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West Michigan Rising
Rising from the Ashes to Build Our Left Coast in Michigan

Merry Christmas from Us and the President of the United States of America

by: philgoblue

Thu Dec 24, 2009 at 20:47:29 PM EST


President Obama:

Although it's Christmas Eve, I wanted to share some exciting news: The Senate just passed a historic health reform bill.

In all the back and forth, it's easy to lose sight of what this incredible breakthrough really means. But consider this: This Christmas, there are millions of Americans without health insurance who risk losing everything if they get sick.

There are mothers and fathers who wonder how they'll provide for their children because an illness has wiped out their savings. There are small business owners who worry that they'll have to lay off a long-time employee because the cost of insurance is rapidly rising.

If we finish the job, all this can change. We will have beaten back the special interests who have for so long perpetuated the status quo. We will have enacted the most important piece of social policy since the Social Security Act in the 1930s, and the most important health reform since Medicare in the 1960s.

In Decembers to come, millions more will have access to affordable coverage. Parents will have the security and stability of knowing their insurance can't be revoked at a moment's notice. And the skyrocketing costs plaguing our small businesses will be brought under control.

When you make calls, write letters, organize, this is the change you're making -- a better life for your family and for men and women in every state.

There is still more to do before I can sign reform into law -- a last round of negotiations and final votes in the Senate and the House -- and I'm counting on your help every step of the way. But for now, I hope that as you celebrate this holiday season, you remember that the work you are doing is making our union more perfect, one step at a time. For that, I am grateful to you.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays,

President Barack Obama

P.S. -- Organizing for America supporters are signing a note of appreciation to all the senators who have worked so hard to make this possible. I hope you'll join them:

http://my.barackobama.com/Sena...

philgoblue :: Merry Christmas from Us and the President of the United States of America
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Merry Christmas from Us and the President of the United States of America | 3 comments
The Senate health reform bill will: (0.00 / 0)
* Extend coverage to 31 million Americans, the largest expansion of coverage since the creation of Medicare.
* Ensure that you can choose your own doctor.
* Finally stop insurance companies from denying coverage due to a pre-existing condition.
* Make sure you will never be charged exorbitant premiums on the basis of your age, health, or gender.
* Guarantee you will never lose your coverage just because you get sick or injured.
* Protect you from outrageous out-of-pocket expenditures by establishing lifetime and annual limits.
* Allow young people to stay on their parents' coverage until they're 26 years old.
* Create health insurance exchanges, or "one-stop shops" for individuals purchasing insurance, where insurance companies are forced to compete for new customers.
* Lower premiums for families, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office -- especially for struggling folks who will receive subsidies.
* Help small businesses provide health care coverage to their employees with tax credits and by allowing them to purchase coverage through the exchanges.
* Improve and strengthen Medicare by eliminating waste and fraud (without cutting basic benefits), beginning to close the Medicare Part D donut hole, and extending the life of the Medicare trust fund.
* Create jobs by reining in costs -- fostering competition, reducing waste and inefficiency, and starting to reward doctors and hospitals for quality, not quantity, of care.
* Cut the deficit by over $130 billion in the next 10 years.

http://my.barackobama.com/page...

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Your thoughts... (0.00 / 0)
What is your reaction to the WellPoint study? Is there any fact to it or is it a right wing person trying to slam health care reform?

"In fact, what distinguishes the Wellpoint study is its detailed rigor. Take Ohio, where a young, healthy 25-year-old living in Columbus can purchase insurance from WellPoint today for about $52 per month in the individual market. WellPoint's actuaries calculate the bill will rise to $79 because Democrats are going to require it to issue policies to anyone who applies, even if they've waited until they're sick to buy insurance. Then they'll also require the company to charge everyone nearly the same rate, bringing the premium to $134. Add in an extra $17, since Democrats will require higher benefit levels, and a share of the new health industry taxes ($6), and monthly premiums have risen to $157, a 199% boost.

Meanwhile, a 40-year-old husband and wife with two kids would see their premiums jump by 122%-to $737 from $332-while a small business with eight employees in Franklin County would see premiums climb by 86%. It's true that the family or the individual might qualify for subsidies if their incomes are low enough, but the business wouldn't qualify under the Senate Finance bill WellPoint examined. And even if there are subsidies, the new costs the bill creates don't vaporize. They're merely transferred to taxpayers nationwide-or financed with deficits, which will be financed eventually with higher taxes.

The story is largely the same from state to state, though the increases are smaller in the few states that have already adopted the same mandates and regulations that Democrats want to impose on all states. For the average small employer in high-cost New York, for instance, premiums would only rise by 6%. But they'd shoot up by 94% for the same employer in Indianapolis, 91% in St. Louis and 53% in Milwaukee."

Pretty Obviously Biased from Insurance Company (0.00 / 0)
[ Parent ]
Merry Christmas from Us and the President of the United States of America | 3 comments
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