Here's One You Don't Hear Too Often
cross-posted from Dome-icile
"Vote for me and I'll take away your kids' access to healthcare."That appears to be the unofficial motto of the Bill Brady campaign.
I had no intention of posting anything about the Governor's visit to D.C. to pitch the All Kids program, but when I saw the following statement, I had to chime in:
But state Sen. Bill Brady, an All Kids critic and Republican candidate for governor, predicted many families would be attracted by low-cost treatment for their children's serious diseases.
"Unfortunately, the governor lives in Never-Never Land," said Brady, who promises to try to halt the program if he is elected. (emphasis added)
While I supported the bill, I still think that the jury is still inevitably out on how well the program is going to work once it's up and running. But it's one thing for Brady to say that he opposed the legislation, but to actually campaign on taking away insurance from families is one of the most poorly thought through ideas I've heard in a long time.
Although I guess that if his plan is to make people forget about the assinine commercials of Oberweis flying over Soldier Field in a helicopter while playing on people's prejudices, he may have just succeeded.
Although I guess that if his plan is to make people forget about the assinine commercials of Oberweis flying over Soldier Field in a helicopter while playing on people's prejudices, he may have just succeeded.
12 comments:
Good for Bill Brady. All kids; will bankrupt the state there is no free lunch. Someone has to pay to subsidize the insurance. The state can't afford the programs they have now and we are starting an ill concieved program to give away low cost health care. I don't want to hear about how we are going to save money by moving people into managed care. While they have started signing people up for health care they haven't started moving people into managed care. I guess it’s time to start robbing the state pension funds only early.
"Someone has to pay to subsidize the insurance." Surprise: You already ARE subsidizing it when uninsured kids -- be they undocumented or otherwise -- turn up at the ER for health care. The insurance companies pass the costs along to you and me and everyone else.
"All Kids" ain't a giveaway. Recipient families will have to pay premiums, co-pays, etc. In other words, the families receiving care will step up to the responsibility of helping to subsidize it, and I'll bet they welcome this prospect.
Health care oughta be like public education: accessible to everyone. Call me crazy, but I'd prefer that the kids of this state be reasonably healthy and educated rather than sick and stupid. I don't care who they are or what household they come from, "citizens" or noncitizens. I don't even have kids, but I've got this sneaking suspicion that my neighbors and I benefit from kids being reasonably positioned for productivity in life.
PS Nope, I neither work for the guv nor do I often say very nice things about him. He's sure right on this one, though.
The question is subsidize what. People will have full access to things they currently aren't covered for. The other statement you make isn't true they don't have to pay if they can't. There is no limit to visit's and if they never are moved into managed care the costs will sky rocket. Read the article someone making $60000 pays $40 a child and $10 a visit. Blago is buying votes with this one using your money to bad we have to pay for our insurance. All Kids should have bikes too is that next.
As usual the GOP "leadership" had its head where the sun-don't-shine on this one.
The program that started out as CHIPS morphed into Kid-Care and now ALL-KIDS; a well intentioned program that provides care to moms and kids who otherwise wouldn't have it.
Don't say 'let the market take care of it', because the market DID take care of it: The choice was NO INSURANCE.
Instead of opposing it, the GOP should have said "YES, but lets refine it and perfect it... and fully fund it by trading 'member initiative pork' for health care for our kids.
What a great choice the GOP could have offered: health care for kids and moms...or "pork."
Colonel, you are wise beyond your rank.
9:36,
Not sure about bikes (Schwinn didn't come through with the campaign contribution yet), but Pat Quinn wants to give all school children their own personal laptop.
Cap'n Crud wrote:
Health care oughta be like public education: accessible to everyone.
___
Interesting. Once again we see the confusion of a vast bloated bureaucracy with actual 'education.'
It is precisely making "health care delivery" equal to our awful public education system that has reasonable people worried.
That said, once passed, reforming the existing system is preferable to abolishing or repealing it. (politically and policy-wise)
South Carolina, Florida, Mass. and Minnesota are all promoting far better health care plans than "All Kids" style welfare schemes.
It's no surprise that they all have Republican Governors.
Democrats insist on empowering vast bureaucracies to manage decisions best left to individuals & families.
Republicans (not here in IL, unfortunately) attempt to "individualize" the welfare state by giving people control of these "subsidies" so that they can tailor the assistance to their needs.
Health Savings Accounts, Personal Retirement Accounts, Education Scholarships directly to parents, and other proposals to empower people are all reasonable ways to reach "liberal" goals with out the corruption and waste of huge publicly protected bureaucracies.
There are no sound intellectual arguments against them. (but cheap class-war rhetoric still works, John)
The reason today's 'liberals' (conserving the status quo is what they are REALLY all about) hate these ideas is due to the fact that they disempower the vast bureaucracies that empower their party and fund their campaigns.
Sorry Cap'n, you can't say you are for "an educated populace" and support more $$ for the current corrupt system. Access to a brick & mortor school isn't access to more connected neurons.
Though the industries are different, it is similar for health care. "Free" health care in Britain & Canada isn't there for those dying in the queue.
These are problems that can be solved if people work together work out some creative solutions.
Democrats are more than willing to tell Republicans that they should ignore the industries that helped elect them (Big Oil, insurance, etc.) but refuse to take their own advice on similarly corrupt industries like Big Education.
The gas in my car burns far more efficiently than the minds of our children these days. But you guys do what you have to get elected. Just don't tell us it's "for the children."
colonel, thank God the wonderful "leadership" of the Democratic Party found a way to make sure we didn't have to make that choice, but instead got a healthcare system AND pork...with no way to sustainable fund either!
I find it interesting that the Governor claims he can pay for this whole thing simply by switching Medicaid to a managed care style system - something that the GOP and Chamber have been advocating for years. Just like when he and the Speaker shortchanged the pension funds to get him through the election without a tax hike, the Governor has once again demonstrated that he is only interested in reforming (in the case of the pensions, I'd add some quotes around "reforming") programs to save the state money is when he's found a new pet project to put those saving towards. Never mind the mounting pension debts....it's not like the state should be expecting a lot of people to retire in the next 10-15 years, right?
Representative, I used to be one of your constituents, and I used to have a great deal of respect for you (even though I never voted for you).....but I am blown away by this statement: "While I supported the bill, I still think that the jury is still inevitably out on how well the program is going to work once it's up and running."
Representative, perhaps the reason that the jury is still out is because the program has yet to actually be finalized....something that should have been done before you and your colleagues in the General Assembly were forced to vote on the bill. Perhaps you and your fellow Democratic legislators could have taken more than 10 minutes to read and debate the bill before you all fell in line behind the Speaker and President and voted for a blank check for the Governor's administration to create a vast and costly welfare program.
It may not be good politics for Sen. Brady to promise to end this program, but it was certainly public policy as introduced and passed.
John -- we know each other, nuff said.
I agree with Grand Old Partisan, it's too bad time wasn't taken to perfect this program. It's a good one but it has flaws.
It could have been fully funded while at the same time eliminating "pork."
A little money might still be left over.
AllKids is a noble idea, but the healthcare delivery system that the Governor and the GA chose was a horrible decision. AK is just reasonably priced Medicaid coverage and hopefully Representative Fritchey knows how poorly maintained Medicaid is in Illinois. The IHFS has estimated that unpaid bills by the end of the fiscal year will be $1.8 billion.
Many children and adults are currently experiencing severe access issues due to the low payment rates and slow reimbursements. This, before one AK child is signed up. The Metro-East is being particularly hard hit by access-to-care problem, and the guaranteed 30 day pay cycle (for children's claims only)won't come close to incentivizing physicians to take on AK caseloads.
I simply wish the members of the G.A. had the T.V. to do the right thing and table the AK legislation until it could have been more completely analyzed in the spring session. But, when we elect sheep, we shouldn't be surprised when they act like sheep. I'm sure Rep Fritchey will say that the vote for AllKids was a pragmatic and honorable vote. Unfortunately is was an irresponsible vote.
Extremist,
To paraphrase one of your idols, "...There you go again..."! Will you ever stop with the corrupt big education conspiracy rhetoric? Vouchers will never be legal in Illinois no matter how much noise you make and no matter how much money your friends spend.
Allkids is a great program for all children in Illinois including the middle class which you and your friends have such a hard time relating to.
By the way, we miss you on the radio. Our Sunday mornings are just not the same.
Bill,
To answer your question, No, I probably won't stop pointing out how corrupt the current public education system is.
I advise you to monitor your use of the word "never." It comes back to bite at times.
In all your huffing and puffing, I once again notice that you failed to make an intellectually sound argument against "funding children, instead of corrupt systems." It's OK, there are none.
You have the power, and you are imposing your will. We understand how it works.
Still, it's good to know no one can defend the indefensible.
Your Sunday mornings will improve again soon. As will our children's education when we break the back of the corrupt industry that has "privatized" it.
All Kids needs to be converted to a subsidized "Fee for service/Medical Savings Vehicle" instead of a Government misManaged welfare program.
Empower People, not Bureaucracies. Individualize the Welfare state.
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