Cleo's Mom

Fantastic! You are doing a great job. Glad to hear little baby girl is plumpin right up.

Huh?:confused: Who is asking for abortions to be paid for with tax dollars? The Hyde Amendment is still the law of the land and has been for over 30 years and it doesn't allow any tax dollars to be used for abortions. The Stupak amendment that was passed with the original house bill and the language in the Senate bill that was just passed was very clear that nothing in this bill would allow for tax money to be paid for with tax dollars or tax subsidies. The reason for the executive order by Pres. Obama (used often by bush, by the way) was to satisfy Stupak and his followers who felt the Senate version that they were voting on was not as restrictive with regard to abortion as he would have liked. The executive order was just added insurance. But all of this language was really unnecessary since the Hyde Amendment prevails. And I might add that all the pro-choice people in the house voted for this bill with the more restrictive abortion language in it. So your post makes no sense.

It's you guys who don't get it. All of us on here have proven you wrong over and over again but you refuse to allow facts to interfere with your opinions. You just keep repeating the lies, distortions, myths and untruths over and over again.:confused:

You made a sweeping generalizations about liberals and I proved that this not only wasn't true of liberals but was true of conservatives. Of course you don't care what the republicans did under bush. The current and formerly elected republicans are trying to forget too as they try to rewrite history. It's such a shameful legacy, they should try to forget it. Unfortuately for them, it's all been well recorded. The republicans have used the CBO to score all their bills but they reject the CBO analysis when it doesn't agree with their agenda, and so do you.

"Leave it to a liberal to spend things he just can't afford"? You're kidding me with that statement, right? You must have been laughing when you wrote it because I sure was when I read it. In 2001 the CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICANS passed the first tax cut for the rich which added $1.3 Trillion (that's trillion with a T) to the deficit. In other words, not only NOT paid for but adding to the deficit. Then in 2003 the CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICANS passed the second tax cut for the rich adding $349 Billion to the deficit. Again, not paid for and adding to the deficit. Then the CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICANS passed Medicare part D that added $394 to the deficit. Again, not paid for and added to the deficit. And I haven't even gotten to the cost of the Iraq war - also not paid for and adding to the deficit. Leave it to the conservative republicans to think we liberals have short memories. This healthcare bill DOES NOT ADD TO THE DEFICIT. It is paid for by reforming the overpayments (150% above cost) that many doctors were getting from medicare and a tax on cadillac healthcare plans. So, it looks like when you put the big boys in charge you get a paid-for bill that is a win-win for the American people. This is what change looks like!!

Yes, I go to the movies or rent them on Netflix all the time. I will definitely add "Green Zone". I saw it advertised and it looked good.

Saturday, February 13, 2010 Lobbyists Spend A Record $3.5 Billion In 2009: Did Average Citizens Profit From These Efforts? A number of industry sectors notably stand-out as the deep pocket and influential lobbyists. The pharmaceutical and health industry spent an estimated $266.8 million lobbying on health care reform—this happens to be the largest amount ever spent by a single industry in a one year period of time. Business associations spent $183 million on federal lobbying. Oil and gas lobbyists spent $168.4 million. The insurance industry spent $164.2 million. At the end of the day, all of these industry sectors that I mention spent more in 2009 than they did in 2008. However, the electric utility industry spent $144.4 million, slightly off the 2008 pace for that industry segment. To recap, the top five industry sectors in terms of spending were the following: 1. Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Industry ($266.8 million) 2. Business Associations ($183 million) 3. Oil and Gas Industry ($168.4 million) 4. Insurance Industry ($164.2 million) 5. Electric Utility Industry ($144.4 million) The single largest institutional lobbyist was the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, an association that represents roughly 3 million businesses in various industries, which distributed $145 million for lobbying activities at the federal level. The Chamber of Commerce has consistently held the top spot as the largest single spender over the past nine (9) years. 2009’s figure of $145 million spent on lobbying activity by the Chamber of Commerce marks a 6% increase over 2008 figures.

… While Making Huge Profits WellPoint Profits Increased 90.5 Percent For The Year, As Medical Membership Declined Nearly 4 Percent. WellPoint disclosed that its 2009 fourth quarter net income was more than $2.7 billion, a 727 percent increase from the fourth quarter of last year. For the full year, WellPoint's profits were $4.7 billion in 2009, a 90.5 percent increase from the $2.5 billion profit it reported for the full year 2008. In addition, Medical enrollment was approximately 33.7 million members at December 31, 2009, a decrease of 1.4 million members, or 3.9 percent, from approximately 35.0 million at December 31, 2008. [WellPoint, 1/27/10] Cigna's 2009 Net Income Increased 346 Percent As Membership Declined 5 Percent. According to Cigna's most recent disclosure, its net income for the year 2009 was $1.3 billion, a 346 percent increase from the $292 million it reported in 2008. Its total medical membership was 11 million at the end of 2009, a five percent decrease from the nearly 11.7 million it had at the end of 2008. [Cigna, 2/4/10] Humana Net Income Increased 60.7 Percent In 2009 As Medical Membership Decreased 11 Percent. Humana reported a net income of $1.03 billion for 2009, a $392.5 million increase, or 60.7 percent, from the $647.1 million net income it reported for 2008. Its total medical membership declined from 2008 to 2009 by 11 percent, or 1.27 million, from 11.6 million to 10.3 million. [Humana, 2/1/10] UnitedHealth Profits Increased Roughly 30 Percent For 2009 As Membership Declined 3 Percent. UnitedHealth reported a total net earning of $3.8 billion in 2009, a 28 percent increase from the $2.9 billion it reported for 2008. UnitedHealth reported that it served a total of 70.3 million at the end of 2009, down 3.4 percent from the 72.8 million it served at the end of 2008. [unitedHealth No workers had their wages increase from 30% - 346% last year. And the way that these insurance companies make these obscene profits is by denying claims and dropping people when they get sick. These are real people who die from lack of care, but I guess for corporate america obsessed with profits that's called collateral damage.

Top Five Biggest Insurance Companies Profits Increased An Average 56 Percent In 2009. <SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: 'cambria', 'serif'" sizcache="7" sizset="6">"The report released Thursday said the five biggest insurance companies had an average profit last year of 5.2 percent — for a combined total of $12.2 billion. This was an increase of $4.4 billion, or 56 percent, compared with 2008, according to the report, prepared by Health Care for America Now, a coalition of liberal and labor groups advocating for the passage of an overhaul of the health care system. The companies are WellPoint, Cigna, UnitedHealth Group Inc., Aetna Inc. and Humana Inc. The data in the report were based on company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission." [New York Times, 2/12/10]

I VOTE AYE. JUST ADD ROVE AND RUMSFELD TOO.

Just like Pres. Obama said "this is the government of the people and by the people and now this bill is for the people."

As I said in a previous post, I welcome them running on a platform of repealing this and going back to the status quo where insurance companies reign supreme, deny coverage, drop people from the rolls and rake in obscene profits. Oh, and let's not forget their tax cuts for the rich and war at any cost. And there you have it - the republican agenda.

Then just make sure that you and those in your family who feel the same way do not accept social security or medicare. And no it isn't "your money" that you paid in. You will receive more in benefits than you put in. So reject SS and medicare because it is socialism. And BTW, it wasn't socialism that brought this economy to the brink of disaster and near collapse - it was greedy corporate capitalism.

from dailykos: Already one of the GREATEST PRESIDENTS EVER. (Update 2: ANOTHER GREAT PHOTO) Sun Mar 21, 2010 at 08:11:46 PM PDT Yes, he is. And they know that he is. And that's why they're so scared. It's been 14 months. Just 14 months since Barack Obama stepped into the Oval Office, only to be greeted by the biggest s***storm in 80 years and a country on the verge of complete collapse, on every front you could think of. In 14 torturing months, with extraordinary weight of expectations and history on his shoulders, facing the most vicious opposition and more death threats than any president ever, Barack Obama brought this country back from the abyss: He saved the economy. In a few months he'll end the war in Iraq. He actually has a plan and strategy in Afghanistan. America is finally joining the world fighting climate change and aspiring for energy independence. He single-handedly restored America's place and reputation in the world. And now there's this little thing called health care reform. FDR couldn't make it happen. Harry Truman couldn't make it happen. JFK couldn't make it happen. LBJ couldn't make it happen. Richard Nixon couldn't make it happen. Jimmy Carter couldn't make it happen. Bill Clinton couldn't make it happen. Barack Hussein Obama did it. Yes, he was right, we can. This skinny multiracial man who grew up without a father, who searched for identity and family and community all his life, who worked his ass off to excel in the best schools, who rejected lucrative offers from top law firms and instead went to help poor black kids in Chicago - A man who had no business becoming the president of The United States - This man just gave America decades worth of progress. 14 months into his presidency, Barack Obama is already one of the greatest president ever, and somewhere in the sky Martin Luther King must be smiling. That audacity of hope thing, is not such a bad idea. I'm pretty sure this guy isn't sorry he voted for Obama and neither am I.

Healthcare reform and abortion: No more speculation. Now we know—universal health care coverage leads to a reduction in the abortion rate, confirming what many have long suspected but have never before been able to prove in the United States. A report released this week in the New England Journal of Medicine reveals that the abortion rate declined in the first two years after Massachusetts implemented health care reform. According to the study, the insurance rate was 86 percent prior to Massachusetts' health coverage expansion in 2006. By 2008, 94 percent of people had insurance. During that same time, the number of abortions declined 1.5 percent overall and by a whopping 7.4 percent among teenagers. Yet, nationally, the steady decline in the abortion rate had been stagnating and actually increased by 3.2 percent from 2005 to 2006 (the most recent data available) while the rate for teenagers rose 1 percent. Another interesting fact: The birth rate increased in Massachusetts in 2007, the last year for which data are available. This decrease in abortion and increase in births occurred even though the state's Medicaid program provides full coverage for abortion for its poorest residents and even though the private plans that insure people in the next income bracket also cover abortion. Given that the poorest women are more than four times as likely to have an abortion as the most affluent women, this development offers especially striking evidence that, contrary to popular belief, covering abortion neither encourages nor increases its usage. The study concludes that the increased availability of affordable health care is a key driving force behind these trends. Abortion rates are a result of complex social determinants, and no single factor will likely ever be enough on its own to tip the balance. But it seems almost too obvious to state that a woman who would like to have a baby would be reassured by the knowledge that she and her child will have access to health care whenever they need it, not to mention the economic burden that affordable coverage alleviates. Moreover, providing coverage removes the very real financial barriers that prevent many women from seeing a health provider and obtaining routine health care, including reproductive care. With coverage, women can access contraception to prevent unwanted pregnancies as well as receive the care they need to have healthy, wanted pregnancies. Indeed, the single most important factor in achieving a healthy pregnancy is the health of the woman before she becomes pregnant. Simply put, overall health care is a vital ingredient in achieving positive reproductive health outcomes. International data have provided similar evidence for decades—countries with a strong health care infrastructure have a low abortion rate, while countries with poor health care access have high abortion rates, regardless of whether abortion is legal or criminalized. In fact, the Washington Post reported earlier this week that the United States continues to have the highest abortion rate in the industrialized world in part because we do not have universal health care. But now, with this latest study, even skeptics who may point to cultural or other differences can look within our own borders and find the same results. This is good news for everyone, including supporters and opponents of abortion rights alike. With universal coverage, those who call themselves pro-life will see the abortion rate go down, while those who call themselves pro-choice will know that women's pregnancy decisions will come more from their heart than their circumstances. It is the height of irony, then, that one of the biggest sticking points in the health care debate has been abortion, when we now have such compelling evidence that universal health care can reduce the abortion rate. As an organization representing 59,000 Roman Catholic nuns recently stated, the pending health reform bill "is the REAL pro-life stance, and we as Catholics are all for it." We may have waded so deep into the realm of politics that facts have little bearing at this point. But for politicians concerned about abortion, the best thing they can do is vote for comprehensive health reform. Jessica Arons is the Director of the Women's Health and Rights Program at the Center for American Progress.

From what I've read - within 3 months of the law's taking effect, people who have been locked out of the insurance market because of a pre-existing condition would be eligible for subsidized coverage through a new high risk insurance program. That special coverage will continue until the legislation's engine kicks into higher gear in 2014, when coverage would be extended to a wider portion of the population through Medicaid and new state run insurance exchanges. Hope this helps.

Well, I'm sure you heard about the teapartiers who used racial slurs against black members of congress yesterday and used an anti-gay slur against Barney Frank. Add that to the harrassment of the man with Parkinsons. But of course, we must remember that these just represent a few crazies.:smile: (Yea, right!!). My opinion of them :laugh: and what they represent has been well documented on this forum.

Thanks, BJean. America has now moved forward to at least the 20th century where all other industrialized nations have had universal healthcare.

The republicans are hoping to take control of the U.S. House in November and repeal this healthcare bill. I want to see them campaign on repealing the following: -not losing your insurance if you lose your job -not being denied insurance because of pre-existing condition -not being dropped by insurance company when you get sick -taking insurance away from those previously uninsured -putting the donut hole back into the medicare prescription drug plan I want them to stand up and tell the American people that this is what they support. I welcome them running on this platform and look forward to it. Bring it on!!!

YES WE DID!!! Healthcare reform passed!! :laugh: Those of us who stand with the American people, those of us who stand for middle class America, those of us who stand with the uninsured and the least among us have been victorious. WE SHOWED THEM.:smile: Them being those who stand with the greedy insurance industry. Those who stand with corporate america. Those who stand with the teaparty, those who stand with the birthers and deathers, those who stand with the racist anti-Obama haters. Those who thought they won. WE SHOWED THEM. :tongue2:

A new woman: Your surgeon sounds like my surgeon. What did I do? I found a different surgeon about a year ago. Big difference. My new surgeon is supportive of me and actually impressed with my weight loss (my former surgeon never was). I was tired of butting heads because I'm an assertive patient. I am not intimidated by doctors. My former surgeon took my progress personally as his success or failure. World of difference now. I left and never looked back. Consider finding another doctor. Do you really want to spend anymore time with this one?

If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

Blue Cross praised employees who dropped sick policyholders, lawmaker says Workers received high marks on performance reviews after policies were rescinded, documents show. The health insurer denies the practice is a factor in evaluations. June 17, 2009|Lisa Girion Executives of three of the nation's largest health insurers told federal lawmakers in Washington on Tuesday that they would continue canceling medical coverage for some sick policyholders, despite withering criticism from Republican and Democratic members of Congress who decried the practice as unfair and abusive. The hearing on the controversial action known as rescission, which has left thousands of Americans burdened with costly medical bills despite paying insurance premiums, began a day after President Obama outlined his proposals for revamping the nation's healthcare system. I never agree with anything you say, but when you make statements like the ones above you just appear woefully uninformed or just stubborn in your views or both.

Actually the SS program is very well run. Millions of americans get their checks every month on time. People love SS. Just ask anyone who gets it. And you DON'T invest into SS since your checks come from current workers. The SS program keeps track of what you have paid in, however. But the money comes from the current workers. Plus there are people who never pay into SS who receive benefits - like minor children of widows or widowers. Medicare is also very well run and popular. Again, ask anyone who gets it if they would rather have private, for profit insurance.