Comments on: Families USA Makes Strong Bid for Worst Study of the Year Award http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/families-usa-makes-strong-bid-for-worst-study-of-the-year-award/ Insights on Health Care Reform | NCPA Thu, 29 Jul 2010 18:27:25 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Linda Gorman http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/families-usa-makes-strong-bid-for-worst-study-of-the-year-award/comment-page-1/#comment-43418 Linda Gorman Tue, 23 Jun 2009 18:51:29 +0000 http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/?p=3927#comment-43418 Between this, its claim that reductions in the rate of Medicaid growth were program cuts, and its claim that being without health insurance kills people, Families USA has been having a lot of trouble with numbers lately. Maybe the fact that it’s so poor at math is why this internal media guide instructs its allied organizations to shift the focus “to the people” and away from “the complicated budget numbers and policy rhetoric.” http://www.familiesusa.org/assets/pdfs/15Messages_framingR333c.pdf It should come as a relief to us all that it does think numbers are important, however. “The press and the public believe numbers,” it writes. “Use numbers to reinforce your talking points and real stories.” And if the real world numbers don’t agree with the talking points? In the past, Families USA has subjected them to enhanced interrogation techniques until they ‘fess up, as detailed in this and other posts on this blog. Between this, its claim that reductions in the rate of Medicaid growth were program cuts, and its claim that being without health insurance kills people, Families USA has been having a lot of trouble with numbers lately. Maybe the fact that it’s so poor at math is why this internal media guide instructs its allied organizations to shift the focus “to the people” and away from “the complicated budget numbers and policy rhetoric.”
http://www.familiesusa.org/assets/pdfs/15Messages_framingR333c.pdf

It should come as a relief to us all that it does think numbers are important, however. “The press and the public believe numbers,” it writes. “Use numbers to reinforce your talking points and real stories.”

And if the real world numbers don’t agree with the talking points? In the past, Families USA has subjected them to enhanced interrogation techniques until they ‘fess up, as detailed in this and other posts on this blog.

]]> By: Mandatory Insurance: The uninsured cost-shift scam | Independence Institute: Patient Power http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/families-usa-makes-strong-bid-for-worst-study-of-the-year-award/comment-page-1/#comment-43334 Mandatory Insurance: The uninsured cost-shift scam | Independence Institute: Patient Power Fri, 19 Jun 2009 05:00:00 +0000 http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/?p=3927#comment-43334 [...] Update, June 18 2009:  What you do not know about the uninsured cost-shift: If you’ve heard from Families USA the uninsured costs families and individuals with commercial insurance big bucks, think again. Check out this critique here. [...] [...] Update, June 18 2009:  What you do not know about the uninsured cost-shift: If you’ve heard from Families USA the uninsured costs families and individuals with commercial insurance big bucks, think again. Check out this critique here. [...]

]]> By: Brian http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/families-usa-makes-strong-bid-for-worst-study-of-the-year-award/comment-page-1/#comment-43325 Brian Thu, 18 Jun 2009 23:47:12 +0000 http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/?p=3927#comment-43325 Just another conservative trying to minimize the problem. Granted that not all un-insured are uninsured due to affordability but the drive to reduce the numbers of the uninsured to a small, paltry amount (10 million), is akin to ignoring the problem and hoping that it will go away. The problem will not go away, and the unisured are in need of health-care 100% of the time not 50% or 75% or even 90% of the time. It is disgusting to watch how manipulative conservatives are while they maintain the status quo. 1) Tax- credits? already been done and proven failures in controlling costs and/or availability. 2) Free-market? There is no such thing when talking about the healthcare industry. Continueing support of de-regulation only ensures that insurance can and will charge higher prices without increasing either availability or quality, and will ensure that insurance continues to dictate medical practice to you and your doctor.(RATIONING) 3) Dis-allowing pre-existing condition clauses- Again, already done. Again proven to have no positive affect upon cost nor availability. What it does do is ensure that health-insurance charges 3-4 times the already high premiums for a full year before any benefit for any reason is paid out. In other words you can pay them for nothing to the tune of 15-20 THOUSAND dollars! Conservatives are bent upon maintaining the current system through fear. If conservatives have their way then we will be having the same conversation in another 4 years only the numbers of the un-insured will have doubled and premiums will have gone up 2-3 hundred percent. Hope you still win? If so then I hope you get really sick and find out just how worthless your insurance truly is. 3) Just another conservative trying to minimize the problem.
Granted that not all un-insured are uninsured due to affordability but the drive to reduce the numbers of the uninsured to a small, paltry amount (10 million), is akin to ignoring the problem and hoping that it will go away.

The problem will not go away, and the unisured are in need of health-care 100% of the time not 50% or 75% or even 90% of the time. It is disgusting to watch how manipulative conservatives are while they maintain the status quo.
1) Tax- credits? already been done and proven failures in controlling costs and/or availability.
2) Free-market? There is no such thing when talking about the healthcare industry. Continueing support of de-regulation only ensures that insurance can and will charge higher prices without increasing either availability or quality, and will ensure that insurance continues to dictate medical practice to you and your doctor.(RATIONING)
3) Dis-allowing pre-existing condition clauses-
Again, already done. Again proven to have no positive affect upon cost nor availability. What it does do is ensure that health-insurance charges 3-4 times the already high premiums for a full year before any benefit for any reason is paid out. In other words you can pay them for nothing to the tune of 15-20 THOUSAND dollars!

Conservatives are bent upon maintaining the current system through fear. If conservatives have their way then we will be having the same conversation in another 4 years only the numbers of the un-insured will have doubled and premiums will have gone up 2-3 hundred percent. Hope you still win? If so then I hope you get really sick and find out just how worthless your insurance truly is.
3)

]]> By: John R. Graham http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/families-usa-makes-strong-bid-for-worst-study-of-the-year-award/comment-page-1/#comment-43318 John R. Graham Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:52:33 +0000 http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/?p=3927#comment-43318 I just had another look at the press release. I know that Milliman is a consulting firm, and they have to do what their clients tell them, but producing this sort of report, out of context, puts its reputation at risk. I'm not surprised that Sen. Baucus endorsed the report: Anything that distracts taxpayers from the cost-shift of government-run health care is valuable to the political class. But I think it is appalling that the NFIB and Aetna also endorsed the report. Until these folks stop shilling for a government take-over of health care, they put their constituencies at risk. I just had another look at the press release. I know that Milliman is a consulting firm, and they have to do what their clients tell them, but producing this sort of report, out of context, puts its reputation at risk.

I’m not surprised that Sen. Baucus endorsed the report: Anything that distracts taxpayers from the cost-shift of government-run health care is valuable to the political class.

But I think it is appalling that the NFIB and Aetna also endorsed the report. Until these folks stop shilling for a government take-over of health care, they put their constituencies at risk.

]]> By: Joe S. http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/families-usa-makes-strong-bid-for-worst-study-of-the-year-award/comment-page-1/#comment-43311 Joe S. Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:18:45 +0000 http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/?p=3927#comment-43311 I'm with Ken. But where do we get to actually register our votes? I’m with Ken. But where do we get to actually register our votes?

]]> By: Ken http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/families-usa-makes-strong-bid-for-worst-study-of-the-year-award/comment-page-1/#comment-43309 Ken Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:29:01 +0000 http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/?p=3927#comment-43309 Hard choice, but I vote for Families USA. Hard choice, but I vote for Families USA.

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