October 25, 2005
How to Stop Blago's "All Kids"
Update: So Much for stopping "All Kids." The Dems are exercising power while they've got it, and they are hell bent on Bankrupting the state in the hope that they buy enough votes.
The remainder of this post is out of date, but the commentary by Rasucheberger is still worth listening to.
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Stopping "All Kids" could be considered a worthy mission for Illinois Right of Center Bloggers.
Toward that goal, I will float this post top of this blog for the next 6 Days or so. That's because it is important that Illinois voters have the tools and text necessary to defeat Blagojevich's cynical and destructive "All Kids" program.
This expansion of the "welfare state" is currently being heavily promoted by increasingly worried Democrats, who feel the need to max out Illinois credit card even further in an attempt to bribe voters into giving Blago one more term.
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For starters, click HERE to download Steve Rauschenberger's EXCELLENT commentary from Sunday's Show. Send the link to THIS POST to everyone you know who calls and/or writes the State Legislators & Letters to the Editor.
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Next, download this Download file
and fax it (with your signature) to your State Representative & Senator. To find out how to find those two people, go here.
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The text for the flyer/letter is also available by clicking the "continue"link below.
Dear Illinois Senator/Representative ____________________,
After maxing out Illinois' Credit Card and failing to meet Illinois Pension Obligations, Governor Rod Blagojevich is pushing "All Kids" โ a plan to saddle Illinois Taxpayers with even greater obligations. I'm urging you to vote against this plan.
Here are some reasons why.
Illinois children already have access to health care. The Governor is using the fact that they don't necessarily have insurance coverage to mislead voters into thinking that Illinois children don't or can't receive care. Though currently 'uncompensated' by insurance, Illinois children do have access to Health Care.
The proposed premiums are already more than premiums for private plans that offer more choice. Rather than put children in the bureaucratic and inefficient Medicaid System, Illinois could simply pay for a private plan that offers better services. The fact is that Illinois can afford to do neither at this point in time.
This plan does nothing to reform Medicaid, which is already poorly managed here in Illinois.
To cover the estimated 250,000 children, Illinois would require 5-6000 more primary care physicians to enroll in Illinois' Medicaid system. This is virtually impossible, particularly given Illinois record of low and slow Medicaid reimbursements.
The Governor's plan is designed to induce private employers to drop "Family" coverage and place that burden on the state taxpayers.
ยท History shows that similar health plans instituted in other states are dramatically more expensive than originally billed. With Medicaid already growing at around 9% per year, adding this drain on the system will increase costs even faster.
With all of these problems, "All Kids" is a bad deal for Illinois. However, there ARE alternative solutions that are far better public policy.
Here are some examples.
1. The state of Florida has asked for (and received) waivers from the Federal Government for innovative solutions to runaway Medicaid spending. The Florida program, likely to be a model for many other states, shifts from the traditional Medicaid "defined benefit" plan to a "defined contribution" plan. This innovation makes the state a "buyer" health care, but not the "manager."
2. South Carolina is proposing to establish personal health accounts for most of the state's 850,000 Medicaid recipients will "redefine health care in the United States." The account would be used to purchase private health insurance, or pay for care directly. And the amount of money allocated to each account would depend on the person's age, sex and physical condition.
These are the kinds of innovative ideas that State Legislatures should be looking into. Adding another "Welfare Benefit" to an already strapped system โ all with out any reform of the current system โ is bad policy. Please do your legislative duty, and craft a better future for Illinois.
Posted by Bruno Behrend at October 25, 2005 10:41 AM
Comments
Thanks for being here tonight... We liked your presentation! Hopefully, we can help stop measures like this from passing. Please keep up the great work, and we will keep you up-to-date on what we're doing.
Bruno writes:
The pleasure was all mine. Thanks!
Posted by: Aakash at October 26, 2005 02:31 AM
I wonder how much I would pay for auto insurance if I insured against run down wiper blades and oil changes.
My family and I pay less than 150 a month for full health insurance coverage after the first 10k.
Combined with a tax sheltering HSA (don't you love the federal idiots? - having mucked up the health market they offer us a tax break.) my coverage keeps me from falling out of the 'middle class.'
Insurance is a product for the middle class. The poor don't have assets. The rich don't need insurance. A generalization, but an instructive one.
Have we completely given up on the debate of health care versus health insurance? Who in America doesn't get health care? We give pro-bono heart lung transplants to illegal aliens.
Further providers offer cash discounts. Why would they want to pay two middle age women or more to process your payment through an comprehensive insurance plan (either the state or fascist corporation - yes most American corporations are now working on the fascist model.)? I once saw a provider in Washington State who charged 75 to 90 dollars for typical work. I paid cash. The charge? -- 40 bucks. It would have even been lower if the other patients hadn't, by their ignorance, forced the provider to employ a paper pusher.
And so how much would new wiper blades cost if they were insured and 40 percent of the people used tax p(l)ayer plans to pay for their wiper blades? After my co-pay, billing, and premium costs my 6 dollar wiper blades would certainly cost me no less than say 55 dollars, and that 15 dollar oil change? Maybe 130 dollars.
Posted by: Jericho at October 31, 2005 07:07 PM