Daschle’s Views On Health Reform: ‘Incremental Change In Our System Is No Longer A Viable Option’
Daschle’s Views On Health Reform: ‘Incremental Change In Our System Is No Longer A Viable Option’
In a sign that he may adopt a comprehensive approach to solving the health care crisis, President-elect Barack Obama has chosen former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-SD) to head the Department of Health and Human Services.
Ezra Klein points out, “you don’t tap the former Senate Majority Leader to run your health care bureaucracy. That’s not his skill set. You tap him to get your health care plan through Congress.” Earlier this year, during an address at the Families USA Action Conference, Daschle concurred with the need to ‘think big’ on reform:
Incremental change in our system is no longer a viable option. Instead we need comprehensive reform. In growing numbers the American people are demanding that we do something. Our goal should be to build what current and retired members of Congress have today, and make that available for all Americans.
Daschle is a Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Center for American Progress and is the author of Critical: What We Can Do About the American Health-Care Crisis.
The book lays out Daschle’s vision of achieving reforms through a framework shared responsibility, in which “every player in the health-care arena — the government, employers, doctors and hospitals, insurers, and individuals — should help support a rational, sustainable system.” Some of Daschle’s proposals:
- Expand the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), or create a group purchasing pool like it: Participants could choose their own provider and would have the security of knowing they could never lose their coverage. Employers could let their employees get coverage through a FEHBP plan only if they enrolled all of their workers, not just ones with health problems. The FEHP pool would also include a government-run insurance program modeled after Medicare and would have tremendous clout to bargain for the lowest prices from providers and push them to improve quality of care.
- Subsidize coverage for those who need it: The government would provide financial help on a sliding scale so nobody has to pay more than a certain percentage of their income for health insurance. Administered as a refundable tax credit, this protection would apply to employer-based health insurance as well as private insurance obtained through the pool.
- Strengthen Medicaid: Simplify and extend Medicaid to cover everyone below a certain income level. The federal government should pick up the tab for this expansion, and ensure that states don’t’ cut off people when the budget gets tight.
- Concentrate on the value of care: Strive to get more for our health care money by promoting research that compares drugs and treatments to determine which ones deliver the best bang for the buck. Daschle also proposes promoting prevention that would reduce the number of chronic conditions.
- Improve health care infrastructure: Adopt health information technology to lower expenses and allows rural residents to connect electronically with medical providers. Increase the number of community health cetners and government-funded clinics that provide basic care for the poor and uninsured.
Aside from supporting the basic principles of progressive reform, however, Daschle also proposes a Federal Health Board that “would resemble our current Federal Reserve Board for the banking industry.”
The Board would ensure harmonization across public programs of “health-care protocols, benefits, and transparency” and would set “evidence-based standards for benefits and quality for federal programs” in the hopes of lowering the complexity of different insurance regulations and ultimately lowering costs. “These standards would apply to federal health programs and contractors and serve as a model for private insurers,” Daschle writes.
Cross-posted at the Wonk Room.
When it gets rough out there, a lot of business leaders get out of the car and say, 'We're OK with minor reform.' I'm challenging you today, we're going to have to do big, serious things."
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Conservatives try to dodge responsibility for financial crisis by blaming poor people, minorities.
Conservatives try to dodge responsibility for financial crisis by blaming poor people, minorities.
In the aftermath of the financial crisis, conservative commentators have blamed the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), low-income people, minorities, and past Democratic administrations for the sub-prime mortgage meltdown:
- Laura Ingraham: “When Bill Clinton decided to tell Robert Rubin to re-write the rules the Community Reinvestment Act and push all of these institutions to lend to minority communities.”
- Neil Cavuto: “I don’t remember a blaring call that said, Frannie and Freddie are a disaster, loaning to minorities and risky folks is a disaster.”
- Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR): “It was their harsh regulation under the Community Reinvestment Act that started this ball rolling down the hill.”
Watch a video compilation:
While most economists blame the current crisis on market failure and sparse regulation, conservatives are attempting to elude responsibility by smearing the victims of predatory lending. The Wonk Room has more here.
McCain admits health plan increases taxes.
McCain admits health plan increases taxes.
Today, during an interview on ABC’s This Week, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) finally admitted that his health care tax credits would not cover the costs of a comprehensive health insurance plan:
Actually, my position is that it will be, it will give people actually more money to go out and purchase tax - health insurance on their own and only those with the Cadillac gold-plated health insurance policies today are the ones who might suffer from it.
Watch it:
Ironically, McCain’s health care plan raises taxes for families whose yearly income just barely covers the cost of a Cadillac. The Wonk Room has a detailed explanation here.
Ted Kennedy hospitalized.
Ted Kennedy hospitalized.
Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA), who has been “undergoing treatment for a malignant brain tumor, after he was hospitalized for a seizure in May” has been taken to a Cape Cod Hospital. Kennedy was “alert and responsive” during the trip to the hospital.
“Doctors believe the incident was triggered by a change in medication,” Kennedy’s office said. “Senator Kennedy will return home tonight and looks forward to watching the debate.”
The AP is now reporting that Kennedy is back home.
Oprah Clashes With Coburn On Protect Our Children Act
Oprah Clashes With Coburn On Protect Our Children Act
Yesterday, Oprah Winfrey urged her viewers to contact their senators and ask them to support the Protect Our Children Act (H.R. 3845/S. 1738), which authorizes over $320 million over the next five years for law enforcement to investigate child exploitation:
This is what we want to do. Want to get these guys and put them in jail. So, tell us about the Protect Our Children Act. It’s going before the U.S. Senate this month. We only have a few days.
Watch it:
The bill is being blocked by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who, in July, successfully derailed the legislation when it was included in the “the so-called Coburn omnibus,” a package of nearly 40 uncontroversial bills that extended funding for cancer research and crime prevention.
Now, Senate Democrats are gearing up for a re-match. According to the Hill, “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), spurred on by activists and TV talk show host Oprah Winfrey…has sent word to Senate Democrats that it would like to bring the so-called Coburn omnibus bill to the floor soon, setting up a rematch with the conservative Oklahoma Republican who has often brought the Senate to gridlock.”
Indeed, in his three short years in the Senate, Coburn has earned the reputation of “a fly in the soup,” abusing the senate’s hold privilege to prevent “the Senate leadership” from bringing matters to a vote. He “initially blocked” S. 1738 “because it would have authorized nearly a billion dollars over eight years to fund a law enforcement crackdown on child exploitation,” but now “questions the efficacy of a new program.”
Far from controversial, the bill is co-sponsored by conservative Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Ted Stevens (R-AK) and is estimated to cost just $3 per American over the 2009-2013 budgeted period.”
Cross-posted at the Wonk Room.
FLASHBACK: In July, McCain Promised His VP Pick Would Appear On Larry King Live
FLASHBACK: In July, McCain Promised His VP Pick Would Appear On Larry King Live
Earlier today, ThinkProgress noted that since becoming Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin has rarely taken questions from the press. The McCain campaign is increasingly shielding her from formal interviews with the media, saying that it will “do what we think is in our best interest.” Today, the Atlantic’s Marc Ambinder notes:
A senior McCain campaign official advises that, despite the gaggle of requests and pressure from the media, Gov. Sarah Palin won’t submit to a formal interview anytime soon. She may take some questions from local news entities in Alaska, but until she’s ready — and until she’s comfortable — which might not be for a long while — the media will have to wait.
McCain is breaking a promise he made on national television. In July, during an interview with CNN’s Larry King, McCain assured King that his running mate would appear on King’s show shorty after his announcement:
KING: We have a history on this program that whenever the vice presidential nominee is announced, he or she appears on this show the next night. It’s been going on for quite a while. We hope that Senator McCain follows that tradition since I have a hunch he will not announce tonight who that candidate is.
But how close are we?
MCCAIN: I want to say that that vice presidential candidate will be on your show. I will not risk the wrath of Larry King. I want to assure you.
Watch it:
In fact, instead of honoring his word and granting King exclusive access, McCain recently canceled an interview with the newsman as punishment for a tough CNN interview with a campaign spokesperson.
O’Reilly: Richest 1% would have to finance ‘folks who…smoke reefers 24/7.’
O’Reilly: Richest 1% would have to finance ‘folks who…smoke reefers 24/7.’
Today, in a Washington Times op-ed, Bill O’Reilly complains that if President Bush’s tax cuts “on those making $250,000 or more” are repealed, “me and other rich folks” would have to finance “folks who dropped out of school, who are too lazy to hold a job, who smoke reefers 24/7.” He adds, “I am part of the 1 percent of Americans that paid an astounding 40 percent of all federal income tax in 2006,” But, as the Wall Street Journal recently noted, “the average tax rate of the wealthiest 1% fell to its lowest level in at least 18 years.” The Wonk Room has more here.
Senate conservatives vote against cloture on ‘Tomnibus.’
Senate conservatives vote against cloture on ‘Tomnibus.’
Today, in a vote of 52 to 43, conservatives successfully obstructed the Advance America’s Priorities Act, a package of approximately “40 bills that have in many cases been single-handedly stalled by one of the Senate’s more conservative members,” Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK). The act — dubbed the “Tomnibus” — included provisions for a centralized database to help doctors find a cure for Lou Gehrig ’s Disease and authorized more funds “to be added to the Department of Justice budget for the purpose of investigating and prosecuting outstanding Civil Rights era crimes.”
McCain: ‘I Don’t Know’ If Obama Is A Socialist
McCain: ‘I Don’t Know’ If Obama Is A Socialist
The Center for American Progress’ lawyers asked us to take down this post for legal reasons that our paranoid lawyers have prohibited us from disclosing.
O’Reilly: ‘Do I Have To Buy You Dinner Before You Use The Birth Control?’
O’Reilly: ‘Do I Have To Buy You Dinner Before You Use The Birth Control?’
Yesterday, Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly agreed with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and argued that it was fair for insurance companies to cover Viagra but not birth control because “birth control is not a medical condition”:
OK, listen up. Viagra is used to help a medical condition. That’s why it’s covered. Birth control is not a medical condition. It is a choice. Why should I or anybody else have to pay for other people’s choices? Do I have to buy you dinner before you use the birth control?
Watch It:
Although O’Reilly may not know it, preventing unwanted pregnancies is not just another “choice.” It is “central to good health care for women.” According to NARAL, 98 percent of women “use some form of birth control during their reproductive years” to “control the timing and spacing of their pregnancies, which in turn reduces the incidence of maternal death, low birth weight babies, and infant mortality.”
Failure to cover birth control also places women at an unfair disadvantage “by singling out for unfavorable treatment a health insurance need that only they have.” According to the National Women’s Law Center:
Failure to cover contraception forces women to bear higher health care costs to avoid pregnancy, and exposes women to the unique physical, economic, and emotional consequences that can result from unintended pregnancy.
With opinions like these, O’Reilly won’t have to worry about buying anyone dinner.
Pfotenhauer: ‘I Was Misinformed’ About Hurricane Oil Spills
Pfotenhauer: ‘I Was Misinformed’ About Hurricane Oil Spills
Today on MSNBC, David Schuster challenged Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) policy adviser Nancy Pfotenhauer’s claim that “we withstood hurricanes Rita and Katrina and did not spill a drop” of oil.
Schuster pointed out that “the U.S. Mineral Management Service said that Katrina and Rita caused 124 offshore spills for a total of more than 743,000 gallons of oil and refined products spilled” and asked Pfotenhauer if she wanted to “take back” what she said:
SCHUSTER: So Nancy, do you want to take back what you said?
PFOTENHAUER: Well, I actually do. I was misinformed…the point is still that we had a remarkable performance, that you had about 16,000 barrels that were lost during two of the worst storms that have ever…keep in mind David that 1,700 barrels per day naturally seeps into the ocean floor, so 365 days a year you’re at about 620,000 barrels per day, pardon me per year, that naturally seep into the ocean floor. So this is a really remarkable performance of technology.
Watch It:
But Pfotenhauer, a right-wing energy lobbyist, is misinformed still. According to a report from the County of Santa Barbara, CA, “the effects of seeps and spills differ hugely.” As one planner put it, “if seeps and spills are the same, why aren’t all the beaches covered with mounds of fresh tar and dead birds?”:
The key difference has to do with release rates and spatial concentration of the oil. Seeps release large amounts of oil over large areas of the ocean gradually throughout the year. Spills release large amounts of oil from a point source in a short time.
In fact the real “remarkable performance” has been the parade of conservatives repeating false claims to justify expanding offshore drilling.
Issa dismisses torture: ‘We treated our hospital patients worse.’
Issa dismisses torture: ‘We treated our hospital patients worse.’
Today, during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) dismissed the torture of prisoners at Guantanamo and other U.S. detention facilities. According to Issa, “we treated our hospital patients worse” than we treat al Qaeda detainees. Former attorney general John Ashcroft chimed in, joking that doctors “were poking needles into me”:
ISSA: It is sort of amazing that as a member of the permanent Select Intelligence Committee, I’ve never heard any allegation of any detainee being denied food or water for a week. It’s clear that we treated our hospital patients at times worse than al Qaeda.
ASCHROFT: What’s more, they were poking needles into me all the time time.
The torture tactics used in U.S. detention are far harsher than the “poking with needles” that Ashcroft underwent at the hospital. They include, as the Center for Constitutional Rights has observed, severe sleep deprivation, “forced nudity, sexual humiliation, religious humiliation, physical force, prolonged stress positions and prolonged sensory overstimulation, and threats with military dogs.” Some interrogations have resulted in “severe physical and mental pain and suffering.”
After Voting For Education Cuts, McCain Touts Education Reform At NAACP
After Voting For Education Cuts, McCain Touts Education Reform At NAACP
Today, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), in a speech focusing on education, addressed the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and suggested that he had the “clarity of purpose” to address education issues in the African American community:
Education reform has long been a priority of the NAACP, and for good reason. For all the best efforts of teachers and administrators, the worst problems of our public school system are often found in black communities. Black and Latino students are among the most likely to drop out of high school. African Americans are also among the least likely to go on to college.
But McCain’s voting record has only exacerbated the “problems of our public school system.” In fact, McCain received an ‘F’ from the NAACP’s Civil Rights Federal Legislative Report Card for the 109th Congress (the last date for which a complete report is available), voting with the NAACP only 7 percent of the time and tying with 14 other conservative senators for last place. McCain “also received failing grades from the NAACP in every report card of the last decade.”
Here is a sampling of McCain’s record on education:
- Voted Against Head Start Programs: In 2005, for instance, McCain voted against increasing “federal spending on Head Start programs by $153 million.”
- Voted Against Expanding Pell Grants: While 45 percent of African Americans rely on Pell Grants to pay for college, McCain has consistently voted to cut the value of Pell Grants.
- Voted Against Title I Education Grants: McCain voted against increasing spending on Title I education grants, which are designed to help public schools that serve predominantly low-income students, by $3 billion.”
As the Wonk Room has points out, McCain’s campaign proposals do little to improve education in minority communities. On the contrary, the draconian funding cuts needed to pay for his McCain’s proposed tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy and his proposed spending freeze would likely crowd out education initiatives.
Education may be “a priority of the NAACP,” but not for McCain.
Romney falsely claims McCain supports drilling in ANWR.
Romney falsely claims McCain supports drilling in ANWR.
During a recent interview with CBSNews.com, former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA) got a little carried away with the recent conservative mantra of ‘drill here, drill now,’ falsely suggesting that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) supported drilling for oil in ANWR:
John McCain will get us energy independent. With more drilling–offshore, ANWR–with more drilling, with more nuclear power plants, with the use of coal and gas, he will get us energy independent–that’ the first thing you’ve gotta do to get this economy going.
Watch It:
McCain has stated that “ANWR is a pristine place and if they found oil in the Grand Canyon, I don’t think I’d drill in the Grand Canyon.’’
Romney disagrees. Today, during an appearance on Fox News, Romney proclaimed, we “should be drilling everywhere we can.” Read about the top three conservative myths about drilling in the latest Progress Report.
‘A Fly In The Soup’: Coburn’s History Of Obstructing Medical Research
‘A Fly In The Soup’: Coburn’s History Of Obstructing Medical Research
On Monday, the Wonk Room reported on Sen. Tom Coburn’s (R-OK) stubborn insistence that the bipartisan President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief bill (PEPFAR) include a wasteful earmark mandating that “55 percent of the money go to treatment programs.” Speaking on the Senate floor, Coburn suggested that his insistence on restoring the mandate saved the PEPFAR program:
Maybe treatment wouldn’t have been eliminated but it would have taken a back seat… the commitment to treatment would have eroded over time and PEPFAR would have been like any other aid program.
But Coburn is no hero. Far from it. In his three years in the senate, Coburn has earned the reputation of “a fly in the soup,” abusing the senate’s hold privilege — a technique which allows senators to “object to bringing a bill or nomination to the floor for consideration” — to prevent “the Senate leadership” from bringing matters to a vote.
Remarkably, Coburn’s obstructionism has even led “senate aides to now take legislation directly to Coburn’s office” to ensure “he has no objections“:
Senate aides on both sides of the aisle now take legislation directly to Coburn’s office before moving forward to make sure he has no objections — whether he’s on the relevant committee or not. If he does, they often swallow their pride and make the changes he’s asking for.
Currently, “Coburn has holds on about 80 bills” which are “non-controversial, bipartisan bills that he just doesn’t like.” Here is a small sampling:
- Caroline Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Act (S.911): The bill, named “in memory of Caroline Pryce Walker, daughter of Congresswoman Deborah Pryce (R-OH), who succumbed to neuroblastoma in 1999 at age nine,” authorizes $30 million over five years, “to significantly increase federal investment into childhood cancer research.”
- The ALS Registry Act of 2007 (S.1382): Creates a single nationwide patient registry for incidences of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, to improve ALS research, disease management and the development of standards of care.
- The Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act (S.1183): The bill coordinates and collaborates paralysis research, prevents research redundancies and hastens the discovery of better treatments and cures.
- Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act of 2008 (S.999): Amends the Public Health Service Act “to improve stroke prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation.”
Coburn argues that his holds make legislation “better” and claims that he is “not hard to deal with if you talk with us, but if you won’t talk with us, we are hard to deal with.”
This week, Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) plans to “deal with” Coburn’s attention-seeking theatrics. According to the Crypt, Reid will “wrap most if not all of the bills held by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) into one large measure to be voted on by the Senate.”
The “broad popularity of the bills means that there would likely be more than enough support for veto-proof passage.”
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has often cited Congress’ low approval rating and has suggested that it is failing Americans. Will he vote against Coburn’s obstructionism?
Cross-posted in The Wonk Room.
NATO forced to abandon outpost in Afghanistan.
NATO forced to abandon outpost in Afghanistan.
NATO has “abandoned an Afghan outpost days after it was stormed by militants who killed nine US soldiers.” The “predawn assault on the still-unfinished camp left nine US soldiers dead and was the worst single toll for US forces in Afghanistan since 2005.”
The setback comes as the insurgency in Afghanistan gains “dangerous momentum,” killing “more U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan in June than in Iraq for the second straight month.”
Poll: ‘McCain Is Yoked To The Legacy’ Of Bush
Poll: ‘McCain Is Yoked To The Legacy’ Of Bush
Recently, the McCain campaign tried to distance Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) from President Bush’s record:
- Senior Advisory Carly Fiorina: I think if you look at the record, it may be Barack Obama who is running for Bush III. But it certainly is not John McCain.
- Senior Policy Advisor Douglas Holtz - Eakin: Obama’s budget “is dedicated to the recent Bush tradition of spending money on everything.”
But Americans aren’t buying the spin. According to a new New York Times poll, “Mr. McCain is yoked to the legacy of President Bush.” Indeed, a majority of Americans believe that as President, McCain “would continue Mr. Bush’s policies in Iraq and on the economy”:
- 78 percent: McCain would continue Bush’s Iraq policies
- 61 percent: McCain would continue Bush’s economic policies
- 65 percent: McCain would not bring change to Washington
Indeed, as ThinkProgress has noted, McCain represents a third term of his buddy Bush on issue after issue. According to a CQ analysis of Senate votes on issues President Bush expressed “an explicit, stated opinion,” McCain voted with President Bush 100 percent of the time in 2008 and 95 percent of the time in 2007.
In April, during an appearance on Mike Gallagher’s show, McCain bragged that “no one has supported President Bush on Iraq more than I have.” The American people agree.
Fiorina Claims ‘Economists Agree’ With McCain’s Pledge To Balance The Budget
Fiorina Claims ‘Economists Agree’ With McCain’s Pledge To Balance The Budget
On NBC’s Meet the Press this morning, host Tom Brokaw challenged the claim that Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) balance the budget by the end of his first term. Economists say that “you, in fact, can’t balance the budget in four years,” Brokaw told top McCain adviser Carly Fiorina.
Fiorina, however, disagreed, claiming that there is “a set of economists” who support the McCain campaign’s claims:
BROKAW: In fairness, economic analysts who are looking at both of these plans, say that they don’t add up. That, you in fact, can’t balance the budget in four years and in fact, you cannot get the revenues that you say that you can.
FIORINA: Actually, there are a set of economists who believe we can balance the budget in four years.
Watch It:
Fiorina is likely referring to the statement signed by 300 economists that the McCain campaign released when it announced McCain’s balanced budget pledge. The statement said the economists “enthusiastically” supported McCain’s economic plan.
But when contacted by reporters last week, many of those economists actually expressed deep reservations about McCain’s balanced budget pledge:
- “He’s not going to balance the budget.” [William Albrecht, professor emeritus at the University of Iowa]
- “[But] I am worried that continuing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will tear apart our social fabric and defeat any economic proposal to reduce the deficit and stimulate growth. Guns are crowding out butter.” [Michael Connolly, Professor of Economics, University of Miami]
- “No, I think some flexibility to run deficits and surpluses, although I agree that the deficit is too large.” [Glenn MacDonald, Distinguished Professor of Economics and Strategy at Washington University in St. Louis]
While the McCain campaign has repeatedly fip-flopped on its pledge to balance the budget, it seems that economists have consistently considered his proposal unrealistic.
McCain’s economists reject ‘two big chunks’ of his economic proposal.
McCain’s economists reject ‘two big chunks’ of his economic proposal.
After initially suggesting that the opinion of professional economists does not “matter,” the McCain campaign has released “a statement signed by over 300 professional economists” who support the senator’s economic plan. But as the Politico’s Avi Zenilman points out, the 300 conservative economists who endorse McCain’s plan still reject “two big chunks” of the senator’s proposal: “the gas tax holiday and his promise to balance the budget by 2013.” The Wonk Room has more.
Rising costs cancel 4th of July celebrations.
Rising costs cancel 4th of July celebrations.
The rising costs of imported fireworks, local budget crunches, “high fuel and transportation costs,” and the tight economy have canceled fireworks shows across the country.
What you may not see tonight:
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