The Exagerrated Cost of the Uninsured

One of the main reasons for requiring people to buy health insurance, or be penalized for not, is that the uninsured then use the emergency rooms, which cost everyone else.

In a July press conference Obama said, "...the average American family is paying thousands of dollars in hidden costs in their insurance premiums to pay for what's called uncompensated care, people who show up at the emergency room because they don't have a primary-care physician." (1) Entire transcript is here.

I know I'm not even paying $1000 a year for insurance so I don't know how I'm paying "thousands" to pay for uncompensated care. Plus, I would think that people who go into an emergency room get the care but then also get the bill. Maybe he means those that can't pay the bill, like illegal aliens?

In his interview on ABC News this weekend he said, "You and I are both paying $900, on average -- our families -- in higher premiums because of uncompensated care." (2) The full transcript is here.

Who, in just a couple of months we have gone from "thousands" to $900. We're making progress already, and no government intervention was necessary. But I digress...

But according to a 2008 report from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, both of those claims are off -- way off. The foundation's analysis indicates that the true annual cost per family is more like $200, with uncompensated care accounting for "less than one percent of private health insurance costs." (3) You can find the PDF here.

And for this, an extra $200 per family per year, we want to create a huge government bureaucracy and spend trillions?

So if it isn't the uninsured that is really driving up the costs, what is? Litigation, defensive medicine, "jackpot justice" and other factors we have already covered on this blog. But the legislation proposed isn't about fixing the problems, it's about expanding government.

Obama's assertion that people who don't have health insurance are "irresponsible" and need to buy it is bogus (4). The reason people need to buy health insurance is to pay for those who will be covered but will be costing the government lots of money. People like those who are dying, who require special care. People with diseases like cancer, who can't get private insurance. In other words, the most expensive patients are the ones who are most likely the sign up. It's called the adverse selection problem (5).

Please don't be distracted by false numbers thrown about by Obama and the Democrats. This isn't about covering people who can't afford insurance. It's about expanding the role of government in our lives.

=======================================
1. Sweet, Lynn (2009, July 22). "Obama July 22, 2009 press conference. Transcript". Chicago Sun-Times.
Retrieved September 23, 2009, from Chicago Sun-Times

2. "Transcript: President Barack Obama" (2009, September 20). ABC News.
Retrieved September 23, 2009, from ABC News

3. Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation (2008, August). "Covering the Uninsured in 2008: A Detailed Examination of Current Costs and Sources of Payment, and Incremental Costs of Expanding Coverage". The Kaiser Foundation.
Retrieved September 23, 2009, from Kaiser Foundation

4. Obama, Barack (2009, September 9). "REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT TO A JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS ON HEALTH CARE". The White House.
Retrieved September 23, 2009, from The White House

5. Sullum, Jacob (2009, September 23). "Does the cost of uncompensated care justify forcing people to buy health insurance?". Reason Online.
Retrieved September 23, 2009, from Reason Online

Obama Says 'Legalize Immigrants So We Can Cover Their Health Insurance'

A Washington Times article today says "his health care plan won't cover illegal immigrants, but argued that's all the more reason to legalize them and ensure they eventually do get coverage."

"Even though I do not believe we can extend coverage to those who are here illegally, I also don't simply believe we can simply ignore the fact that our immigration system is broken," he said.

In other words, ignore the broken immigration system and add a new system.

"It is ironic that the president told the American people that illegal immigrants should not be covered by the health care bill, but now just days later he's talking about letting them in the back door," said Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee.

The original article can be found here.

Charles Krauthammer Asks, "Does Obama Lie?"

In Charles Krauthammer's post today at Town Hall, he asks if Obama lies and then analyzes his health care speech to discern truth or lie, or if it's just dubious talk. He focuses on three points in the speech:

1. "I will not sign (a plan)," he solemnly pledged, "if it adds one dime to the deficit, now or in the future. Period."


2. He asserts that illegals will not be covered in the legislation, even though all bills presented so far do so.


3. Obama said he would largely solve the insoluble cost problem of Obamacare by eliminating "hundreds of billions of dollars in waste and fraud" from Medicare.

I won't spoil the article for you; it is a good one.

You can find the article here.

You can find the text of Obama's speech here.

More Racism Charges From the Media

Norah O'Donnell substituted for Chris Matthews this weekend on MSNBC and held a panel, provoking questions about racism and hatred. She included many incendiary words like hate, venom, craziness, fear mongering and more.

On her panel was Joe Klein from Time magazine. In his wisdom, he said of Joe Wilson's outburst, "And the voice of the cuckoo was heard in the land." And about the town hall meetings he said, "Well I was, I was at some town meetings this summer, most recently in Arkansas. And this is an awful lot about race. You just can't avoid it. I mean he was born black. But it isn't only about the fact that he's black, or the fact that his middle name is Hussein. It's a, about the fact in middle-America among white people, especially working class white people they're seeing all of this stuff. They're seeing Latinos in Arkansas, quite a few of them, move into the neighborhoods. They're seeing South Asians, you know running a lot of businesses. They're seeing intermarriage. They're seeing all these things that they find threatening. And they believe that the America, that they knew, which was always kind of a myth, has disappeared."

The panel also included people like Howard Fineman from Newsweek, Helene Cooper from The New York Times and Ceci Connolly from The Washington Post.

The original post can be found here. It has a link to the audio as well.

The Media Swoons Over a False Speech

Last night, President Obama delivered his speech about health care reform to a joint session of Congress. In it, he said many things but nothing new. He also made several false statements:

• He said costs will be reduced but the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) says it will cost much more.


• He said less than 5 percent of Americans would sign up for the public option but the estimated numbers are far greater and do not include the people switching from private plans.


• He said the plan would not add to the deficit but the money brought in from premiums can't make up for the money it will be spending.


• He said preventive care for everyone saves money when it costs more.


• He said nothing in the plan requires people to change their health care plan. Technically true, but it has been shown to be false. People will be forced to move.

And yet the media doesn't parse the message or question it. Since it came from Obama, it is as if the message came From On High (1):

• Keith Olbermann from MSNBC said it was "a broad and forward thinking speech" with "a touch of greatness."


• George Stephanopoulos on ABC said it was "a pretty remarkable speech" and suggested "this might have been the most emotional speech I've seen President Obama give" as "there was even a catch in his voice" because "this is very close to President Obama's heart."


• Chuck Todd on NBC reported how Obama endorses an insurance mandate for all citizens, came down pretty strongly for the so-called public option and proposed paying for it all by "taxing benefits for the wealthiest." Yet after that liberal garbage, Todd insisted the address was "about re-branding the President himself as a centrist and a pragmatist."


• CNN's Gloria Borger gushed about how "there was something in there for everybody".


• David Gergen lamented Obama's lost opportunity: "Had he given this speech three months ago, when there was a glow about his presidency, I think he could have swept the country...". Let me just add, thank God.


• Jonathan Alter from Newsweek said, "The great news tonight is this bill is on track for passage. Historic change is coming to the United States."

The entire accounting of the sickening bias can be found from the original article here.
==================================
1. Baker, Brent (2009, September 9). "'Touch of Greatness' in 'Remarkable' Speech About 'Re-Branding' Obama As 'Centrist'". NewsBusters.
Retrieved September 10, 2009, from News Busters