with Apple, Google, and other tech companies." 
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Mormon Church Makes First Ever Appointments of Women to Councils 
Associated Press 
Excerpt: "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced the appointments on Tuesday evening of three high-ranking women to committees that make key policy decisions for a faith of 15 million worldwide members." 
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Children Given Lifelong Ban on Talking About Fracking 
Suzanne Goldenberg, Guardian UK 
Goldenberg writes: "Two young children in Pennsylvania were banned from talking about fracking for the rest of their lives under a gag order imposed under a settlement reached by their parents with a leading oil and gas company." 
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This & that.....another pipeline spill, MORE WARS, Paul Ryan promising Government Shut Down

Disclose.tv with Scott Rickard and 11 others

Why do we have wars?
www.disclose.tv

GOP Candidate Says Military Retirees Must Pay More for Health Care

Sen. Lindsey Graham says Tricare fees must increase to help pay for the rising cost of military health care.

MILITARY.COM

Bold Nebraska

Another Plains All American Pipeline has spilled -- this one spewed over 4,000 gallons into a creek. Just as they are set to reopen Refugio Beach in California after the recent spill...

Pipelines leak; it's not if, it's when. ‪#‎NOKXL‬

Oil pipeline spills over 4,000 gallons of oil into creek

HIGHLAND, IL (KTVI) – Friday afternoon Highland city officials were notified that an oil pipeline owned by Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. had discharged around 100 barrels of crude oil. 100 bar...

FOX2NOW.COM

The other Republican candidates cloaked identical beliefs more tactfully. 
Donald Trump may be a clown defining the REAL Republican Party, warts and all.

VoteVets.org

· 

Donald Trump wants to "bomb the hell" out of Iraq's oil fields in order to strike at ISIS. That may not be such a good idea, CNN's military analysts say.That's because bombing Iraq's oil fields would be a serious blow to Iraq and efforts to recover once ISIS is expelled from the country.

"If I win, I would attack those oil sites that are controlled and owned -- they are controlled by ISIS," Trump said. "I wouldn't send many troops because you won't need 'em by the time I'm done."

What do VoteVets members think of Trump's war mongering?

Military analysts fact check Donald Trump on bombing oil fields - CNNPolitics.com

Donald Trump wants to "bomb the hell" out of Iraq's oil fields in order to strike at ISIS. That may not be such a good idea, CNN's military analysts say.

CNN.COM|BY JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN

Reader Supported News

“Many Americans have very few, if any, options when it comes to choosing their local cable and Internet provides," the senators said in a letter that was sent Thursday, but released on Friday. "As the telecommunications industry has become increasingly concentrated, this lack of choice has resulted in huge price increases and often poor services for customers."

Sanders, Warren Want Probe Into 'Ridiculous' Cable, Internet Prices

READERSUPPORTEDNEWS.ORG|BY JORDAIN CARNEY, THE HILL

Daily Kos

‪#‎Truth‬

Thanks to The Other 98% for sharing.

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/2015/07/09/paul-ryan-threat-government-shutdown-real-unless-dems-back-down?onswipe_redirect=no&oswrr=1

"House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) warned on Thursday that the threat of another government shutdown is real unless President Obama and the Democrats end their opposition to a GOP budget plan that boosts defense spending while capping domestic programs."

Paul Ryan: Threat of Government Shutdown Is Real Unless Dems Back Down

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) warned on Thursday that the t

M.THEFISCALTIMES.COM

The Republican party by obstructing Medicaid expansion in red states to restrict affordable care are culpable for the lives of their constituents lost due to their blatant dereliction of duty.

Occupy Democrats

Governor Rick Scott has blood on his hands.

This was Charlene Dill. She collapsed and died on March 21, 2014, while working. A separated mother of three, she fell in to "the coverage gap" because her state, Florida, is one of 21 states who have refused to expand Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

Charlene didn't have to die. She was a pawn in a political game.

The 21 refusing states are:

Alabama
Alaska
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Indiana
Kansas
Louisiana
Maine
Mississippi
Montana
Nebraska
North Carolina
Oklahoma
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

Read her story @ http://orlandoweekly.com/…/the-perils-of-florida-s-refusal-…

Thanks to Occupy Posters.

Erin Brockovich

How do you spell pandemic?

Our USDA trades health safety for profits for the beef industry. In a trade off the USDA approved the import export of chicken to and from China so the beef industry will have access to Chinese Markets!!! Health safety should trump profit but that's not the case in politics.

Bend over and take it ... we have been sold out.