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Rep. Doggett: If Health Care Supporters Don't Speak Up, Insurance Companies Will Win
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), whose health care town hall Saturday turned into a "mob scene" of shouting protesters, just summed up this whole thing. CNN anchor Rick Sanchez asked Doggett why, if public opinion polls are split down the middle, we're only hearing from opponents.
I'll tell you, unless more Americans who are suffering under the insurance companies get out there and express their opinion, write their letter to the editor, call these talk shows -- if they don't get their message out the insurance companies will win in September and we just cannot let that happen.
"Many of them came, but they were drowned out on Saturday," he added.
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Speaking of health care. Did you all see Ben Nelsons discussion with the guy in the ads running against him in his state. Check out this excerpt of the conversation. Bold emphasis mine.
"I told him I didn't understand. And he (Ben Nelson) tried to explain it. He put his position out. He said if we went with a full public option -- which he called a government plan -- it would drive the price down and hurt private companies. I said, 'you mean competition.' And he replied that it would force people off the private plan and onto the government plan."
August 4, 2009 3:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Progressives might ougtta start thinking about what to do about the Republicans' latest strategy of shouting down health care reform town hall meetings. Ignoring them isn't gonna cut it. Playing "we're better than thou" isn't going to resolve matters either.
Now, I'm not suggesting that the fiasco should culminate in a knock down, drag out, but I AM suggesting that "team blue" show up in force in order to make it abundantly clear to "team red" that disruptions of the proceedings will not be tolerated. Somebody needs to tell these howling baboons to shut the hell up. I volunteer.
You all might want to consider showing up at the town halls in your areas. Here's the list as posted on the Conservatives for Patients Rights website: http://www.cprights.org/townhalls.php(verify before attending). This is the same list that CPR has distributed to its members for the purpose of disrupting the meetings.
Our people could use our help.
August 4, 2009 3:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
Doggett has basically summarized for me everything I hate about the Democratic Party.
The Democrats have run on Health Care for as long as I've been voting (1992). It's part of their platform. Now they have the votes to pass whatever Health Care reform they can imagine and they can't summon the courage to vote for it because people are yelling at them?
They ran on stopping the war in 2006, then caved. If they cave here, how do they ever expect to win another election? "Vote for us. We won't do anything we say we'll do, but we're not as bad as the other guys...unless they yell at us, and we'll totally do whatever they say."
Dogget, you're a Texan. Grow a pair!
August 4, 2009 4:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Actually as retired RN and a life long Republican, I am in favor of everything in the Democratic Health Care Plan. Before I retired, one of my saddest situations was to see people who truly needed health care, even children, but they were uninsured so they did not get adequate care. I really understand that because I had rheumatic fever when I was young and for want of $3.00 of antibiotics, I have ended up with a lousy heart that required 4 different heart surgeries and cost me nearly $250,000 that took a life time for me to pay. Even then, my health has been terrible at different intervals. My situation is being repeated again and again in this modern time. At age 76 it is far too late for my health to be salvaged. But little kids ought not to have to go through this sort of thing in this modern time in our nation. As a retired RN who lost a lot of work due to illness, I still would gladly pay more taxes to make certain that no child go through what I went through. And worst of all, what my single mother (after my father's death) went through knowing I needed medical care but not being able to afford that care. As a result, my heart has cost insurance companies and me over $500.000 due to ongoing care needs and 4 heart surgeries.
August 5, 2009 12:17 AM | Reply | Permalink
Doggett needs to follow up on his own advice. He needs to get about 5 people from his district that have suffered from the current healthcare system and put them on stage with him to tell their story. If the pitch fork and club thugs start yelling during the telling of these stories then that reveals alot about these people. And, it should be given media attention to show what kind of thugs they really are.
August 4, 2009 7:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Doggett needs to follow up on his own advice. He needs to get about 5 people from his district that have suffered from the current healthcare system and put them on stage with him to tell their story. If the pitch fork and club thugs start yelling during the telling of these stories then that reveals alot about these people. And, it should be given media attention to show what kind of thugs they really are.
August 4, 2009 7:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'll speak up right here. I have diabetes2 for about two years and hold an individual policy from a major health insurer. For many past years they increased my premium annually about 10%. The latest increase was 20%. When I asked them to justify the double increase, they wrote that the reason was the part of New Mexico I live in. HMMMM....about 50 miles from Los Alamos National Lab. But why would that justify the sudden increase in premium hikes? I've lived in the same place for 15 years. When my agent offered a better deal through the same company - a new plan - he told me I wasn't eligible when I informed him of my pre-existing condition. So I am trapped. My current insurer won't admit me to a new, less expensive plan. My agent told me any other insurer will offer only an exorbitant premium. The American health care system offers me NO OPTIONS. For this reason, I completely favor a strong public option that covers pre-existing conditions at a reasonable premium. I hope the millions of Americans victimized by health insurers support a robust public option. It's the only way we'll get a fair deal.
August 4, 2009 11:55 PM | Reply | Permalink