State funded health care.

[LoginName]

How are they going to pay for this you ask?.

It's a fairly extensive list, but one area mentioned did catch my attention..

AN ACT to establish the Massachusetts Health Care Trust

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. The Massachusetts General Laws are hereby amended by adding the following new chapter:–

Preamble.

The foundation for a productive and healthy Massachusetts is a health care system that provides equal access to quality health care for all its residents. Massachusetts spends more on health care per capita than any other state or country in the world, causing undue hardship for the state, municipalities, businesses, and residents, but without achieving universal access to quality health care. The Health Care Trust will allow us to achieve and sustain the three main pillars of a just, efficient health care system: cost control and affordability, universal access, and high quality medical care.

Snip...

The Trust shall be the repository for all health care funds and related administrative funds. The sources of Trust funding shall include the following:

Snip...

5) All monies collected from taxes imposed on items that contribute to increased health care costs. Surtaxes, to be determined by the Legislature, in consultation with the executive director of the Trust, shall be imposed on products and facilities to the extent that they can be determined to contribute to the health care costs of the commonwealth. These may include, but shall not be limited to: alcohol, gasoline, firearms, and facilities operating in the commonwealth that generate air and/or water pollution.

Full text of bill can be found here...

http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/senate/185/st00/st00703.htm

Depending on far this bill progresses, I'd wager that any surtax on gasoline will be dropped from the language. There's a lot of things the voters will blindly accept, more money at the pump isn't one of them.

 

[Mr Weebles]

Surtaxes, to be determined by the Legislature, in consultation with the executive director of the Trust, shall be imposed on products and facilities to the extent that they can be determined to contribute to the health care costs of the commonwealth

They mention firearms, gasoline, pollution and alcohol as contributing to healthcare costs but no mention is made of illegal immigrants, gang activity, unwed mothers, or illegal drug use?

Ridiculous.

 

[LoginName]

They mention firearms, gasoline, pollution and alcohol as contributing to healthcare costs but no mention is made of illegal immigrants, gang activity, unwed mothers, or illegal drug use?

Ridiculous.

That's because they would be the recipients of any taxpayer funded health care plan.

 

[Ripach]

They know we are not going to stop drinking, shooting, or driving so they basicaly got us by the short hairs.

I say realy piss em off and do all three at once ( I'm kidding of course please don't flame me for it)

 

[Weerd Beard]

I wonder if "Air Pollution" will count that EVIL CO2 that is going to kill us all within hours?

EVERYBODY knows that CO2 is a dangerous pollutant.


How about a "Money Tax"? You have money? They take it as tax.

Grrrr

 

[MassMark]

On The Back Of Us...

I work in a field where I'm buried in state funded healthcare every day. I'm inevitably torn between fiscal sensibility and also loyalty to my profession and the people I serve.

I stood by as Mitt the Twitt sliced through MassHealth and took away dental services for people who need it the most. I sat helplessly as clients who could not afford dentures had their remaining teeth removed in order to better be able to gum their food. I saw Medicaid demand prior authorization for medications that my guys had been taking for years. The phone calls poured in: "Mark, they only delivered half my meds - what an I going to do?".

I shook my head as El Twitto denied and vetoed salary reserve after salary reserve, (we're still in the early 90's for cost of living), while fat-cat state rectal sniffers got huge increases and the list of meaningless state jobs grew - and The Big Dig went on. I sat and shoveled free bacon and eggs down my throat, (nothing like a free meal), at "Legislative Breakfasts" and listened to empty promises from empty suits. Then, I'd climb into my car and drive by road projects, (roads to nowhere, flood prone roads that remained so after millions, intersection improvement, rte 7 widening for the tourists, on and on), that were completely senseless - even to the engineering challenged. I pondered how many palms were being greased - while the rest of us were just being "greased" in general.

Then I would sit in waiting rooms for hours with my guys at "Neighborhood Health" and watch as parades of mothers pulled in the parking lot - their cars decked with $2,000.00 rims and low profiles - a RockfordFosgate tube booming in the trunk, boyfriends complete with the latest John-Paul, $300.00 shoes and bling, bling to the ceiling. This while I pondered whether one more application of duct tape might hold the shoes of my client for one more week until his check comes. I look at my paycheck on Thursday and realize that I'm paying $405.00 a month for the lowest tier Health New England and I can't get a tooth crowned and have to pay a $500.00 deductible for x-rays and $50-bucks if I wander into an Emergency Room with a bloody stump. I see astronomical medical bills being submitted for basic care and I wonder; "Where does this all end - where does it come from?"

At 4:00, I get into my truck and head home after a long day, (which could include, appointments, crisis alerts, suicide attempts, suicide successes, paperwork, waiting rooms, forms, more paperwork, meetings, trainings and lunch on the road) and head home. Trouble is, I have to stop by the store on my way - not to shop, but to pull out my uniform shirt and work 5-9 in retail - I have a wife in nursing school and bills to pay. This, and I'm not even "line staff". I'm a Clinical Caseworker - by some standards, I'm at the top of the food chain, (M-F 8-4 weekends and holidays off, better pay). Many of my peers are up to their armpits and make the same or even less than the person handing them their coffee at Dunkin Donuts. But my, that new Rt 20/Rt 7 intersection in Lenox looks great! Didn't solve anything, (except killing about 200 trees), but wow those lights look sweet! Anyone need a deal on some footwear?

It may sound it, but I'm really not looking for "woe is me sympathy". I chose my profession after a lucratave broadcasting carreer began to kill my soul. I am rewarded by coming home after a long day and knowing I helped someone - that feels good. However, I am also down here in the mud of human services - doing a job that few will do and even fewer respect. Like the dirty bastard-child that no one pays attention too, because he's quiet. I also have a front row seat to the waste, (on both sides), of a system that seems to be designed to fail - "if it looks good - it is good". Then when it tanks at least we can say we tried and get a good nights sleep......

In the meantime, we have a winter boot sale - 20% off...Stop on by.....

 

[Pilgrim]

I saw Medicaid demand prior authorization for medications that my guys had been taking for years. The phone calls poured in: "Mark, they only delivered half my meds - what an I going to do?".

This sounds exactly like the Tufts HMO we just moved to (not by choice). I've been taking a med for 10 years. Now I need prior authorization and they'll still only pay for 1/2 the dose I take. The prescription copay went from $50 in my old plan to $100. I take 2 of these things a day and they will only pay for one ! Now I need to come up with $300/month for the extra pill per day...yup $10 per pill !

All my copays went up and I need to pay the first $1500 of everything before they pay a cent. Add my wife and now I'm up to $3000 deductible.

I don't even want to think about the monthly cost of the premium I'm paying just so I can pay an additional $3000 before they'll cover anything.

These insurance companies out to be all put in jail !

 

[Finalygotabeltfed]

Notice how coffee is not on the list? The coffee cartels must be making their government bribe payments on or ahead of time.

They could raise billions from those who should be paying by placing a "ten cent per syllable" tax on all coffee orders at every Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Marylous, ect. so when some moonbat orders a coffee that would take up a full 8 1/2X11 sheet of paper to write out, they pay by the syllable.

 

[Ripach]

They could raise billions from those who should be paying by placing a "ten cent per syllable" tax on all coffee orders at every Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Marylous, ect. so when some moonbat orders a coffee that would take up a full 8 1/2X11 sheet of paper to write out, they pay by the syllable.

Normally I'd agree but my wife orders way too many "extra sweet caramel mocha cappa latte something's" for me to jump on board.