‘Health Care Freedom Protests’ Set for July 17
A letter from the Tea Party Patriots National Coordinator Team:
Dear Fellow Patriot,
You have been making a difference all across this country since February. You have made your voices heard. Many in the mainstream media have scoffed at us. Some on our side have asked if we are able to keep the momentum going. Others want to know if our movement is growing or not. The politicians whose policies we are working to defeat have tried to ignore us.
We are here to tell you, we are making a difference! We are strong! We are united! We love this country and have her best interests at heart! We have and will continue to make our voices heard!
And, right now is the time to do it. We are in for what may very well be the most important political fight of our lifetime. And we mean lifetime literally. In the future, our very lives may depend on our actions today.
You probably know at least one person who has had an abnormal medical test. Maybe you have had it yourself. Maybe it was a family member or a loved one. After that first abnormal test, the doctor usually schedules more tests, maybe refers you to a specialist, and works to determine what the diagnosis is. Waiting for those tests and the results can feel like the longest wait in the world. You worry that something is wrong. You hope that nothing is wrong. You think, “Is it serious? Do I have cancer or some other terrible disease? Is it malignant? Maybe it will be benign. Maybe the doctors are wrong.” You wait. And you worry.
Luckily, in our health care system today in America, that wait is only days or maybe a couple of weeks. And, if the diagnosis is serious and requires further treatment, doctors work to treat your problem right away.
Imagine if that wait were months and months long. Imagine if some government bureaucrat said, “You will have to wait for 4 months until we have the time and doctors to treat you.” Imagine that few days or weeks turning to months. What if the problem were serious? What if the wait time caused you to miss your treatment window? What if it were your mom? Your spouse? Your child?
This happened to Shona Holmes. A couple of weeks ago, Amy Kremer and I had the privilege to meet Shona Holmes and hear her story first hand. Had Shona waited for her nationalized health care in Canada to actually diagnose and treat her, she would have died. Click here to watch her story on Patients United Now and her Fox News interview.
The liberal tax and spend politicians want to takeover our health care. They want control not just of our wallets but also our very lives. These politicians realize what is at stake. If the bill passes, bureaucrats in Washington will determine when you can see a doctor, which doctor you can see, and whether or not you can actually have treatment. Is this what you want? Are you going to let politicians take over your health care?
The bill that will allow the government to take over our health care was introduced today. It is 1,018 pages long. The politicians know that if you have time to read the bill you will not want it. They are not willing to allow honest debate and honest review of amendments. Speaker Pelosi and the House of Representatives are trying to rush passage of this bill, this 1,018 page bill, by the the time they go on summer vacation on July 31.
Are you willing to fight for control of your personal health care? Do you want the government to takeover your health care?
The heat is on! It is make or break time.
As I write this, Wednesday July 15, the Labor and Education Committee in the House is marking up the bill. That committee will probably pass the bill out of committee this week Wednesday or Thursday. On Thursday, the Ways and Means Committee and also the Energy and Commerce Committee in the House will be marking up the bill. Those committees are also trying to pass the bill out of committee this week — as in Thursday or Friday.
If you do not want the government to take control of your physical well being in addition to your wallets, then you must act. We must act quickly, decisively, and relentlessly. Here is what you can do:
we have to fight against the government, yoga at home
As I have suggested here and in other forums: The MSM will not report on this. We need to take the Tea Parties to them, on their turf.
Rallying around the legislative buildings is still vital in order for our “representatives” to know how we feel, but what about the millions of Americans who are clueless? The MSM is either not reporting or are under-reporting the Tea party activities. When they do bother to give it a minor blip on the radar, it is skewed and filtered through their leftist bias.
We need to be heard by more than just our politicians. To be effective we need to grow, and we can’t grow without exposure.
Looks like the AMA just deserted the cause:
From NBC’s Mark Murray
In what appears to be a pretty significant development in the fight over health care, the American Medical Association has written House Ways and Means Committee Chairman
Charlie Rangel
a letter supporting the $1 trillion-plus Democratic House health-care bill.
“On behalf of the Board of Trustees of the American Medical Association, I am writing to express our appreciation and support for H.R. 3200, the ‘America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009,’” says Dr. Michael Maves, the AMA’s executive vice president and CEO.
“This legislation includes a broad range of provisions that are key to effective, comprehensive health system reform. We urge members of the House Education and Labor, Energy and Commerce, and Ways and Means Committees to favorably report H.R. 3200 for consideration by the full House.”
Maves concludes, “The AMA looks forward to further constructive dialogue during the committee mark-up process. We pledge to work with the House committees and leadership to build support for passage of health reform legislation to expand access to high quality, affordable health care for all Americans.”
Below is the full letter….
July 16, 2009
The Honorable Charles B. Rangel
Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means
U.S. House of Representatives
1102 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Chairman Rangel:
On behalf of the Board of Trustees of the American Medical Association, I am writing to express our appreciation and support for H.R. 3200, the “America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009.” This legislation includes a broad range of provisions that are key to effective, comprehensive health system reform. We urge members of the House Education and Labor, Energy and Commerce, and Ways and Means Committees to favorably report H.R. 3200 for consideration by the full House.
In particular, we are pleased that the bill:
• Promises to extend coverage to all Americans through health insurance market reforms;
• Provides consumers with a choice of plans through a health insurance exchange;
• Includes essential health insurance reforms such as eliminating coverage denials based on pre-existing conditions;
• Recognizes that fundamental Medicare reforms, including repeal of the sustainable growth rate formula, are essential to the success of broader health system reforms;
• Encourages chronic disease management and care coordination through additional funding for primary care services, without imposing offsetting payment reductions on specialty care;
• Addresses growing physician workforce concerns;
• Strengthens the Medicaid program;
• Requires individuals to have health insurance, and provides premium assistance to those who cannot afford it;
• Includes prevention and wellness initiatives designed to keep Americans healthy;
• Makes needed improvements to the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative that will enable greater participation by physicians; and
• Initiates significant payment and delivery reforms by encouraging participation in new models such as accountable care organizations and the patient-centered medical home.
The AMA looks forward to further constructive dialogue during the committee mark-up process. We pledge to work with the House committees and leadership to build support for passage of health reform legislation to expand access to high quality, affordable health care for all Americans.
This year, the AMA wants the debate in Washington to conclude with real, long overdue results that will improve the health of America’s patients.
Sincerely,
Michael D. Maves, MD, MBA
Imagine not being able to get insurance because you suffer from acne or headaches.. oh wait, that is the reality of the private, for profit insurance scam, err biz that runs the medical system. Cherry pick the best and leave the rest to fend for themselves or let the taxpayer pick up the tab….
Keep in mind that a letter of support or endorsement from the AMA is virtually meaningless, given that a mere 15% of all practicing physicians in America actually belong to the AMA.
Keep in mind also that the proposed “health care reform” is not about care and it’s not about health: it’s about reform. It’s about social engineering and restructuring the United States from a democratic republic of free markets to a nationalized governance of statism.
Have fun figuring out this chart:
http://docs.house.gov/gopleader/House-Democrats-Health-Plan.pdf
I say boycott GE.
When is someone going to grow some cojones in Washington?
How about the MSM? If a REAL Journalist stood up against this madness and did some real investigative work, how many would stand up behind them and watch their back?
It is time to save America from these treasonous pieces of low lives!
Perhaps instead of sending teabags to EVERYONE in Washington, how about a link to the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Send them everyday.
Starting with TOTUS and right on down the line!
Hey, idiots, the reason that the AMA is endorsing this bill is because it actually helps insurance companies. If you look past your blinded, stone-age ideologies you will see that this bill actually works in your favor, unfortunately, because it has been castrated by a$$holes like you. Hope you’re proud of yourself, and I hope Obama’s proud of himself for letting this BS slide.
How can it be so wrong to have a public insurance option competing with private insurance companies that have an ever growing appetite for profits and executive bonuses?
Government inefficiency is bad for health care, but private greed is good?
Government-run insurance will put a bureaucrat between you and your doctor that limits your choices, but private insurance companies are just there to provide their generous support?
Have your insurance companies ever rejected your legitimate claims or a pre-existing condition? Listen to the quarterly earnings conference calls from these companies. These are considered sound business practices of “strong claims management” and “stringent underwriting standards”. The private insurance companies can do so and still survive in the market because they know there are no other options for consumers.
Me and about 70 other people protested outside of Senator Webbs Arlington Virginia Office from noon until 1:30. A member of the senators staff named Matt came outside and spoke with us. Many people honked their horns in support. I have pictures if PJ would like to post them.
People, write your reps, senator, whatever but fight this health plan. It is a pig in a silk purse getting to burst our economy at the seams. America cannot afford this health plan as it is written due to the taxes built into it to pay for the health insurance of those not having access or unable to afford private policy. This health plan is socialism plain and simple and will destroy our country.
This is what I don’t get about liberals- they think that just because something is bad that it can’t get any worse. It will get worse if the government runs it. The system doesn’t work for some people, so you want to change it so that it works for nobody? You’re insane!
If we think that government-run health insurance is going to bankrupt the country, what assurance do we have that private insurance companies are not going to bankrupt our families and small businesses? Did private insurance companies write us a guarantee that they will behave themselves in the absence of a competing public option?
Nobody wants to pay higher taxes to the government, but are we so much happier to pay higher health insurance premiums to private insurance companies? Isn’t it the same cash out of our pockets only paid to a private entity?
We can’t trust the government that is re-elected every four years and is supervised by the congresses, but can we trust the private insurance companies that answer to nobody but the greed of the Wall Street? I can’t even trust the simple “no fee checking account” statement advertised by my bank. Once the banks get you, it is just a one year promotion.
It is socialism to use our taxes to pay for health care for those people who can’t afford it, but we can’t wait to contribute more to the lavish life style and private jets of insurance company executives?
Joe, I am not sure who you are railing against, but go get ‘em.
“How can it be so wrong to have a public insurance option competing with private insurance companies that have an ever growing appetite for profits and executive bonuses?”
Two things come to mind. One is Medicare, which proves just how much worse a government-run insurance can make things. The other is the fact that even if you have private insurance, you are going to have to pay for this public insurance, since nothing is free…
It kind of reminds me of the motto of the Great Alaskan Bush Company: We cheat the other guys and pass the savings on to you!
That, or the old joke: “President Obama, how can you afford to sell these insurance policies at a loss?” “Easy. We make it up on volume.”
Insurance is a business of managing risks through diversification. Health or mortality risks are stable and predictable from the perspective of a total population, but highly unpredictable for each individual. By pooling the population together, the risks, and consequently, the costs should be fairly predictable, and individual premiums can be determined accordingly.
A public option can be financed by taxes, or it can charge a more affordable premium (without the profit markup) to its participants, or it can be a combination of both. Creativity is key to make it work. To avoid “to sell all these insurance policies at a loss”, the public option can increase its participation from the young and the healthy by providing financial incentives (if you start your participation when you are young, you will get a discount when you are old).
The current Obama plan may not be perfect, or to everyone’s liking. But it is not necessarily evil just because it is “public”. And “socialism” is not evil either. Socialism in South American may be destructive, but most of the countries with the highest standard of living in the world have somewhat socialistic policies, particularly when it comes to their health care policies.