Socialized Heath Care (like you didn't see THIS one coming)

It’s been so long since I’ve blogged, I almost forgot my password! This has been an exciting summer for my family. My husband went back out on a mini-tour with Steppenwolf and I’ve been travelling with him (and the kids) as much as possible. I’ve also been using the travel time to catch up on some much needed reading. Now to the blog!

So much has happened since I last wrote; I don’t know where to start. I start new blogs in my head every day, but never find the time to put “fingers to keys”. The health care “reform” debate is the most pressing issue right now, so I will start with that.

Health care is NOT a right. The Constitution mentions it nowhere. Therefore, per the Constitution, this should be a STATE issue. Most Government run programs fail miserably. Medicare is running at a loss. So is Medicaid. I can’t even think about Social Security without wanting to punch someone. The VA hospital here in TN,
(a government run program) infected 8 of our most precious citizens, Vets, with HIV!!!! This is happening all over the country. Just last month, Congressional subcommittee hearings were held to discuss the exposure of over 10,000 veterans in just THREE VA hospitals to HIV and other infectious diseases. If they cannot take care of such a small segment of our population, how in the HELL can they care for 300 million people?

For my readers outside of Tennessee, (and for my readers here that may not know the whole story), the state of Tennessee tried government run healthcare called TennCare. Their plan wasn’t even the hugely socialistic plan that Herr Obama wants to pass. Within a few years, it was broke. So what did the powers that be decide to do? They dropped people. They dropped critically ill people. People are still suffering. People have died. Many people HAD insurance coverage, but they dropped it to move to a “better, cheaper” plan. It’s not so cheap when it costs you your life, is it? There’s even a website tenncareadvocacy.org that has been set up to help enrollees get needed medical care. This help includes finding a doctor that will accept enrollees. Because the government is infamous for not paying their bills, doctors have been almost driven out of business and had to cut off TennCare enrollees.

To give you an example of government inefficiency, let me give you the latest example, “Cash For Clunkers”. Car dealerships were promised reimbursement if they discounted new fuel efficient cars $3500 to $4500 on a trade in for a car that got less than 18 miles per gallon. The regulations promised dealers that they would be reimbursed for each car in seven to ten days. Most are still waiting. Not only are they waiting, many dealerships, after following all the rules, have had their application rejected with no explanation whatsoever. THIS is who you want running your healthcare? An administration that can’t even run a junk car program?

The fact that some of you want a government program is one thing. To actually believe that they CAN run a program defies belief. They have yet to run any huge program efficiently, and you expect them to start with healthcare? 2010 can't get here soon enough...