Speak With Congressman Kucinich On Health Care

[Jim O'Bryan]

First, I don’t think we have an emergency situation here. No one is dying from being refused treatment.

Some people have been driven into bankruptcy by the cost of medical care, but the bankruptcy resolves that situation, and there is no evidence that they are refused medical treatment because of the bankruptcy, so that doesn’t seem to be an emergency.

Want to talk about planning death?! My god, a father of four between jobs, has to decide
to take his daughter in for possible health care, and/or lose everything he has worked for?
I am sorry that would seem to be an emergency. I went to the hospital for a cold this year.
I really did not want to pay my $3,500 co-pay so close to the end of the year. Well after I
flatlined in the emergency room(thank god I was at Lakewood), and $165,000 later, I
was given a clean bill of health and released.

So bankruptcy does not ruin people's lives?

Losing everything over staying alive is not emergency?!

The number one reason for bankruptcy is health care!

Not an emergency!

The high cost of health care is not because of innovation! Please. It is because they have
created a system here in America to abuse the system, and make trillions, to spend millions
in Washington on lobbying!

Say what you want but single payer health care would put millions back into the economy
and be bigger than any economic development program out there.


.

[David Lay]

No one is dying from being refused treatment.

People ARE dying from being refused treatment. Eric De La Cruz died on July 4, after needing a heart transplant and being repeatedly denied for Medicare. By the time he was able to get treatment (thanks to people like Trent Reznor stepping up to help), it was too late.

[Danielle Masters]

I guess I have to speak up again. I'll just tell you all what I plan on telling Kucinich tomorrow.

I am a married mother of 5. My husband is a self employed piano technician and has Kaiser insurance. My 5 children have medicaid. I don't feel guilty because they qualify and because 3 of my children have health conditions that would prevent them from getting affordable care. I do not qualify for medicaid because my husband makes more than 90% of the federal poverty level. I have no health insurance. I have been denied health insurance. I have been denied health insurance because I suffer from bipolar I, GAD and PTSD. I take five separate medications each day. The medications I take are essential to keeping me alive. I receive treatment from a clinic, when I first started going there I had medicaid but when my medicaid was cancelled they continued to treat me. I am so thankful for that. They also help me get most of my medications free of charge. Three I get on my own because they are less than $20 a month. But the other 2 would cost about $1,400 a month if I had to pay. Trust me my husband doesn't make enough to afford my meds. Some people would say then use something cheaper. But it has taken a lot of trial and error to find a cocktail that keeps me stable.

In the past two years I have spent over three weeks in mental hospitals. They are not cheap. My last stay I was at lutheran for 24 hours. I was charged nearly $5000 for that day where I say no doctors or therapists. I was then transfered to a state facility.A facility that was understaffed and over worked. They did the best they could.

Every time I get my medications, every time I see my psychiatrist and every time I see my therapist I worry that they will tell me their charity has run out. If and when that happens I will receive no care because they won't treat you if you can't pay. I will no longer be medicated. At that point I will most likely start a downward spiral and will end up back in the state mental hospital if I am lucky, if I am not so lucky I will end up dead.

So that's my story. Can someone please tell me why I don't deserve help. Can someone please tell me why I don't deserve some humanity.

I should say I am a good person. I help out in the schools. I am a responsible citizen. But honestly when it comes to little things like healthcare I feel like nothing.

[Dennis J Kampe]

re MAYBE speak with part-time denny summer intern to fill out his question form .

From PD 8/12/09 11pm

Northeast Ohio Congressional delegation talking to voters about health care in small forums, by telephone

Posted by Sabrina Eaton / The Plain Dealer August 12, 2009 22:14PM

WASHINGTON -- Don't count on many televised shouting matches erupting at local congressional health-care forums.

Members of Congress from Northeast Ohio say they're gauging sentiments on the issue at small gatherings, and are conducting town hall meetings on the subject via telephone, where it's easier to avoid rowdiness.

They're releasing few details of their public schedules:

Sen. Sherrod Brown (Democrat, Avon):
Sen. George Voinovich (Republican, Cleveland):
Rep. Marcia Fudge (Democrat, Warrensville Heights):

Fudge delivered a "State of the District" address Wednesday night at Case Western Reserve University. On Monday, Sept. 7, she'll host the 11th Congressional District Community Caucus Labor Day Parade and Festival. The parade is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. at East 146th Street and Kinsman Road and will end with a festival at Luke Easter Park. Her congressional office can be reached at 216-522-4900. Her staff would not release more details of her schedule on Wednesday.
be reached at 419-259-7500.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (Democrat, Cleveland):

Kucinich's office says he does NOT have any upcoming local PUBLIC appearances. Last week, he discussed health care with listeners of the "The Mike Trivisonno Show" on WTAM AM/1100 in Cleveland, and he's also scheduled to discuss the issue on an upcoming segment of the local "Feagler and Friends" television show on WVIZ Channel 25. Kucinich has been an outspoken advocate of establishing a government health-care program that would cover all Americans. His congressional office can be reached at 216-228-8850.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

COWARD? ACCOUNTABLE? Where is he ? OUT West collecting "pennies for denny" for 2012 or 2016 ? Will likely be back to Ohio-10 for some union / Labor day parade(s) in early Sept riding with duct tape over his mouth and eyes and ear plugs well inserted .

re "POLL" It is Okay/great and encouraged IF you agree with him - Forget it if you hold opposite view or "he" can just call his local LO $upporters .

Another example of denny "Democracy at its Finest" - a true Public SERVANT seeking the opinions of ALL those he swore to represent.

Wake up LO - useless to all except denny do nothing .

[Jim O'Bryan]

COWARD? ACCOUNTABLE? Where is he ? OUT West collecting "pennies for denny" for 2012 or 2016 ? Will likely be back to Ohio-10 for some union / Labor day parade(s) in early Sept riding with duct tape over his mouth and eyes and ear plugs well inserted .

re "POLL" It is Okay/great and encouraged IF you agree with him - Forget it if you hold opposite view or "he" can just call his local LO $upporters .

Another example of denny "Democracy at its Finest" - a true Public SERVANT seeking the opinions of ALL those he swore to represent.

Wake up LO - useless to all except denny do nothing .

Dr. Kampe

Another fabulous example of your Phd. at work. Congressman Kucinich was hard at work
yesterday right here in Lakewood. Sorry not in Hollywood raising pennies.

LO $upporters? I am confused on this one.

"Wake LO" Wake up to what. Do you really think the people on this board agree? Do you
think members of the LO walk in lock step? Is this what they teach you at which college
was it? That a community that is not afraid to talk in public about some very tough issues
and openly disagree, is walking in lock step. Damn, Doc.

In Parma this Tuesday let's hook, can't wait to me you.

Danielle

I wish the city of Lakewood had 1,000 more people like you with your compassion, your
giving, your family and husband. It would certainly be a step in the right direction.

.

[Dennis J Kampe]

J(Sn) aka JOB :

The words kucinich and "hard at work" are not terms seen in any sentence or article except for JOB - LO .

LO $upporters = those who post on the LO and also provide(d) "pennies for denny"

LO probably 90% dem with 50% of those as far far right ( Calif style) as denny

re Tues - In NYC Statue of Liberty

re radio call-in - denny temporary part-time summer "staff" will screen and only? pro-denny calls accepted

re denny call-outs - Call members of the "I love denny" club" and/or pa$t $upporters for their "unbiased" opinions - Again LOOK for sob stories to use

Finally claim - Mission Accomplished with NO face to face town hall meeting(s) with Ohio-10 voters yet show up and give stump speech in Ill , Calif etc .

[Jim O'Bryan]

J(Sn) aka JOB :

The words kucinich and "hard at work" are not terms seen in any sentence or article except for JOB - LO .

LO $upporters = those who post on the LO and also provide(d) "pennies for denny"

LO probably 90% dem with 50% of those as far far right ( Calif style) as denny

Dr. Kampe

Guess you forgot the name of your alma mater. No problem, I can pretend you are a Phd. too.

So you are bashing Observers for exercising their right to choose who they wanted to
vote for? As one long time Republican said, "People like Dr. Kampe, make me want to
support Congressman Kucinich."

Yeah, the congressman should hold a town hall meeting so that you can get some TV time
foaming at the mouth, speaking in partial sentences, and even more incomplete thoughts.

It would be great on Oberman amd Hard Ball later.

Just curious, how much did I give Congressman Kucinich on his last run for office?

.

[Danielle Masters]

In the past two years I have spent over three weeks...

I can't edit but this should say in the last year, obviously I wasn't quite awake at nearly 2 am.

And thanks Jim, I appreciate your kind words.

Oh and last night I spoke about healthcare with a friend. A middle class friend struggling. Her family has insurance, good insurance but she spends about $10,000 a year on premiums and co-pays and each and every time she has to take the kids to the doctor she thinks to herself, do they really need to go? People shouldn't have to think "am I really sick enough".

This is a wonderful country, but when it comes to healthcare it sucks. And being that this is such a great country we can do better, we should do better, and we should be ashamed about not wanting to do better and solve this problem.

Like I said earlier set the BS aside, stop acting like kindergartners and get to work.

[David Anderson]

Danielle –

Thanks for sharing your story and insights.

The issue of mental health parity has come a long way in this country over the last decade but is nowhere where it needs to be.

If one has a broken arm, you go to the emergency room for an x-ray, cast and prescriptions and schedule follow-up care. That’s covered. Those suffering from depression or other diagnosed disorders are in dire straits.

To what extent does the reform bill further the cause of mental health parity?


All -

I am amazed that the proponents of health care reform are all but ignoring the positive impact such reform could have on our nation’s manufacturing sector without sacrificing workers' health care needs. I dug up this research from a few years ago.

HEALTH CARE COSTS: In 2003, GM's pension fund needed an infusion from the largest corporate debt offering in history. And the cost of providing health coverage for 1.1 million GM workers, retirees and dependents is estimated to be $5.6 billion that year. Their coverage is enviable — at most, small co-payments for visits to doctors and for pharmaceuticals, but no deductibles or monthly premiums.

• GM says health expenditures — $1,525 per car produced; there is more health care than steel in a GM vehicle's price tag — are one of the main reasons it lost $1.1 billion in the first quarter of 2005. Ford's profits fell 38 percent, and although Ford had forecast 2005 profits of $1.4 billion to $1.7 billion, it had a year's loss of over $100 million.

• All this while Toyota's sales are up 23 percent this year and Americans are buying cars and light trucks at a rate that would produce 2005 sales almost equal to the record of 17.4 million in 2000.

[Dennis J Kampe]

JOB

Do the words DD mean anything to you . If so do your DD on me / degrees etc . IF not ask someone more knowledgeable than you what DD means and then proceed to try to do your own DD .

re your claim of "bashing Observers" ANY PROOF? - can you cite sentence , paragraph etc or just more JOB B$ ie opinion

to para-phase your "Quote" - "People like JOB make me want to leave lakewood , Ohio , even the USA " maybe a source of NE Ohio resident flight ?

Would be entertaining to see your best buddy doing his " duh, duh , duh " responses to questions . Without his bring along "experts" , I doubt he can tie his own shoes .

Finally your contributions to the "pennies for denny" fund - I couldn't care less . BUT I expect you can/have claimed some value in your daily or weekly LO "i love denny" commericals ie posts - granted less value than the current minimum wage but in your mind and probably your best buddy - any publicity is good publicity .

[Will Brown]

[quote="Jim O'Bryan"]

Want to talk about planning death?! My god, a father of four between jobs, has to decide
to take his daughter in for possible health care, and/or lose everything he has worked for?
I am sorry that would seem to be an emergency.

WB Is that an actual case where you could provide verification, or did you just make it up? You seem to have a rather complete ignorance of how bankruptcy works. Generally, it protects much of the filer's assets, so he doesn't lose them.

[quote="Jim O'Bryan"]

I went to the hospital for a cold this year.
I really did not want to pay my $3,500 co-pay so close to the end of the year. Well after I
flatlined in the emergency room(thank god I was at Lakewood), and $165,000 later, I
was given a clean bill of health and released.

So bankruptcy does not ruin people's lives?

WB Just how does your having had some medical treatment relate to the question of bankruptcy? That makes no sense.

[quote="Jim O'Bryan"]
Losing everything over staying alive is not emergency?!

WB Again, your profound ignorance of the subject has misled you. People do not lose everything in a personal bankruptcy. If they did, why would they bother with going through it?

[quote="Jim O'Bryan"]

The number one reason for bankruptcy is health care!

WB I agree that it is a major factor. I don't know that it is the number one reason, but even if it is, it is irrelevant because bankruptcy is not the fatal condition you seem to believe it to be.

[quote="Jim O'Bryan"]

Not an emergency!

WB You finally get it.

[quote="Jim O'Bryan"]

The high cost of health care is not because of innovation! Please. It is because they have
created a system here in America to abuse the system, and make trillions, to spend millions
in Washington on lobbying!

WB I didn't say it was the sole cause, but it is one of the causes. If you are really unaware of innovations in diagnosis and treatment, and their costs, over recent years, you must live in someplace far from reality. If you want some facts, go back to the hospital and ask them how many of the procedures and equipment they used on you has been invented in, say, the last 20 or 30 years. And ask them what the odds of saving you would have been without those developments.

I agree that the current system is wasteful and inefficient, but I don't agree that we should trust the people who created that system to create a more pervasive system, at least not until they fix what they already created. If Ford built and sold me a car that was as expensive and dysfunctional as Medicare, would I keep buying Fords? Would you?

[quote="Jim O'Bryan"]

Say what you want but single payer health care would put millions back into the economy
and be bigger than any economic development program out there.

WB Isn't Medicare a single payer health care program? You pick your treater, and Medicare picks up the tab, subject, of course, to many rules about how much they will pay, and what services they will cover. Now, if this program is threatening to bankrupt the government, why would you want to expand it? A single payer will always be under pressure to reduce costs, and will do whatever they can get away with (or do without being caught) to effect those ends.

I favor having multiple programs that will compete with each other for my business. We could establish minimum standards and then the customer could decide if he wants to pay for only the minimums, or to buy top shelf whiskey.

I don't know the best solution for those young people who think they will never get old or sick. Compelling them to buy coverage seems like an abridgment of freedom. But allowing them to have no coverage means the rest of us will end up paying for treatment when they actually need it.

[sharon kinsella]

Jim -

DD means Donald Duck - heh, heh. Kempe reminds me of him.

[Dennis J Kampe]

SK

Your "intelligence" is overwhelming . Between you and JOB - Anything and everything ever known to mankind is common knowledge for you two and for which you occasionally share your deep insights with other less educated individuals .


As noted previously :

Ignorance is cureable but stupidity as practiced daily by certain members of the LO group is forever

[sharon kinsella]

DK or DD -

You're suffering from a superiority complex.

[Jim O'Bryan]

WB Is that an actual case where you could provide verification, or did you just make it up? You seem to have a rather complete ignorance of how bankruptcy works. Generally, it protects much of the filer's assets, so he doesn't lose them.

WB Just how does your having had some medical treatment relate to the question of bankruptcy? That makes no sense.

I favor having multiple programs that will compete with each other for my business. We could establish minimum standards and then the customer could decide if he wants to pay for only the minimums, or to buy top shelf whiskey.

I don't know the best solution for those young people who think they will never get old or sick. Compelling them to buy coverage seems like an abridgment of freedom. But allowing them to have no coverage means the rest of us will end up paying for treatment when they actually need it.

Will Brown

Excuse as I pulled a couple quotes, to answer not the entire post.

While it protects "much" of the filers assets, it does not protect most. It is a life
changing experience, and could potentially run a family to the poor house, devastating
that family for a long time. It is a life changing experience. And is nowhere near the
"get out of jail once every seven years for free" that it was. One could even say it has
been tailored just for these situations as it does not clear medical/credit debt. Just helps
to manage you assets to pay that off.

As for myself, I went in for a cold, and came out $160,000 poorer. So then let's say my wife went in, after I filed, and then my kids? While I am ignorant on bankruptcy and the
ever changing tightening, harder to get progam, most having not needed it yet. Are you
saying it would have protected me, my family with nothing more than a small bump in the
road?

What I am getting at is that countries like England, France, Germany seem to have taken
this part of life out of their day to day lives very nicely, without bankrupting their economy.
The British plan seems like a very good plan with emphasis placed on prevention, that has
proven to decrease costs across the board.

As for one plan, it is theoretically a good idea, make it basic health care allowing all of those
that want better care or selective surgery pay for it.

As David Anderson pointed out, it would be a great stimulus package for the business
incubator in America called "small business." Last week I started looking at health care
for all of the Observer papers, and we are having trouble putting together a real program
that can be managed by the companies we are talking to. It would be a patch quilt of
three different programs. One for health care, one to cover the gaps in that and another
for "major medical" moments. Now as I look over the propaganda put out on the pro
single payer side, they claim, these companies have a 30%-45% management rate for
these plans. As opposed to the 3% for the VA, and 3.5% of Medicare. Could it be that the
government can do some things better like the post office, and the VA plan?

If innovation was the number of reason for expense. Medicine would cost the same on
both sides of the borders. I am not saying it is not one of the reasons, but the biggest
reason in the USA is the lobbying, to keep the machine going strong.

But them, I am one of the ignorant masses that do not understand how what a positive
impact bankruptcy is on a family of four.

.