GOP Leadership Plays Offense
By Sarah Lovenheim
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Minority Whip Jon Kyl (Ariz.) introduced legislation today that would ban the government from using "comparative effectiveness research" -- a type of research that Kyl says would dictate health-care treatments based on cost instead of quality under any revamped government-sponsored health-care plan.
“We should stick to a basic principle that all Americans should be able to choose the doctor, hospital, and health plan of their choice. No Washington bureaucrat should interfere with that right, or substitute the government’s judgment for that of a physician," he said in a release circulated by GOP leadership.
The legislation Kyl and McConnell introduced, The Preserving Access to Targeted, Individualized, and Effective New Treatments and Services Act -- otherwise known as The Patients Act of 2009 -- came as President Obama called for an overhaul of the nation's health system and the expansion of a public health-care plan.
McConnell stated in the release that he'll push the legislation because he, too, worries that a government-run plan would give patients little clout in choosing health-care services. “Americans want their doctors – not government bureaucrats – to continue to help them make their health care decisions,” he said.
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June 15, 2009; 5:02 PM ET
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Posted by: mixedbreed | June 16, 2009 1:15 AM | Report abuse
Here is a question from a Washington Post - ABC poll:
"Which would you prefer: the current health insurance system in the United States, in which most people get their health insurance from private employers, but some people have no insurance, OR, a universal health insurance program, in which everyone is covered under a program like Medicare that's run by the government and financed by taxpayers?"
62% favored Medicare for All; 33% were opposed. That's pretty decisive. And this is with the facts suppressed. Other questions in the poll show that the 62% supporting the universal program mostly believe it will cost more when it will cost less. They believe they won't be able to pick their doctor when Medicare allows much more freedom than most private plans. They believe there will be long waiting times when this is a myth. And still they support a universal plan like Medicare for All by 2 to 1.
Posted by: lensch | June 16, 2009 2:59 PM | Report abuse
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Unfortunately many times it is not the Americans and their doctors who make their healthcare decisions. If they have an insurance the insurance decide, if not they can not even choose the doctor.