Friday, November 19, 2010

Dr. Rida Boulos on ObamaCare

If you missed my distinguished friend, Dr. Boulos's letter to the JS editors on 11/14, I will highlight the reasons why Dr. Boulos says most Americans reject this bill.

1) The process by which the 2,000 plus-page legislation was passed was flawed. It involved backdoor deals, bribery and lack of transparency.

2) Tort reform is not mentioned. Malpractice premiums run from $80,000 t0 $150,000 per year plus defensive medicine costs.

3( Those who wish to repeal the bill do have workable solutions, many of which were rejected such as allowing insurance companies to compete across state line, tort reform, and health care accounts. Both parties did agree on eliminating denial of coverage based on pre-existing conditions and having children covered until the age of 26.

4( Ideology and politics were the driving factors in ramming through a major reform in 100 days instead of correcting the problems in increments over three to five years. While some provisions will take place in 2014, that is because they will take place AFTER presidential elections.

5( This bill will take $500 billion out of the future, anticipated growth in Medicare which will lead to rationing and cutting services.

6( Penalizing citizens who do not buy insurance is akin too saying that because the sun is a cause of skin cancer, the government should mandate that everybody stay in the shade. We can already see corporations dumping health insurance and paying the fine.
This will lead to the health exchange becoming the "public option." The latter will not work in the U.S. due to its size, non-homogeneous population, health habits, high homicide rates and drug problems. These put a huge burden on the cost and cannot be sustained.

7( This bill was passed at a time when the housing industry and financial markets were collapsing and our deficit soaring.

The public has rejected the health care bill in this election. Republicans and Democrats should revisit the legislation and correct its many flaws.

Well put, my tennis playing friend, Rida.

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