Kennedy: 'We can't afford to wait' on healthcare

Let me be clear the current world-wide recession most likely resulted from the concentration of capital toward a few, thereby revived middle class and consumer confidence would be a key to vibrant economy activity and employment as the money does not evaporate.

Basically, If ruling party changes, accordingly so does tax system , especially given the condition that the middle class is undergoing severe financial hardship as a consequence of the extremely high fuel price, mortgage rate, and insurance premium, which is a beauty and virtue of democracy as we know.

In case some people have enjoyed the benefit of exemptions, that might imply others have shouldered the equivalent of their share.
Now the time has come for the middle class and middle class-oriented party to take initiative.
In general, advanced states are characterized as a broad base of middle class, the recovery of which is what the last presidential election is about as the California budget crisis demonstrates the severity in collapse of middle class and tax decrease.
Alongside a tax on the richest, alcohol tax and ending subsidies for the private insurers can be considered to mitigate the amount and resistance, I guess.
How can anybody expect vibrant economic activity and housing boom in the context one in two Americans say someone in their family skipped pills, postponed or cut back on needed medical care due to the cost ?

Thank You !

Did Ted mention that members of Congress will be exempt
from the policies of Obamacare?

How many regular people will get the type of treatment he got ?

ZERO!!!

Sub-optimal
Yes the president's healthcare bill will change healthcare in this country, but it is a sub-optimal solution. People are asking for a public policy simply because they do not realize there are other options. Healthcare must be changed on three fronts: Cost, Quality and Access. The Prez's plan only truely addresses access. You can make flimsy arguments about Cost and Quality, but they are thin.
If only we had a tool that lowers cost and improves quality? Oh yes, the free market. Capitation, pay-for-performance, salaried physicians have proved to lower costs and rise quality at places like the Mayo and Cleveland clinic. We need to first adopt these smaller changes to let natural competition "trim the fat"

Cost and access are related. If you lower the cost access improves. If access improves the number of people that will have to rely on government health care is reduced. That reduces the entire cost of the program.

The President is going backwards.

First give some incremental changes that produce competition and lower cost and raise quality. Than supplement an access program.

THERE ARE OTHER OPTIONS PEOPLE! Just because this is the option Obama and the other left-wingers are presenting does not make it the best choice.

They have done a marvelous job of crafting the debate to look like you either support this plan or you want zero reform. But that is not the reality.

This whole new health plan debacle will be boosted up by the "Do it for Ted!!!' b.s. Democrats should be ashamed of themsleves

i am a healthy 43 year old and my bcbs insurance costs me $450 per month. It was only $400 last year. I pay a $25 copay every time I go to the doctors office. I cannot afford that anymore. It is more than all my utilities, cable and cell phone bill together. You want to cut out the waste? Whenever I have tests done I am told to come in for another appointment to get the results. That is another copay, time in the waiting room and a full charge for an office visit for something that can be done on the phone or via scype. I complained to my physician and he said that is what the insurance companies make them do. Plus the administrative. those little appointment cards and the telephone calls all can be automated now via email. I agree with senator Kennedy and the President.

Are you kidding me. We're depending on Ted Kennedy to reform healthcare? We'll only tax those making over 250,000 dollars, it's only fair, right? This way the slackers among us can be equal. Enough with this class envy BS. these folks earning over 250K have worked hard to get there, in many cases they have sacrificed and taken great risks, and now we think we should punish them. We loathe them for their accomplishments. Yet, the lay abouts and gimmie people are held up as heros, as more deserving than the producers of society. Kennedy sits there with his silver spoon and spits on us common people, but we look to him for answers, he's never done anything useful for this countery in 40 years except live off his family coat tails, and we're about to ruin our healthcare and mortgage our future because Ted says we should.
Ted a bit of news for you, the common man could have the same healthcare as you Senators and Congressman, if you had only opted to live with the same health insurance that the rest of us had, but you passed your own plans, even though Joe average paid for it.
Stop punishing the producers just to soothe your guilt over being wealthy. When was the last time you opened the compound for a free beach day for all the little people that can't afford beach passes, or offered free rides on your yachts for all of us that simply can't afford one. Health care reform is a myth and a bad deal for the average man.

They have done a marvelous job of crafting the debate to look like you either support this plan or you want zero reform. But that is not the reality.
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That is exactly what they are doing. Liberals are turning this debate into we want change and you are just the party of "NO". This simply isnt true, and we cannot let them frame the debate. we must speak up and voice our ideas for tort reform, allowing for insrance companies to develop bigger risk pools over the entire country instead of state by state, which would decrease costs. Conservatives want change too, we just want it done without a government takeover of the system.

What we can't afford is to RUSH into liberal health care reform rammed down our throats by brain dead Senators like Kennedy

The rest of the country has PLENTY of time, as there is no crises other than in Washington DC. Ted doesn't have much time. 84% of the American public is happy with the HEALTHCARE we have....it is only the COST that American's are concerned with. Most of the uninsured have CHOSEN not to purchase insurance because they are young and in good health. Many of the other uninsured would continue to use the ER for treatment, would not adher to any preventative health mandates or requirements if they WERE offered insurance (see the Florida experiement). Right now, Rasmussen has come out with this poll on Obama's re-electability

/2012 Match-ups: Obama, Romney Tied at 45%;
Obama 48%, Palin 42%

The only crisis the Democrats have is a push to pass healthcare government takeover before Obama's popularity crashes and burns when the public finally wakes up and figures out that the media has been lying and covering up the facts to support the Obama foolishness.

Lest we forget the self-serving Hypocrite that is sponsoring this cruel hoax:
From this date in History 7/18/69:
On July 18, 1969, a car driven by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., plunged off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island near Martha's Vineyard; although Kennedy managed to escape the submerged vehicle, his passenger, 28-year-old Mary Jo Kopechne, drowned. (Kennedy subsequently pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and received a suspended two-month jail sentence.)
It is easy to appear magnaninmous with other peoples money.

THe Democrats are getting desperate. They are realizing that they have to get it done quick before too many people realize that it is defacto government run healthcare and a gross intrusion on individual freedom. Of course since today's Democrats are collectivists they don't give a hoot about individual liberty.

So they trot out the liberal lion Ted Kennedy is enjoying healthcare services that the people would not get if this plan passed.

Of course HE can't wait. Getting ready to depart ot a socialists heaven he can'tait tp see his wet socialists dream here on earth... and perhaps an few more kisses on this behind before he goes.

It is time to go Ted. You screwed America ENOUG.

The only class of people who benefit from any of these Dem-sponsored bills are illegal aliens. Those that pay taxes and have healthcare will suffer at the hands of those that don't.

Health Care reform? Yes. But keep the government out of the picture. The money they are thinking about the public option will fund tax incentives to cover those that don't have coverage and need to buy it. Mandated coverage will allow insurance companies to offer coverage to everyone.

This is not Canada and say NOT to govt.-run health care.

Never forget this! Whatever Ted Kennedy endorses has to be VERY BAD for Middle America and a shot in the arm for our enemies, both foreign and domestic.

Lunacy

the country is bankrupt. Wall St & DC to blame. Social unrest & Revolution are coming.

"And with focus on health care this week and the next few, there's a red flag number there as well, with 33% strongly against Obama's efforts and just 25% strongly for them. Overall, 49% approve of the President's handling of health care."

No, we can afford to wait. We should wait. Wait until this goes away again.

Just like we couldn't wait to pass the "stimulus." That worked out so well, after all.

Obama's approval is dropping as fast as the US economy. The Dems are panicked, desperate to ram something, anything through as fast as possible. And why not? Obama's done such a great job with the economy - shouldn't we trust him to takeover our health care?

Sharon agrees with Ted Kennedy.

When she has to see her grandmother denied a life saving operation or a hip replacement because the government says she is too old maybe she will change her mind. Or when she has to wait a year for an MRI for her sore knees...or when she is told she has to take counseling from the government to tell her how they want her to plan for her end of life.

Women were all for the right to privacy when it cam to abortion, but look how quickly they give it up now.

Oh wait, the last time I heard "We can't afford to wait" was for the welfare bill that was called a "stimulus" bill, and from that, most of the money has gone directly into programs and policies that have grown the government and done nothing to "stimulate" the economy.

That's what happened last time we "rushed" into something.

What a bunch of morons. They want to rush into it so that there can be no debate that might raise some serious questions and doubts about this health care policy.

I believe Ted Kennedy would not have been allowed to have the surgery and the proton treatment under Obama's healthcare - ofcourse unless the senator's get special exemptions. The expensive treatment would have been ruled as just extending LIFE for a senior citizen and hence not worth it

hey Sharon, you're confused if you think this healthcare plan will lower your costs or do anything positive about your care in general. exactly what about this bill makes you think that? right, you know nothing about it, and neither do our Congressmen. but that doesn't matter, because it JUST CANNOT WAIT!!!

changes to healthcare are likely needed to some extent, and the most obvious is tort reform. but Obama won't push that because he gets too many donations from the lawyer lobbies. figure it out...this isn't about your healthcare...it's about power and money...as usual. bringing in the likes of Ted Kennedy just makes the whole thing more embarrassing.

When someone insists that we must not miss this opportunity and must act now it really means we can't allow a measured and thoughtful debate on the bill's merits. Given the time to fully examine this plan, Obama knows the people will see it for the boondoggle it is. Call your congressman. Tell them yes to meaningful health care reform. Tell them yes to better access and cost containment. Tell them yes to Medicare and Medicaid reform and solvency.
Tell them "NO!" to this bankruptcy inducing, socialist turd!

Kennedy himself said" I've worked on health care for twelve years" and if you notice they still started with nothing. He's been useless for a lot of years. Stop the rush, read the bills Energy bill included ,and forget this ,Win one for Ted crap.

Why do I feel that my interests are not being addressed by Senator Kennedy? If he is unable to carry out the duties that the voters of Massachusetts elected him to do, then he should resign or be replaced.

Our health care system isn't broken, it's being misused by millions. My husband had to go to the ER last weekend b/c he sliced his hand and needed stitches. The waiting room at our local hospital looked like a UN meeting. Dozens of patients waiting to be seen b/c they had a fever, a cold, a sore throat, etc. etc. All ailments that would have typically been treated by a primary care physician. However, I suspect most of these patients didn't have a primary care physician and have no intention of trying to find one. No one gets turned away by the ER. Instead of trying to "fix" my health insurance plan, why not spend $$ on opening neighborhood clinics, improving health education and community outreach, i.e. free vaccinations, tax incentives for joining health clubs, losing weight or stopping smoking. In the long run, these efforts would save way more money than Obama's plans to overhaul our healthcare system.

Just look at Canada and England. Who among us are going to accept being told they can't get a knee replacement or other elective surgery right away b/c you're too old? too sick? There is a vibrant black market in both countries for people with money willing to pay for healthcare-upon-demand b/c they don't want to have to wait or be denied treatment.

Finally, our daughter starts medical school in two weeks. It costs $65,000 per year - is Obama going to pay for her $250,000 in medical school loans when she graduates is four years? I think not. This is her choice and she willingly accepts the financial sacrifice b/c she wants to help people and medicine is her calling. We should be outraged that it costs so much to educate one doctor, never mind the costs she'll face in setting up a practice, acquiring malpractice insurance, etc. Obama should not try to reform our healthcare system without including tort reform, preventive measures, cost incentives and the like. To do so is foolish and short-sighted and will only cost all of us more money over time.

Teddy, since what you're pushing is SOCIALIZED MEDICINE that HAS FAILED EVERYWHERE ELSE ON THE PLANET, I think we can wait.

This health care bill would come with 500 billion in cuts to medicare. Yes the Democrats have figured they can ration it to the old people so they can spread the wealth around. They also would mandate end of life counseling in the biil that would make people after 70 go to a counselor to manage "the difficult issues of age" more like managing you into an earlier death so you wont be a strain on the system. Aint liberals grand?? Your not progressive, you wanna take us back not forward.

I didn't see a single mention of the Mal-Practice Insurance issue here. These rates have sky rocketed in the past 15-20 years because everyone wants to sue the doctor for every little thing. Republicans wanted to cap awards. Democrats (aka the Lawyer Party) doesn't. So under ObamaCare, how do they control costs if the Malpractice insurance keeps going up??? OH yeah....denial of service. You can't control costs until you control the litigation aspect of this, and President Obama took that off the table on day ONE!

"Unnecessary care?" How about giving the most advanced and expensive cancer care to a morbidly obese 76 year old murderer with an alcohol-rotted brain? Do with him what you Liberals are always wanting to do with unborn babies.

Lots of opposing "facts". Here is one from retired HRVP whose company had 150,000 employees, but only provided access to coverage for less than half. Ashamed we could not afford it for the worker level folks.
Wonder how all those European countries do it without going bust? (and don't just keep bringing up Britain or Canada, even though a higher percent their citizens are happier than ours with their coverage.)
Where are all you good church-going Americans l read about? Are your priorities for US government to spend its bucks on Bomb, bomb, bombs? Get human. gene r

My question to Kennedy is "Why Not"
Why not wait until the bill is written and gone over? This is the third piece of legislation that they are trying to get through without having it read by the people voting on it. As far as I am concerned, all of the legislators who voted on these bills and passed them should be tried for treason. How can you vote on legislation that has so much at stake for Americans without reading it? These people do not have our interests in mind. They are bankrupting this country. Where is this made up crisis? 47 Million people without insurance out of over 300 Million....Lets see, 20-25 Million of the 47 are illegal aliens. Why should they get this healthcare plan? Not citizens! HELLO! 8 to 12 million simply don't want it and can get themselves. So the real number is around 8 million. Most of them are people who are moving in between jobs so this is a farce. America has the best healthcare system in the world, so the real question is why the deception? Its all about votes. the more you give away, the more you increase your base. Thats all these politicians want. They want to stay in power.

Can't afford to wait, so let's steamrole over the real issues so that people CANNOT get a glimpse at what it really is and what it really costs and what it really denies.

This policy is so BAD BAD BAD BAD.

Reform is needed, but governmental mandates, payments and czarism is not!

WHO cannot afford to wait? We heard this about the stimulus packages that have yet to tax our society, only to see billion$ of our money squandered. Now, you want jurisdiction over OUR bodies and you're telling US that WE cannot afford to wait. I believe Kennedy is referring to HIS own party and their aspirations for power and control. Deceptive people do not want to give opposing parties (i.e. US) time to think and/or consider any alternatives...a trademark of the dark arts- no kidding.

I personally think that Ted Kennedy should have to use HR 3200 as HIS health care reform too. But WAIT ............he'll be DENIED COVERAGE due to his AGE!

(just like my MOTHER will be)

Under this bill Kennedy would be long dead due to a treatment denied based on his age, brain cancer and far gone condition of irreversible brain damage due to illness called chronic anti American liberalism

Senator Kennedy- let's hope this fix is not like your Student Loan fix. Federal loans at 6.8% or 8.5%- this is helpful. This Helath crisis is just another scare tactic to force us into paying for another bad deal. It is failing in MA and it will fail on a Federallevel too because we will NOT take the time to make it right. These politicians only want their name on the bill NOT a good solution!

DO NOT SUPPORT THIS HEALTH PLAN. If it passes it will be too late when everyone finds out that we got screwed. IT CANNOT BE REVERSED

We also cannot afford a bill that is passed through congress so fast that it fails to achieve its goals, hurts small businesses, and puts us further into debt. There are other ways to make healthcare more “universal” without relying on the government to pay for, run, and make all of the decisions for us. Lets loosen up restrictive federal laws that prevent small businesses from reaching across state lines to look for healthcare. This will increase free market competition and lower costs. Small businesses should also be allowed to band together to spread risk and increase bargaining power, also a powerful cost reducer. In addition, companies should be able to purchase individually owned plans, like health savings accounts, for their employees using pretax dollars. This way, health insurance is portable, and even when people are laid off or are switching jobs, they will still be covered. The NCPA is working hard to create free market solutions to public policy problems! www.familyissues.ncpa.org

Senator - it's the other way around - we can't afford to implement the plan. Just because some people call our system broken does not make it so. It's still the BEST HEALTH CARE IN THE WORLD. Maybe if we didn't pay for so many illegal aliens we'd have more to support people who belong here.

"Every American should be able to get the same treatment that U.S. senators are entitled to."
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Likewise, every American should be able to drown a member of the opposite sex, and get away with it.

My mother couldn't afford to wait either! She lived in a Sun Healthcare Group nursing home Sunbridge, in Newport Beach, California where they neglected her so badly they killed her. Read this medical review written by their medical director Dr L Scott Stoney written in 2006:
There are several incidences of concern in this patients' case which should be noticed. The frequency of her recurrent pneumonia is concerning as well as the type of pneumonia which she developed were concerning. The infection incidence at Sunbridge Newport was monitored quarterly and it was noted over the national average during infection control meeting in the final quarter of the year 2003. As I was medical director for this facility I had request further evaluation by the staff to the etiology of this occurrence within the facility. Multiple families had complained about this problem. Unfortunately, the administration did not take due diligence in ameliorating this problem in 2003. Lack of sufficient ventilation contributes to pneumonia. This was a sentinel event; however the administration continued to give both patients families and the undersigned a variety of excuses why it was "taking some time" to fix this problem. Upon review of the medical record, it is medically probably that this patients recurrent pneumonia (especially MRSA) was related to the physical facility.
There is another incidence of concern. Blood pressure monitoring cuffs which were not working in Sunbridge Newport in 2003. This, again, was a sentinel event and of grave concern. As medical director, this was an extraordinary event which prompted my immediate reaction as Medical Director to request the administration immediately order new blood pressure equipment for the safety of the patients within the facility. I was subsequently directly in contact from my Newport Beach private practice office with Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse Special Agent Supervisor Joseph Fendrick to discuss this matter. Unfortunately this was too late for Mrs. Evelyn Calvert, she arrived 7/16/04 to the emergency room in again respiratory distress and she died. Due to the limited response of the administration to meet patient needs, I resigned from Sunbridge Newport Rehabilitation in March, 2004 and gave sixty day notice of my termination as Medical Director from the facility. It is my opinion, as a Board Certified physician ..... that this patients death is within medical probability aggravated or in causation by the failure of the ventilator system within Sunbridge Newport as well as the failure of the blood pressure monitoring devices within the facility."

Sun Healthcare Group, a publicly held corporation, was and is now committed to a Calif State Injuction. However Deputy Attorney General Claude Vanderwold told my attorney and I in 2007 this facility's violations were not even considered in the $2.5 Million fine they prosecuted Sun Healthcare Group Inc. for to obtain this fine. Although we had been in close contact with the Dept of Justice's investigator, Joseph Fendrick.

This isn't rocket science.

Deborah Calvert daughter of the late Evelyn Calvert
and former assistant to Buzz Aldrin

This is not the first time Obama had a idea and rushed it trrough with out a full study of it's out come. He couldn't wait to give big companies bailout money and didn't tie up the loose ends.Alot of the stimulis money was wasted. It was rushed through so fast that congress never had a chance to read it .The same will happen to healt care if he doesn't slow down.

In 1965, Ted Kennedy confidently predicted, "No immigrant visa will be issued to a person who is likely to become a public charge." However, political refugees qualify for public assistance upon setting foot on U.S. soil. The exploding Somali refugee population of Lewiston, Maine, (pop. 36,000) is largely welfare-dependent. Likewise, 2,900 of Wausau, Wisconsin's 4,200 Hmong refugees receive public assistance. In all, 21 percent of immigrants receive public assistance, whereas 14 percent of natives do so. Immigrants are 50 percent more likely than natives to live in poverty.
This is the brilliant foresight from the extinguished Senator from Massachusetts explaining the rationale in 1965 for changing immigration. So Kennedy and his fellow Senators prognostication was so correct in 1965 imagine how well they will do thinking through this great health care bill.

Kennedy says, " I have enjoyed the best medical care money (and a good insurance policy) can buy," So is he going to give up that "good insurance policy" and jump on board with what the government provides for the rest of us? OF COURSE NOT!!! And it is important to note that under the current bill, Kennedy wouldn't have even received medical treatment due to his age and the agreesiveness (and low prognosis) of a GBM. Don't believe these people. They are full of crap! If they take over health care, America is doomed.

I don't support any Governemnt health plan. Listen, if I get sick, nobody cares, I can except this. The Health care system only cars which model Rolls Royce I can buy them if I get sick. Just let me at least live the life that I have comfortably, instead of living my life miserable. What good is it if they save me or make me feel better, if I have to go back out into the real world as a slave to our own Government?