Dennis Kucinich: Why I voted no on 3962 - A BAILOUT UNDER A BLUE CROSS

Thank you Dennis. I agree with every last word.

After voting against H.R. 3962 - Affordable Health Care for America Act, Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today made the following statement:


“We have been led to believe that we must make our health care choices only within the current structure of a predatory, for-profit insurance system which makes money not providing health care. We cannot fault the insurance companies for being what they are. But we can fault legislation in which the government incentivizes the perpetuation, indeed the strengthening, of the for-profit health insurance industry, the very source of the problem. When health insurance companies deny care or raise premiums, co-pays and deductibles they are simply trying to make a profit. That is our system.


“Clearly, the insurance companies are the problem, not the solution. They are driving up the cost of health care. Because their massive bureaucracy avoids paying bills so effectively, they force hospitals and doctors to hire their own bureaucracy to fight the insurance companies to avoid getting stuck with an unfair share of the bills. The result is that since 1970, the number of physicians has increased by less than 200% while the number of administrators has increased by 3000%. It is no wonder that 31 cents of every health care dollar goes to administrative costs, not toward providing care. Even those with insurance are at risk. The single biggest cause of bankruptcies in the U.S. is health insurance policies that do not cover you when you get sick.


“But instead of working toward the elimination of for-profit insurance, H.R. 3962 would put the government in the role of accelerating the privatization of health care. In H.R. 3962, the government is requiring at least 21 million Americans to buy private health insurance from the very industry that causes costs to be so high, which will result in at least $70 billion in new annual revenue, much of which is coming from taxpayers. This inevitably will lead to even more costs, more subsidies, and higher profits for insurance companies — a bailout under a blue cross.


“By incurring only a new requirement to cover pre-existing conditions, a weakened public option, and a few other important but limited concessions, the health insurance companies are getting quite a deal. The Center for American Progress’ blog, Think Progress, states “since the President signaled that he is backing away from the public option, health insurance stocks have been on the rise.” Similarly, healthcare stocks rallied when Senator Max Baucus introduced a bill without a public option. Bloomberg reports that Curtis Lane, a prominent health industry investor, predicted a few weeks ago that “money will start flowing in again” to health insurance stocks after passage of the legislation. Investors.com last month reported that pharmacy benefit managers share prices are hitting all-time highs, with the only industry worry that the Administration would reverse its decision not to negotiate Medicare Part D drug prices, leaving in place a Bush Administration policy.


“During the debate, when the interests of insurance companies would have been effectively challenged, that challenge was turned back. The “robust public option” which would have offered a modicum of competition to a monopolistic industry was whittled down from an initial potential enrollment of 129 million Americans to 6 million. An amendment which would have protected the rights of states to pursue single-payer health care was stripped from the bill at the request of the Administration. Looking ahead, we cringe at the prospect of even greater favors for insurance companies.


“Recent rises in unemployment indicate a widening separation between the finance economy and the real economy. The finance economy considers the health of Wall Street, rising corporate profits, and banks’ hoarding of cash, much of it from taxpayers, as sign of an economic recovery. However in the real economy -- in which most Americans live -- the recession is not over. Rising unemployment, business failures, bankruptcies and foreclosures are still hammering Main Street.


“This health care bill continues the redistribution of wealth to Wall Street at the expense of America’s manufacturing and service economies which suffer from costs other countries do not have to bear, especially the cost of health care. America continues to stand out among all industrialized nations for its privatized health care system. As a result, we are less competitive in steel, automotive, aerospace and shipping while other countries subsidize their exports in these areas through socializing the cost of health care.


“Notwithstanding the fate of H.R. 3962, America will someday come to recognize the broad social and economic benefits of a not-for-profit, single-payer health care system, which is good for the American people and good for America’s businesses, with of course the notable exceptions being insurance and pharmaceuticals.”

That he probably was one of the last to vote, and only voted against it once it was clear it would pass

pledged months ago to only support a bill with a strong public option.

I am without insurance and in the last 20 years, I've only had health insurance for about 18 months in 2003 and 2004.

And I would have voted against this bill because I don't believe it does any thing to make health care more affordable or available for Americans in the long term. In fact in the long term it's a very counter productive bill.

Yes it contains some short lived carrots.

But those hardly make up for the long term damage to middle and lower income Americans that are in that bill.

bankruptcy bill and of most of the congress sellouts; But it is not true of Dennis who has proven his bona fides over and over again. He is one of the very few we can trust.

Most on this board understand and support Kucinich and appreciate his hard work.

absolutely nothing?

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http://www.hr676.org/12.html

Read it genius!

You think that's a Blue Dog Tea Bagger?

If you do you're an idiot of the highest order.

http://www.hr676.org/12.html

Read it genius!

You think that's a Blue Dog Tea Bagger?

If you do you're an idiot of the highest order.

http://www.hr676.org/12.html

Read it genius!

You think that's a Blue Dog Tea Bagger?

If you do you're an idiot of the highest order.

perpetrating the blind devotion.

first introduced in 2003 by John Conyers, and he has re-introduced it every year since:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_National_Hea...

His ass should now be primaried.

He is a traitor to his party every bit as much as the treasonous blue dogs.

Fuck his traitor ass.

Don't like it, don't kill the messenger.

Instead of bashing Kucinich, you might want to reserve your rage for the politicians who just sold your ass out to the corporate health industry giants.

he's a dumb ass fuckhead.

All or nothing is a Republican game. He's a dumb shit.

and donate to Dennis, for having the guts to vote the way he did.

to do the same.

I'll double it this time. And, I live in Florida.

While you go on and continue to accept the status quo and call it Democratic.

to what avail? What has DK actually accomplished with all of his petulant, indignant, grandstanding? That is, with the exception of his "folk hero" status among the 2% of Americans who blindly worship him?

Make sure they don't offend any Republicans?
Play for the support of the same Republicans who would run them over if they had chance?
Water down every principle that Dems were elected on?

I voted for Health Care reform. Not a redirection of health care lobbyist money to Dems.

I pay $476 a month for garbage coverage. Thanks to this bill - and opinions such as yours - that will probably go up.

If the supporters of this party had any conscience, they would overwhelmingly support people like Dennis Kucinich who clearly does not drink the freakin' Koolaid of conciliatory politics.

But have no fear. The Repukes will soon be back in control (as if they ever were not).

We should take what little progress we can get with that one.

under, ooops you lose, you lose, you lose. Just wait till the masses learn there was never a pea under any of the shells to begin with; I'd guess torches and pitchforks will become the norm; And if the Whitehouse thinks the masses will not learn exactly how they have been sold down the river until 2013, in the last quarter of O's 8 years, is batting a sticky wicket that is covered in tar and feathers for the Dems if they continue on this path of who can eliminate the robust public option without getting caught; Burying calumny in a thousand pages just wont work.

... and I thought party uber alles was only a republican trait. LOL.

Now that's "smart" politics!

You play it well.

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Would I be surprised if you try to apologize for just being overzealous or just all emotional?

Well others have strong feelings as well and your posts lately are destructive to the community.

Because some people around here love being slaves to wall street.

as Dennis stands up for what's right - instead they eagerly await the scraps that they, and the rest of us, will be "allowed" to have. It's like Michael Moore said: America has battered housewife syndrome. We just keep coming back for one more giant helping of corrupt corporate bullshit. Thank you sir, can I have another! Sigh. Dennis = a man ahead of his time.

"Hijackers" crash planes they don't know how to fly into buildings that can withstand such with no collapse -- American people must do something, anything. So we bomb to smithereens a country that had nothing to do with the attack. A nation that did not even have any "hijackers" naming that nation as their source.

Don't like our health care system? Hey, let's put together a 1,900 + page bill that mostly creates an "Insurance Industry Profit Protection Racket" and

While we are at it, let's include in that proposal red tape for those who need birth control, or abortion, or who miscarry. Let's see that women's rights are pushed back to the turn of the Twentieth Century. Women will now have to seek out the ghost of Margaret Sanger in order to get proper care.

I can't support his antics any more - this is unforgivable.