Demonstrate Support for Single Payer at Obama Fundraiser

This war criminal just won a Nobel peace prize while perpetrating war crimes in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq, proving that he is the same as Bush. There should be millions of people protesting this war criminal visiting San Francisco. As to healthcare, here is what O'BS has to offer, namely cuts in healthcare: See
White House-backed plan to slash health care costs advances in Senate
By Kate Randall, 9 October 2009, at http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/oct2009/heal-o09.shtml
"President Obama’s push for a cost-cutting overhaul of the US health care system that will slash benefits for millions of workers and retirees moved forward Wednesday, with the release of a report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on legislation drafted by the Senate Finance Committee."

"In reality, the legislation, if enacted, will leave millions of Americans without coverage, slash billions from Medicare and other federal programs, and ration care through a series of cut-cutting “efficiencies.” At the same time, individuals and families will be required to purchase coverage—funneling billions into the coffers of the insurance companies—or pay a fine."

"This campaign rhetoric has now been ditched in favor of legislation that, according to CBO estimates, will leave 25 million people without any health insurance at all, or about half the present number of uninsured."

"Under the Baucus bill, individuals and families will be forced to obtain insurance or pay a fine, up to $750 for individuals and $1,500 for families. Those without employer-sponsored insurance, or insurance provided through a federal health program, will be required to purchase coverage from private companies on an insurance “exchange.”"

"Businesses are not required to provide coverage for their employees. Employers with more than 50 full-time workers will pay a nominal fee if the government ends up providing subsidies for their employees to purchase coverage on the exchange. The CBO estimates that about $23 billion in penalties will be collected from businesses."

"The federal government will pay out more than $460 billion over 10 years to private insurers to subsidize coverage for low- and middle-income people."

"Although insurers offering coverage on the exchange will not be allowed to deny coverage for preexisting conditions, there are no restrictions on what insurers can charge. Insurance companies can be expected to hike premiums to offset any inroads into their profits. They can also tailor the features of plans to discourage higher risk segments of the population from signing up for coverage, and cherry-pick healthier individuals through marketing and other techniques."

"Businesses with more than 50 workers that self-insure, paying health care claims out of their own revenues rather than utilizing a private insurer, will not be barred from denying coverage based on preexisting conditions. It is estimated that about 70 million people are covered by such plans."

"Under intense pressure from the health care industry lobby, the Finance Committee did not include a government-run “public option” as part of the exchange. Obama and other White House officials have stated that the lack of a public option will not stop the president from signing a health care bill."

"The plan calls for the expansion of so-called nonprofit health care cooperatives. These co-ops will provide little competition to private insurers. As the CBO report put it, they will not establish “a significant market presence in many areas.”

O'BS IS CUTTING MEDICARE. STOP VOTING FOR DEMOCRATS.

"The $829 billion cost of the legislation is to be financed in large part by deep cuts to Medicare and other federal programs for the elderly, poor and disabled, which will be slashed by about $400 billion over the next decade."

"About $200 billion will be cut by lowering Medicare payments to hospitals, nursing homes and other providers. Medicare Advantage (MA), the program through which more than 10 million seniors receive Medicare benefits via private health insurance plans, will see a $113 billion reduction."

"The Medicare program will see overall reductions in spending of about 5 percent from 2010 to 2019. Contrary to claims that such cuts can be made without affecting care, they will result in real reductions in quality and availability of care for seniors."

""Further cuts to Medicare will be made through the utilization of “comparative effectiveness research” (CER). The Baucus plan will establish an Innovation Center within the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services to test health care models “that transition primary care practices away from fee-for-service based reimbursement.”

"Talk of moving away from “fee-for-service” reimbursement is a euphemism for setting caps on the cost of health care that doctors can provide for their patients. It is a formula for denying more expensive tests, drugs and procedures currently available under Medicare and many employer-sponsored plans, or requiring patients to pay for such services out-of-pocket."

"An independent Medicare Commission, appointed by the president, will have the power to enact measures to reduce “excess cost growth.” Measures ordered by the commission—an unelected body—will take effect unless overridden by Congress. The CBO estimates that this commission will slash $22 billion in spending over 10 years."

"The plan seeks to reduce Medicare payments to doctors by penalizing those who administer the most tests and treatments. Those falling in the top 10 percent cost category will face a 5 percent cut in Medicare reimbursements."

"Doctors will also be called upon to submit data to the government to measure the quality of the treatment they dispense. Eligible doctors who choose not to participate will be penalized 1.5-2 percent on certain Medicare payments, while those who are judged successful will get a 1 percent bonus. This is nothing other than a financial incentive for doctors to ration care to their elderly patients."

"Under the Baucus bill, Medicaid, the health care program for the poor jointly funded by the federal government and the states, will be expanded to cover an additional 14 million people by raising the income threshold for eligibility. This will cost an estimated $345 billion in federal outlays. Individuals and families insured under Medicaid will generally receive the lowest quality of care."

THIS IS A REACTIONARY PRESIDENT, THE SAME AS BUSH. If you want peace and universal, tax funded healthcare, you have to vote Peace & Freedom or Green.