Dr. Barbara Ruth Bellar is a small business owner, physician, Veteran Army Major, professor, and attorney. She also happens to be a Republican running for election to the State Senate in Illinois.
In a video that has gone somewhat viral, she said this about ObamaCare at a recent political event:
“So let me get this straight. This is a long sentence.
We are going to be gifted with a health care plan that we are forced to purchase, and fined if we don’t, which reportedly covers 10 million more people without adding a single new doctor, but provides for 16,000 new IRS agents, written by a committee whose chairman doesn’t understand it, passed by Congress, that didn’t read it, but exempted themselves from it, and signed by a president who smokes, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn’t pay his taxes, for which we will be taxed for four years before any benefits take effect, by a government which has bankrupted Social Security and Medicare, all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese and financed by a country that is broke.
So what the blank could possibly go wrong?”
A classic.
Apr 30, 2012
Posted by AAfterwit on Apr 30, 2012 | Comments Off
On April 26, 2012, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius appeared before Congress to talk about the Obama administration’s proposed health mandate which forces religious institutions to purchase methods of contraception even if it is against the religious beliefs of a group. During the hearing, she Sebelius was questioned by Congressman Trey Gowdy, who represents the 4th District of South Carolina.
It now occurs to us that it may be good to have health care for people like Sebelius because a veritable bloodbath ensued during the questioning.
We took note in February of this year that President Obama, Secretary Sebelius and White House Spokesman Jay Carney all said the mandate was a correct “balance” between religious freedom and health care. During his questioning, Representative Gowdy asks Sebelius what tests or information she relied upon to determine what was a correct “balance.”
Sandra Fluke is a law student attending Georgetown University. On Thursday, February 22, 2012 Ms. Fluke appeared before a “Democrats only” “hearing” on the issue of forcing religious institutions to cover abortions and contraception in health plans even if those items are against the religious and moral teachings of the institution.
For all intents and purposes, this was dog and pony show to continue the Democrats fight against the First Amendment and religious freedom. Ms. Fluke was the only person “testifying” at the hearing which was chaired by former Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Fluke said women at Catholic schools expect to “be treated equally,” expect to have “all of our medical needs” met, and expect the university to “respect our choices” on health insurance.
“We did not expect that women would be told in the national media that we should have gone to school elsewhere,” Fluke said.
“And even if that meant going to a less prestigious university, we refuse to pick between a quality education and our health. And we resent that in the 21st century, anyone think it’s acceptable to ask us to make this choice simply because we are women.”
Let’s examine those statements one by one.
Ms. Fluke says she expects to “be treated equally.” As far as we know, Ms. Fluke is being treated no different than any other student on campus. Her medical coverage is the same as anyone else. What Ms. Fluke is really saying is she demands the school do what she wants and go against the school’s moral and religious teachings. (more…)
Feb 2, 2012
Posted by AAfterwit on Feb 2, 2012 | Comments Off
There are times when we really feel sorry for White House Press Secretary Jay Carney. After all, he appears to be intelligent and yet at the same time as Press Secretary, he has to defend some of the dumbest things from the Obama administration. Then again, he took the job knowing there would be times when he had to pay the fiddler for the lack of intelligent dance songs Obama often tries to play.
Case in point is the administration’s decision to demand religious institutions cover medical procedures and health items which are against the religious institution’s beliefs.
Last week Obama and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced religious institutions will have one year to comply with regulations under the Affordable Care Act (also known as ObamaCare) which require health insurance to include contraception and the so called “morning after pill,” which many believe is a abortion pill.
Contraception and abortions are long held by many religious institutions such as the Roman Catholic Church to be against the teachings of the Bible. The Roman Catholic Church has been clear on the matter. To them, contraception and abortion are contrary to their faith.
In making the announcement, Sebelius said:
“I believe this proposal strikes the appropriate balance between respecting religious freedom and increasing access to important preventive services.”
We fail to see any “balance” between the government demanding a religion go against its beliefs in violation of the First Amendment to comply with an arbitrary rule for “health care” which is no where to be found in the Constitution.
You may remember back in 2009 when Obama stood in front of a Townhall meeting trying to exhort the crowd to understand the awesomeness that health care would be under his plan.
His rationalization backfired when he compared ObamaCare to the US Postal Service and how it competes against rivals Fed EX and UPS.
Explaining why he believes a public option would not crowd out and ultimately eliminate private insurance, Obama said, “My answer is that if the private insurance companies are providing a good bargain, and if the public option has to be self-sustaining…then I think private insurers should be able to compete. They do it all the time. I mean, if you think about it, UPS and FedEx are doing just fine, right? No, they are. It’s the Post Office that’s always having problems.”
Fast forward to today, where the USPS has proposed laying off 120,000 workers and withdrawing from federal health and retirement plans because it believes it could provide benefits at a lower cost.
In the four year period through Fiscal Year (FY) 2010, mail volume declined 20%, from 213 billion to 171 billion pieces, while prices for postal products remained capped at the rate of inflation—resulting in net losses over the period of just over $20 billion, including a loss in FY2010 of $8.5 billion.
(In case you are wondering, that $8.5 billion dollar loss this year works out to a little over $28 dollars for every man, woman and child in the United States.) (more…)
Aug 2, 2011
Posted by AAfterwit on Aug 2, 2011 | Comments Off
Once in awhile, we like to go back and “follow up” on certain posts we have made in the past to see how issues are being resolved, where they are now, and what is happening. In this day and age of 24 hour a day news spoon fed to us in seven minute segments, we often forget what has been said before.
For example, we had mentioned that despite increased costs to all and religious reservations of some, the Institute of Medicine had made recommendations to the Obama administration that health insurers should be required to carry birth control for women without co-payments. Today, President Obama announced that starting in 2013, insurers will have to do just that.
Health insurance plans must cover birth control as preventive care for women, with no copays, the Obama administration said Monday in a decision with far-reaching implications for health care as well as social mores.
The requirement is part of a broad expansion of coverage for women’s preventive care under President Barack Obama’s health care law. Also to be covered without copays are breast pumps for nursing mothers, an annual “well-woman” physical, screening for the virus that causes cervical cancer and for diabetes during pregnancy, counseling on domestic violence, and other services.
Once again, the Obama administration is forcing something on companies and trying to control the market. If a company or individual does not want to pay for contraceptives, why should they be forced to do so? And yes, we said “individual.” (more…)
Jul 21, 2011
Posted by AAfterwit on Jul 21, 2011 | Comments Off
“Leadership is not proposing a plan for the sake of having it voted up or down and likely voted down…”
(See the video of this below)
we need to remember that there are other events that will affect us individually and us as a nation that are still happening. It is a mistake to simply focus on one issue, in this case the debt ceiling and budget, while other battles are being fought.
One such battle that is still ongoing in ObamaCare. On Tuesday, government health care advisers the Institute of Medicineissued their recommendations for what ObamaCare should cover for women’s health care.
An Institute of Medicine panel recommended that the government require health insurance companies to cover birth control for women as preventive care, without copayments. Contraception — along with such care as diabetes tests during pregnancy and screening for the virus that causes cervical cancer — was one of eight recommended preventive services for women.
Emergency contraception, known as the morning-after pill, would also be covered.
With all the talk about the economy, energy, and Republican presidential candidates we thought we’d take a moment to remind people of the care one can find in socialized medicine – the type advocated by ObamaCare and evidenced in Great Britain.
First up, a case where a man who had collapsed was left on the floor of the hospital while workers literally stepped over him throughout the night.
Nurses casually stepped over a patient as he lay dying on a hospital floor.
Peter Thompson, 41, was left in a corridor for ten hours before someone noticed he had passed away.
In a final act of indignity, hospital auxiliaries pulled his lifeless body across the floor in a manner his family described as like ‘dragging a dead animal’.
The family’s description of the way Thompson was moved does not do the act justice. Workers literally grabbed Thompson’s feet and dragged him across the floor as you would a dead animal. No, scratch that. A dead animal would have been treated better.
