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Baucus’ Raucous Caucus
Barack Obama appeared this week with health-industry bigwigs, proclaiming light at the end of the health-care tunnel. Among those gathered were executives from HMO giants Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Health Net Inc., and the health-insurance lobbying group America's Health Insurance Plans; from the American Hospital Association and the American Medical Association; from medical-device companies; and from the pharmaceutical industry, including the president and CEO of Merck and former Rep. Billy Tauzin, now president and CEO of PhRMA, the massive industry lobbying group. They have pledged to voluntarily shave some $2 trillion off of U.S. health-care costs over 10 years. But these groups, which are heavily invested in the U.S. health-care status quo, have little incentive to actually make good on their promises.
This is beginning to look like a replay of the failed 1993 health-care reform efforts led by then-first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. Back then, the business interests took a hard line and waged a PR campaign, headlined by a fictitious middle-class couple, Harry and Louise, who feared a government-run health-care bureaucracy.
Still absent from the debate are advocates for single-payer, often referred to as the "Canadian-style" health care. Single-payer health care is not "socialized medicine." According to Physicians for a National Health Program, single-payer means "the government pays for care that is delivered in the private (mostly not-for-profit) sector."
A February CBS News poll found that 59 percent in the U.S. say the government should provide national health insurance.
Single-payer advocates have been protesting in Senate Finance Committee hearings, chaired by Democratic Montana Sen. Max Baucus. Last week, at a committee hearing with 15 industry speakers, not one represented the single-payer perspective. A group of single-payer advocates, including doctors and lawyers, filled the hearing room and, one by one, interrupted the proceedings.
Protester Adam Schneider yelled: "We need to have single-payer at the table. I have friends who have died, who don't have health care, whose health care did not withstand their personal health emergencies. ... Single-payer now!"
Baucus gaveled for order, guffawing, "We need more police." The single-payer movement has taken his words as a rallying cry. At a hearing Tuesday, five more were arrested. They call themselves the "Baucus 13."
One of the Baucus 13, Kevin Zeese, recently summarized Baucus' career campaign contributions:
"From the insurance industry: $1,170,313;
health professionals: $1,016,276;
pharmaceuticals/health-products industry: $734,605;
hospitals/nursing homes: $541,891;
health services/HMOs: $439,700."
That's almost $4 million from the very industries that have the most to gain or lose from health-care reform.
Another of the Baucus 13, Russell Mokhiber, co-founder of SinglePayerAction.org, has been charged with "disruption of Congress."
He was quick to respond: "I charge Baucus with disrupting Congress. It once was a democratic institution; now it's corrupt, because of people like him. He takes money from the industry and does their bidding. He won't even diffuse the situation by seating a single-payer advocate at the table."
As I traveled through Montana recently, from Missoula to Helena to Bozeman, health-care activists kept referring to Baucus as the "money man." Montana state Sen. Christine Kaufmann sponsored an amendment to the Montana Constitution, granting everyone in Montana "the right to quality health care regardless of ability to pay," or health care as a human right. It died in committee.
Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold, a single-payer advocate, said his position will not likely prevail in Washington: "I don't think there's any possibility that that will come out of this Congress." That's if things remain business as usual.
Mario Savio led the Free Speech Movement on the UC Berkeley campus. In 1964, he said: "There comes a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can't take part, you can't even passively take part, and you've got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon all the apparatus, and you've got to make it stop. And you've got to indicate to the people who run it, the people who own it, that unless you're free, the machine will be prevented from working at all."
"Unless you're free," the Baucus 13 might add, "to speak." The current official debate has locked single-payer options out of the discussion, but also escalated the movement-from Healthcare-NOW! to Single Payer Action-to shut down the orderly functioning of the debate, until single-payer gets a seat at the table.
Denis Moynihan contributed research to this column.
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Show AllThere is no issue that shows the disconnect between policy and public opinion than health care. I would gladly pay a couple hundred dollars a month more in taxes to avoid paying the outrageous sums that I do to my insurance company. The figures shown for the subsidizing of Baucus' political career say it all. He and his colleagues are clearly owned by big pharma, the insurance companies, big agra, the large finance corporations and all those that have the ability to throw large sums of money at them. But then again you all know that already. That's why you're here.
Unfortunately, the Capitalist Orthodoxy has some people so much in its grip that they would prefer pay a thousand dollars a month to a private insurer rather than have their taxes slightly raised because the former is "free enterprise" and the latter is "Socialism." That is the mark of a "true believer."
And what is logical about allowing the need for healthcare to be exploited by private insurers for personal profit? Yet taxes, which provide essential services, are seen as bad. That is a true orthodoxy.
My right wing brother-in-law tells me he would rather pay MORE to a private insurance company than he would pay in taxes for single payer (that would provide better coverage) because single-payer would cover indigent people, and he loves to go out to the local airport on weekends and watch all the insurance executives and pharma executives taking off in their corporate jets.
Needless to mention that my brother-in-law's net worth plus two bucks will buy you a good cup of coffee.
Pulling numbers straight out of my butt, I figure that with 300 million people, at $100 per month each, we could provide single-payer coverage for $30 billion dollars a year. So call it $60 billion. Thats one insurance company bailout. Thats one needless, useless "weapons system". But, alas and alack, where is the PROFIT in that? We're spending $750 billion dollars a year on the military and ongoing warfare. Couldn't we do that for $690 billion?
The funds freed up by individuals having to pay much less for health care / health insurance could be used to stimulate the economy (although SAVING or INVESTING that money makes a bit more sense to me). If I only had to pay a tax increase of $1200 a year, $100 a month, for single-payer health care that would lessen my monthly health care expenses by $175.00 which I could use to purchase more useless trinkets from Communist Red China.
Yes. Let us keep single-payer off the table. Its just not good for corporate profits and therefore not good for AmeriKa.
Democracy Now - the very best on the left-hand side of your radio dial.
Amy - How about Naomi Klein co-hosting on occasion?
Have you asked Naomi about this...?
"[Mokhiber:] 'Congress ... once was a democratic institution'"
Fucking when?
--
Eric Patton
Cincinnati, OH
ebpatton@yahoo.com
Max Baucus--one of the 60 votes to prevent filibuster. Max Baucus who helped squelch the btu tax in 1993. The Dems will fix problems--HA HA HA HA HA HA HA..........
You got that right. But if you think that's bad enough, check out the conservative Democrats out here in MS who run the state and local governments. They're so Republican we wouldn't even know they were Democrats to begin with. They make even Baucus look liberal in pale comparison.
The Health Care system is like any other system the educational, law enforcement and even garbage removal it’s about the bottom line, Profit. A single payer system will not produce the profits that these corporate heads want or even require. The time of socialized medicine or excuse me Single payer system will be seen decades from now but not in my lifetime and not in the U.S. The humanity just isn’t there only the price tag exist. In Steven Colberts own words "DAM The Humanityyyy."
Sioux Rose
PABLO: I am not so sure about your time line. Those citizens who are awake and aware (or not entirely bamboozled by the disconnect between Rush Limbaugh's rants against the wrong, but intended targets and what their basic instincts tell them) now see that: 1. War is being expanded to enemies that are changed to suit the leaders' mantras (and MIC ghastly profit-motives) 2. Insurance companies are being kept in as dishonest middle men who get the say on who lives (gets surgery/treatment) or who dies 3. Banks are getting the taxpayers (as in workers) money, but everyday people are losing it all: jobs, homes, health care, and unable to keep up with costs of necessities.
If it were ONE of the above, people could perhaps blink and go back to sleep. But it's EVERYTHING. Let's add this to the Katrina debacle, to the West Virginia mountain top blasting/removal debacle, to those who have been exposed to vicious chemicals and succumbed to cancer or other diseases (thank you disarmed EPA and FDA), and the broken troops (all those undiagnosed mental/psychological disorders because WAR and KILLING are not good for human beings!) returning home without any support system. It's too much abuse at once, too much money so evidently going to the CORPORATIONS while robbing citizens of basic needs. I believe critical mass is not too far up the road. That's when the real struggles will begin. So much has already been lost, but I think there is a limit. The outrage generated under Bush was defused when Obama came in like a handsome Black version of James Stewart to reapply just principles. He says that's what he's doing, but we SEE what's really underway. It's a massive case of cognitive dissonance, but I suspect the life force is strong enough in persons to send plenty flying OVER this cuckoo's nest into action. Soon.
I'm copying this message and sending it to my representative, senators, and President Obama with these comments:
It is clear that Max Baucus has no business running a committee that is charged with addressing health care in this country.
It is also clear that NOT having any "ordinary Americans" testify before Baucus' committee is clearly NOT transparent, nor is it democratic.
So this is different from the Republican party's position on healthcare HOW?
We need single payer healthcare and we need it now.
And you think they'll listen to you because...? Sorry to have grown so cynical, but I'm seeing a very clear connection between Congress and the health insurance companies, Big Pharma, etc.
One of my own Senators sits on the Finance Committee with Baucus. I had contacted him asking that Single Payer advocates have a seat at the table, and you see how that turned out.
The same Senator turned around and voted Nay on limiting credit card interest fees.
"A single payer system will not produce the profits that these corporate heads want or even require." You mean like the former CEO of United Health Care Dr. William McGuire? He was so greedy he lost his job and about $600,000,000. By 2006 under Dr.McGuire's leadership, the companies stock was returning profits in the 30% range. The company rewarded him with stock options at one time valued at $1,700,000,000. Yeah, that's BILLION. The largest compensation to one person at the time. (We didn't know about bankers bonus's yet.) Not satisfied with that paltry sum the options were backdated to increase their value. Somehow that woke up the SEC and the stockholders who were also greedy. In the scandal he lost his job and eventually had to return $600,000,000. Dr. McGuire's salary that year was approximately $125,000,000 so don't feel to sorry for him. And we need for profit Health Insurance Companies why?
Health Ins. has become just another Ins. scam. Every day the Industry thinks of ways to deny coverage, delay payments to Drs. and raise the price of it's ever shrinking policies. With no REAL competition these people will simply pay off the Prof. liars ( politicians) to keep their fangs @ our throats. Anyone that expects Obama or Congress to deliver anything significant on this is seriously deluded. To the contrary it appears whatever we do get will come @ a great price.
Once again: there is only one national party that campaigns for single payer, universal healthcare:
The Green Party. www.gp.org
Oregoncharles
The problem with the Green Party is that most of its national leadership--and some of the grass-roots members--don't have the courage of their convictions. In 2004 the GP gave de facto support to the prowar centrist John Kerry by spurning Ralph Nader--whose 2000 campaign had put the GP on the map--and adopting a "safe-states" strategy, intentionally running a nonentity for president. This time they took a similar approach, nominating Cynthia McKinney, who has never definitively broken with the Democrats and who heaped fulsome praise on Barack Obama in one of her major campaign statements.
The Green Party needs to decide whether it's going to become a truly independent left political force or merely run left cover for the Democrats.
The Greens didn't reject Nader, he rejected us. He has twice refused to run for our nomination. One result is a long-running dispute within the party, and of course dividing the left-wing vote. (I'm not privy to Nader's reasons; I suspect he just doesn't approve of party politics.)
I agree that the "safe-states" strategy was a huge mistake, even though I advocated it at the time. It's a mistake we didn't repeat. Your criticism of McKinney is silly: running as the Green Party candidate isn't a "definitive break" with the Democrats? That's ridiculous.
You're 4 years out of date. We've done as you ask - today there's a comment on Sirota's article criticizing us for being too radical - and apparently you didn't notice.
The Green Party practices participatory democracy. Join, show up at our meetings, and you help make our policy. If you also work for the party, you'll wind up on a state committee or a delegate to the national committee (LOTS of email, or so I'm told). We're looking forward to seeing your shining face.
Oregoncharles
Hey Oc, good point.
Which got me to thinking: We greens should quit looking to a Nader leadership. If we want to run a serious campaign we need a candidate with green values and someone who is not afraid of loosing their reputation. Someone who is not a politician and without political ambitions. Someone who can bring in an ecological leadership.
Any suggestions? I got one, how about Oren Lyons?
http://www.indigenouspeople.net/orenlyon.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwpG78_IEBw
I don't know how he would feel about it, but it may be worth a try. If anyone out there knows him, perhaps consider bringing the matter to his attention. Maybe he could do it. Why not put a Native American in the White House? Why not Oren?
Not based on the safe-states policy in '04?
I have expressed my discontent with the absence of single payer from the table on three different occasions, have you? I hope so. If not go to www.senate.gov and click on Baucus and send him your strong thoughts regarding single payer. What is happening with respect to health care is pure corporate governance, not democracy. Baucus is the poster boy for the selling out of democracy for the people. He believes he is beyond our reach. Let him know otherwise.
Brilliant title, Amy...
Bad Haiku: The Raucus Caucus/ of Pharma's Baucus want their/ boot up our toches.
They try to Knock Us
Down we rise up they Lock Us
Up and then Mock us
Good try, Stone. But Baucus's arrogance in those two committee meetings was beyond belief. If he can drag doctors, nurses, and lawyers away in handcuff, do you think he cares one little snit about what we say?
Our best hope is that the Obama plan will go the way of the Clinton plan. The problem here is that the insurance industry hated her plan, and they love his. Mandated coverage, subsidized by the taxpayers? Insurance heaven! Now all they have to do is tweak the upcoming rules so they can go on killing the sick (too expensive to keep alive).
When the people fear their government there is tyranny,
when the government fears the people there is liberty.
~ Thomas Jefferson
I'll bet the Republicans are laughing so hard behind MB's back. I am afraid that MB has taken a page from the conservative MS state and local Democrats who act so Republican most of us wouldn't even know that they were Democrats to begin with. Mandated coverage I hear is going on in Massachussetts. Those of us who are unemployed or even retired are in deep shit if mandated coverage thing passes. You raised an interesting point on Obama's vs Hillary healthcare plans whereby one is favored by the insurance industry while the other isn't. I would say that the same could be said of Clinton's tax cut program vs Obama's. Obama's despite being too big and not as much of a stimulus bill is surprisingly getting high marks and not much of a peep from even Wall Street, Grover Norquist, and others in the Republican boat. I've been shocked that Obama's getting too easy a pass from even Faux Noise. He hasn't changed much from his predecessors and yet he's getting unusually high ratings. Maybe nobody out there's questioning his actions? You're correct that Washington won't even think of listening to us. Hell, maybe this site is on their blacklist.
"Mandated coverage, subsidized by the taxpayers?"
Hell, this would work out wonderfully for me, assuming I'm willing to "work the system" like so many other people, high and low, in this country. I can legally show an income of around $17K a year. I currently pay $275 a month for health insurance. I'm betting I could drop that insurance and let the taxpayers pick up most of my bill, probably dropping my own contribution to $50 bucks a month or so. So, yes, by all means, let's keep single payer off the table. Why should I care if "I got mine"? Isn't that the prevailing attitude in our country?
I am curious what they have in mind to enforce the "mandated coverage". Wage garnishment? Seizure of bank accounts? Arrest and imprisonment?
How is Massachusetts doing it?
Refusing to pay your mandated amount is an act of terrorism that endangers our entire national security. We have ways to deal with terrorists.
I believe Massachusetts is fining people who don't buy insurance (and don't qualify for the state "plan". Last I heard the fine was $1,068.00 and was added on to people's taxes.
Massachusetts is in a big financial hole because of their goofy plan, and, it is still not universal. People get to pay their thousand bucks for nothing - it would buy a few doctor's visits......
Reagen, is correct, government presently is the problem, but not for the reasons he gave.
The implementation of his policies,by corrupted, elected officials, has infected our government, and has led us to the present(The corporate control of every level of our government).
I am outing my representative, and senators that do not support single payer universal health care.(HR676) I would hope that everyone that posts here, and on other sites will out their reps and senators, as I have done.
Representative, Steve Kagen(a doctor that should know better), and senators, Feingold, and Kohl, do not support HR676.
I'm still sending Get Well Cards to the president. I try to write something a little different on every card, but in general they say: America is sick. We need single payer national health care as outlined in HR676. We don't need health INSURANCE we need health CARE! Love, Elaine
Anyone who would like to join me in sending a "Get Well Soon, America" card to the president, the address is: 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NE, Wash. D.C. 20500.
Sen. Baucus' D.C. phone # is 202-224-2651.
I had to call back a couple of times to get through, then I had to hold for a while, but I sure don't mind if it's a bunch of other fed-up Americans like me telling him to put single payer back on the table.
Legislation and regulation is what we need. We have elected representatives who are supposed to be acting in our best interests. This is where the breakdown has ocurred. Washington has forgotten about the rest of the country. They're so busy trying to gain "political capital" to remember that they were elected to represent people who have no political capital.
Corruption is the disease of Washington DC, and damn near everyone who goes there catches it. It's called the "Beltway culture" and I fear that quarantine and fumigation is the only thing that will eradicate the two-legged rats and cockroaches that run amok there.
Anyway, let me again encourage all of you to go to:
http://www.singlepayeraction.org and sign up.
This morning I received an email from Ralph Nader, (mass mailing of course; don't know him personally!) who is working with this organization. This is the perfect role for Mr. Nader, and the type of cause he will be a great advocate for.
Join up, call your representatives, write cards or letters and don't stop. I sincerely believe that this is a big step, a necessary step, towards a more humane America.
I've started sending my representatives my healthcare bills that I can't pay along with a note demanding single payer. Since medical bills never stop coming (Hell, just today, I got three separate bills, all totalling $435!) I certainly won't be stoppping any time soon.
I too, got that email from Ralph and felt like I should do something. Next time I get a medical bill I'm sending it to Max Baucus.
What an excellent idea.
So, how does lobbying work? Do the insurance companies and drug companies just tell Baucus what they want him to do and then hand him a check? Or do they offer him a high-paying president/CEO job (like they did former Rep. Billy Tauzin)?
When they phone his office, they get through to him. You and I don't.
q
Washington is counting on the employed to be so busy that they'll be unable to find the time or energy to fight for single payer healthcare. And if that's not enough, there's always the big insurance companies ready to use all their stolen money to pit the employed and well-off against the underemployed, unemployed, and even retired folks and use Raygun's infamous welfare queen mantra just like he did in Philadelphia, MS in 1980 when he pretended states' rights.
While Feingold might be correct about his chances of single payer prevailing or not, he needs to get out there and try to convince his old timer colleagues to think like him. But here's what I want to also know. I know that all the Republicans in the Senate oppose single payer but how many Democrats are against Sanders's plan for single payer?
EVERY SENATORS OFFICE ACROSS THE U.S. SHOULD SEE THE PEOPLE LITERALLY DEMANDING SINGLE PAYER HEALTH CARE. YOU DON'T NEED TO TRAVEL TO DC. JUST GET TO THE NEAREST SENATORS OFFICE.
Beyond the letters to the editor and CD at hearings with arrests, we need people organized and stationed in front of every U.S. Senators office around the country several times a week or every day of the week demanding they do their job by doing the people's business (single payer health care, torture prosecutions, jail the bankers, shutdown all imperialists bases around the world, etc).
This works combined with all the other tactics (civil disobedience, LTEs, OP EDs, citizen paid for radio ads ($1000 can buy you 50 spots for a month on some radio stations), etc. you can think of).
You'll be surprised as people in your town and city will see this and it will spark enthusiasm. It will become contagious. Seeing people in the streets especially in places it is not common will spark the debate, get people acting out and really placing pressure on our elected Congresscritters.
If you're unemployed surely you have time to donate to the cause of democracy at least once a week.
Don't just whine and complain here on Common Dreams or wherever. Do something about what bothers you and the country the most. Put words into action.
It is fun and empowering to boot.
THE TIME IS OVER TO JUST SITTING AROUND AND TAKING IT LYING DOWN LIKE A LEMMING.
S
with 20 years of community organizing under my belt
I agree. I just got done calling Senators Voinovich and Brown.
Today's card to the president says:
Dear Mr. President,
Do you really want to govern the greatest nation on earth? Then we must first show
that we care about one another enough to provide single payer health care for all.
Everybody in; nobody out.
How can we be the shining beacon on the hill when we let so many of our own loyal
citizens suffer in darkness?
You can command, while I can only beg. Please, stand up tall, speak loudly and clearly, and do the right thing. I voted for you and I put my TRUST in you.
LEAD US to the only fair, decent and humane policy on health care: Single payer
National health care NOW.
Right now, your presidency is being judged: are you the man who cared for the people or the man who cared for profit?
Please don't let me down. Love, Elaine
Extortion, pure and simple, insurance is...betting against ourselves to benefit the private greed mongers...this is not a way to live in freedom or responsibility...or sanity for that matter. Science tells us that tobacco kills, alchohol destroys, various chemicals(benzene) and others cause illness and death, and wars are not so great either...but still, all are legal and encouraged because vast industries(health, legal, defense,...) are making huge sums of money off the exploitation of fear and weakness of the human condition to stand up against what is wrong...we need truth...hello? Are you out there?
The number you have reached has been disconnected.....
Yeah I'm kinda' wondering, when you call your reps, leave messages etc. is does anyone actually read or hear what you have to say or do they simply use it as polling data to better shape their propaganda?
Aides and the like read your letters, or skim them, so don't waste your time sending long ones full of anecdotes. I just send postcards of what I am in favour of or not in favour of. They'll make a note of it and perhaps later give your rep/senator a note, "45% of letters in favour of ___. 55% opposed of ____."
"From the insurance industry: $1,170,313;
health professionals: $1,016,276;
pharmaceuticals/health-products industry: $734,605;
hospitals/nursing homes: $541,891;
health services/HMOs: $439,700."
There are some real bargains out there now in our economy. General Motors could be bought, lock stock and barrel, for around $700 million dollars. A U.S. Senator goes for around $4 million per term.
No need for term limits. No need to get money out of politics.
I live in Montana. I voted for the (literally) insane Republican who ran against Max Baucus, because it's past time for Baucus to go. Baucus is another instance of the many, many, many congresscreatures (Democrat and Republican) who are bought and paid for by the corptocracy.
We have a new Senator, Democrat Jon Tester, and word on the street is, everything new he tries to do, Baucus shoots it down.
But you can't get people to vote out their "Senior Senators/Congresspeople" because, god forbid, they should lose out at the pork barrel.
Louise, you're right. That's why CT kept Lieberman and San Francisco kept Pelosi. If Obama would keep his promise to refuse to pass pork laden bills, it would help. But so far he's doing a better job of breaking promises than keeping them.
When the people fear their government there is tyranny,
when the government fears the people there is liberty.
~ Thomas Jefferson
I wouldn't blame you for voting for the Republican opponent. What with Baucus's behavior, I wonder how many MT Republicans look more populist and progressive in pale comparison to him by now? Throughout my lifetime, in some elections, I would get so fed up with the Democrat being so Republican that I'd vote Republican out of anger if he or she didn't switch already. If you think Baucus is bad enough, check out the conservative Democrats out here in MS. The local and state ones are so Republican enough that we'd hardly know that they were Democrat to begin with. I hope Jon Tester does not end up being like Max Baucus though I always fear that the longer a politician stays in power, the more corrupt he or she becomes. In my entire lifetime, I have yet to see a politician in power longer and yet less corrupt as time goes by. Maybe it's like a prison system. First they hate them, then they get used to it, then they can't stand it when they get released back into the real world because the real world looks so different from what it was before they entered prison. Likewise, a politician generally gets farther out of touch with his constituency the longer he's in that political prison called Washington. Perhaps we ought to put the nation's capital in the exact center of the country. Maybe Topeka, KS for capitol of the USA ?
Hi Dennis, try Dennis Kucinich.
When the people fear their government there is tyranny,
when the government fears the people there is liberty.
~ Thomas Jefferson
Dennis Kucinich, while cool, would be better off snatching George Voinovich's seat in the Senate just like former House Rep Brown did Dewine's in 2006. Better yet, doesn't OH have a centrist governor worth primarying out? If Kucinich can win a statewide election, he might finally have a better platform to make it to president. The problem with Kucinich though is while his ideas are great, he sounds too canned when he speaks.
Shawn Berry, have you ever heard Dennis talk in front of a union hall? Or when he came to Eugene? He can be full of fire.
When the people fear their government there is tyranny,
when the government fears the people there is liberty.
~ Thomas Jefferson