Gallup studies the Town Halls.



Case dismissed.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Your "Liberal" Media,

A report earlier today said Sen. Robert Conrad (D-ND) would vote against a health care reform plan with a public option. It was big news if you're following the debate closely.

Alex Koppelman: "Turns out, though, that it's not true. The Sun's story never quoted Conrad directly about the public option, and the senator's communications director, Sean Neary, told Salon that the story was inaccurate. Conrad has been telling his constituents that he won't let the government run their health care, which may be the cause of the confusion, but that language doesn't preclude the public option."

Via Congressional Quarterly Political Wire.

More from Salon.

Inglorious bastards.



UPDATE:

The White House has an efficient fact correction sheet on Health Insurance Reform, also, The White House has the Reality Check page in an on-going effort to correct the record.

8 ways reform provides security and stability to those with or without coverage

1. Ends Discrimination for Pre-Existing Conditions: Insurance companies will be prohibited from refusing you coverage because of your medical history.
2. Ends Exorbitant Out-of-Pocket Expenses, Deductibles or Co-Pays: Insurance companies will have to abide by yearly caps on how much they can charge for out-of-pocket expenses.
3. Ends Cost-Sharing for Preventive Care: Insurance companies must fully cover, without charge, regular checkups and tests that help you prevent illness, such as mammograms or eye and foot exams for diabetics.
4. Ends Dropping of Coverage for Seriously Ill: Insurance companies will be prohibited from dropping or watering down insurance coverage for those who become seriously ill.
5. Ends Gender Discrimination: Insurance companies will be prohibited from charging you more because of your gender.
6. Ends Annual or Lifetime Caps on Coverage: Insurance companies will be prevented from placing annual or lifetime caps on the coverage you receive.
7. Extends Coverage for Young Adults: Children would continue to be eligible for family coverage through the age of 26.
8. Guarantees Insurance Renewal: Insurance companies will be required to renew any policy as long as the policyholder pays their premium in full. Insurance companies won't be allowed to refuse renewal because someone became sick.

Learn more and get details: http://www.WhiteHouse.gov/health-insurance-consumer-protections/

8 common myths about health insurance reform

1. Reform will stop "rationing" - not increase it: It’s a myth that reform will mean a "government takeover" of health care or lead to "rationing." To the contrary, reform will forbid many forms of rationing that are currently being used by insurance companies.
2. We can’t afford reform: It's the status quo we can't afford. It’s a myth that reform will bust the budget. To the contrary, the President has identified ways to pay for the vast majority of the up-front costs by cutting waste, fraud, and abuse within existing government health programs; ending big subsidies to insurance companies; and increasing efficiency with such steps as coordinating care and streamlining paperwork. In the long term, reform can help bring down costs that will otherwise lead to a fiscal crisis.
3. Reform would encourage "euthanasia": It does not. It’s a malicious myth that reform would encourage or even require euthanasia for seniors. For seniors who want to consult with their family and physicians about end-of life decisions, reform will help to cover these voluntary, private consultations for those who want help with these personal and difficult family decisions.
4. Vets' health care is safe and sound: It’s a myth that health insurance reform will affect veterans' access to the care they get now. To the contrary, the President's budget significantly expands coverage under the VA, extending care to 500,000 more veterans who were previously excluded. The VA Healthcare system will continue to be available for all eligible veterans.
5. Reform will benefit small business - not burden it: It’s a myth that health insurance reform will hurt small businesses. To the contrary, reform will ease the burdens on small businesses, provide tax credits to help them pay for employee coverage and help level the playing field with big firms who pay much less to cover their employees on average.
6. Your Medicare is safe, and stronger with reform: It’s myth that Health Insurance Reform would be financed by cutting Medicare benefits. To the contrary, reform will improve the long-term financial health of Medicare, ensure better coordination, eliminate waste and unnecessary subsidies to insurance companies, and help to close the Medicare "doughnut" hole to make prescription drugs more affordable for seniors.
7. You can keep your own insurance: It’s myth that reform will force you out of your current insurance plan or force you to change doctors. To the contrary, reform will expand your choices, not eliminate them.
8. No, government will not do anything with your bank account: It is an absurd myth that government will be in charge of your bank accounts. Health insurance reform will simplify administration, making it easier and more convenient for you to pay bills in a method that you choose. Just like paying a phone bill or a utility bill, you can pay by traditional check, or by a direct electronic payment. And forms will be standardized so they will be easier to understand. The choice is up to you – and the same rules of privacy will apply as they do for all other electronic payments that people make.

Learn more and get details:
http://www.WhiteHouse.gov/realitycheck
http://www.WhiteHouse.gov/realitycheck/faq

8 Reasons We Need Health Insurance Reform Now

1. Coverage Denied to Millions: A recent national survey estimated that 12.6 million non-elderly adults – 36 percent of those who tried to purchase health insurance directly from an insurance company in the individual insurance market – were in fact discriminated against because of a pre-existing condition in the previous three years or dropped from coverage when they became seriously ill. Learn more: http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/denied_coverage/index.html
2. Less Care for More Costs: With each passing year, Americans are paying more for health care coverage. Employer-sponsored health insurance premiums have nearly doubled since 2000, a rate three times faster than wages. In 2008, the average premium for a family plan purchased through an employer was $12,680, nearly the annual earnings of a full-time minimum wage job. Americans pay more than ever for health insurance, but get less coverage. Learn more:http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/hiddencosts/index.html
3. Roadblocks to Care for Women: Women’s reproductive health requires more regular contact with health care providers, including yearly pap smears, mammograms, and obstetric care. Women are also more likely to report fair or poor health than men (9.5% versus 9.0%). While rates of chronic conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure are similar to men, women are twice as likely to suffer from headaches and are more likely to experience joint, back or neck pain. These chronic conditions often require regular and frequent treatment and follow-up care. Learn more:http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/women/index.html
4. Hard Times in the Heartland: Throughout rural America, there are nearly 50 million people who face challenges in accessing health care. The past several decades have consistently shown higher rates of poverty, mortality, uninsurance, and limited access to a primary health care provider in rural areas. With the recent economic downturn, there is potential for an increase in many of the health disparities and access concerns that are already elevated in rural communities. Learn more:http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/hardtimes
5. Small Businesses Struggle to Provide Health Coverage: Nearly one-third of the uninsured – 13 million people – are employees of firms with less than 100 workers. From 2000 to 2007, the proportion of non-elderly Americans covered by employer-based health insurance fell from 66% to 61%. Much of this decline stems from small business. The percentage of small businesses offering coverage dropped from 68% to 59%, while large firms held stable at 99%. About a third of such workers in firms with fewer than 50 employees obtain insurance through a spouse. Learn more: http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/helpbottomline
6. The Tragedies are Personal: Half of all personal bankruptcies are at least partly the result of medical expenses. The typical elderly couple may have to save nearly $300,000 to pay for health costs not covered by Medicare alone. Learn more: http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/inaction
7. Diminishing Access to Care: From 2000 to 2007, the proportion of non-elderly Americans covered by employer-based health insurance fell from 66% to 61%. An estimated 87 million people - one in every three Americans under the age of 65 - were uninsured at some point in 2007 and 2008. More than 80% of the uninsured are in working families. Learn more:http://www.healthreform.gov/reports/inaction/diminishing/index.html
8. The Trends are Troubling: Without reform, health care costs will continue to skyrocket unabated, putting unbearable strain on families, businesses, and state and federal government budgets. Perhaps the most visible sign of the need for health care reform is the 46 million Americans currently without health insurance - projections suggest that this number will rise to about 72 million in 2040 in the absence of reform. Learn more:http://www.WhiteHouse.gov/assets/documents/CEA_Health_Care_Report.pdf

It's critical that we not lose the opportunity for reform even if you don't like the process, if we miss this shot to ratify the electoral efforts of the people from November, we will lose the trust of those who elected us. The people who oppose us will oppose us no matter what. I'd rather see Obama get stronger on this issue then retract or water down the bill, because a year from now when the fruits of the bill are a popular US foundation, it will pay off, regardless of the loudness of 37% of the country, now. It's important to note that disproportion of access to power is alive and well when a third of the nation can garner this much attention because they are White, Suburban, and over-50. When's the last time you saw a Town Hall from the Inner City on TV?

I watched the Arlen Specter Town Hall in it's thirty question, 90-minute entirety, and Specter did a good job of controlling the crowd, I like that he was in the audience face to face with the questioners and was fearless in swatting down what he called, "malicious lies." The vast majority of questions were from White Males of Retirement age, (it was a Monday afternoon), and almost every question was based on some tragic set of misconceptions and rumor from FreedomWorks or other Insurance Lobbyist PACs. I felt sad that our nation has allowed our education system to deteriorate to such a point that a portion of the society has been worked over so hard by the right wing radio and FOX-News that they don't know up from down.



UPDATE

Turns out the Living Will Counciling that Palin calls "Death Panels" were introduced by GOP Senator from Georgia Jonny Isakson.

Last Week ex-Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin, joined the disingenuous group of Republican “deathers” by making a false claim on her Facebook page, saying that the proposed health care reform bill under consideration in the House, contains “death panels” that would decide if her elderly parents and her baby with Down Syndrome would receive life-saving health care.

Palin’s shameful fear mongering has now been soundly debunked by the Republican co-sponsor of a similar provision to mandate that Medicare pay for voluntary end-of-life counseling sessions.

Sarah Palin is not alone in spreading misinformation about the House health care reform bill to deceive the public. Republican House Minority Leader, Rep. Boehner, Rep. Eric Cantor, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glen Beck, Newt Gingrich and many others have sought to spread the false meme that health care reform would kill the elderly. Rep. Boehner said, the health care reform bill “may start us down a treacherous path toward government-encouraged euthanasia.”

On Monday, the Washington Post’s Ezra Klein published an interview with Georgia Republican Senator, Johnny Isakson to discuss the recent misinformation about the House bill’s Section 1233, which provides for voluntary end-of-life counseling sessions under Medicare.

Isakson co-sponsored the Medicare End-of-Life Planning Act in 2007 and supported an amendment similar to the provision in the House bill during the health-care debate mark-up. Klein asked Isakson to explain how the provision providing for end-of-life counseling became likened to a “killing granny” law.

Isakson explained that end-of-life directives are designed to do the exact opposite of what the “deathers” are claiming. Directives, such as a durable power of attorney, keep the government out of end-of-life decisions, and ensure that an individual’s wishes are respected. Isakson notes these issues are hardly controversial. “All 50 states now have either durable powers of attorney or end-of-life directives,” said Isakson.

When asked by Klein, “How did this become a question of euthanasia?” Isakson was certainly perplexed by the deathers’ claims and mentioned Sarah Palin’s recent statement about “death panels,” calling it “nuts.”
“I have no idea. I understand — and you have to check this out — I just had a phone call where someone said Sarah Palin’s web site had talked about the House bill having death panels on it where people would be euthanized. How someone could take an end of life directive or a living will as that is nuts. You’re putting the authority in the individual rather than the government. I don’t know how that got so mixed up.”

Political Wire,

In a jab at Sarah Palin, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said that "critics of health care reform, the summer's hottest political topic, aren't helping the debate by throwing out highly charged assertions not based in fact," the Anchorage Daily News reports.

Said Murkowski: "It does us no good to incite fear in people by saying that there's these end-of-life provisions, these death panels. Quite honestly, I'm so offended at that terminology because it absolutely isn't (in the bill). There is no reason to gin up fear in the American public by saying things that are not included in the bill."

Meanwhile, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), the ranking Republican member of the Senate Finance Committee, used similar fear tactics at a recently town hall meeting, according to Radio Iowa.

Said Grassley: "We should not have a government program that determines you're going to pull the plug on Grandma."

Awesome.

Political Wire,

We noted the numbers yesterday and Public Policy Polling survey has now posted the full results of their North Carolina poll on what voters think about President Obama's citizenship.

Only 54% of North Carolina voters say with certainty that they believe Barack Obama was born in the United States, with 26% saying they think he was not, and 20% unsure. Among Republicans, 47% think Obama was not born in the United States, with 29% unsure, and just 24% stating that they think he was.

Analysis: "This may be a fringe movement, but at least in the south it's a pretty large fringe."

Remember Obama won North Carolina, when Kerry nor Gore couldn't despite the intensity of the hatred of those who didn't vote for him, the know-nothings, they're the minority and that's the reason why the GOP can't win a majority nationally, because the vitriol of the minority adds energy to the majority. The GOP's base of 10-15% is causing women, ethnic minorities, Independents and moderates to stay away from the GOP, escpecially when given the choice of Palin, Huckabee, or Romney on the top of the ticket. The only other "stars", Gingrich, Jeb Bush, and Rick Perry are stars to the GOP base, but nowhere else, and they have no-to-little cross-over appeal. There is little charisma amongst the dark horses like John Thune, Mike Pence, and Pawlenty, So the electoral map still confines the GOP to the Confederate States, and that doesn't win you a Congressional majority or a Presidential election. When Palin trotted out the "death panels" it was over.

This Tea Bagging phenomena reflects the intense wants of a few who desire to obstruct the needs and wants of a healthy Congressional, Electoral, Regional, and Popular (52-55%) majority. Tiny but loud inhibits large but quiet, but the blowback on the GOP will be tremendous by the tolerant, moderate majority, led by women who don't like to be shouted at and minorities who know that this isn't not about the President's skin color. This movement is all sizzle and no steak and is dragging the GOP down below the surface of plurality even deeper.

Health Insurance Reform Reality Check, get the facts on the proposed health care reforms from The White House.