What to do (4.00 / 2)

Simple: Clinton, Obama and Edwards hold a joint press conference, and jointly pledge that this will be the first bill that one of them will sign as President.

And then publicize the hell out of every sick kid without care due to Repub heartlessness between now and February, 2009.

The veto-upholders (note: not all Repubs) and their misguided ideologue of a Decider will have made this mess; let them stew in it--and run on it.

The compromise here has ALREADY happened.

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by: Wendell @ Sun Oct 14, 2007 at 04:53:37 AM UTC

SCHIP already private. (4.00 / 1)

If I understand it correctly, SCHIP consists of tax money being sent from the Feds to the states, who then disburse it to individual families according to their own state-developed formulas, where the families are then obligated to use the money to buy private insurance.

So I think it's already about as privatized as it can possibly be.  All this tax money ends up in the hands of Blue Cross and Kaiser and the rest already.

While I know CheneyCo are great at coming up with new and more insane ways to privatize things, I don't see what they could possibly do to this particular program to make it even more privatized.

Who knows though, watch them prove me wrong.

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by: texas dem @ Sun Oct 14, 2007 at 05:34:07 AM UTC

Don't health care companies stand to lose if S-CHIP doesn't pass? (0.00 / 0)

Wasn't this a program created by republicans to offer private health insurance to poor families?  Wasn't this a program to highlight alternatives to a government run program?  Doesn't the program simply pay private health insurance payments?  Should the leadership point these out to wavering republicans?  Won't the insurance industry be out $35 billion in payments if this doesn't pass?

crazy irony or not?

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by: gaspare @ Sun Oct 14, 2007 at 11:58:07 AM UTC

Yeah, I'd agree that 'the compromise has already....' (0.00 / 0)

no question.

Here we are spending untold manhours discussing, ruminating and gnashing our teeth over a program that will 'cover' 4m children.

How about the 47 million uninsured, including perhaps those kids parents, of the 301 million who live here?

Oh, nothing for them you say?

If this isn't Kabuki by 'Versailles' then I must be in the wrong theater. This is, in fact,  just another distraction Ol' Mr. Decider has cooked up to waste everybody's time.

Check out John Edwards speech to SEIU here:

http://takeaction.wo...

That's how you get real healthcare reform in this pathetic excuse for a Congress.

You take their's away.

Elect John Edwards and watch the courtiers of 'Versailles' scurry from the halls of Congress like the rats they truly are. For this nation it's change or die time.

Peace, Health and Prosperity for Everyone.

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by: ACitizen @ Sun Oct 14, 2007 at 13:46:53 PM UTC

How the President Thinks (4.00 / 1)

When the President said, "I don't want the federal government making decisions for doctors and customers", he showed the mistaken view of Republicans that we are but customers to the medical/pharmasutical industries. Just when did we cease being patients and become sources of revenue?

Shamefully, health care decisions based on a customer's financial status will never be better than decisions based on a patient's needs. Unfortunately we have a President who only sees dollar signs when he looks at the people outside his dangerous circle of associates.

If the President really wanted to do something to improve the general well of our ailing nation he could resign. Barring that. Congress could and should impeach the Bush/Cheney team to stop the spread of cancer that is the Bush administration.

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by: Saint Augustine @ Sun Oct 14, 2007 at 14:05:18 PM UTC

Excellent point (0.00 / 0)

Bush doesn't see people; just dollar signs.  He cannot see the children without healthcare, the military families attending their loved ones funeral, the elderly living in poverty, Iraqi civilians suffering. It's all about money & power, there is not one little cell in his body that contains compassion.

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by: Metrix @ Mon Oct 15, 2007 at 16:55:24 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

While expanding SCHIP should happen... (4.00 / 1)

it is hardly a bold program. It is state-based with all kinds of variances, it excludes legal immigrant children and undocumented children, and it helps fund lousy private insurance companies.

Universal health care would eclipse the need for all these fights. Medicare for all. We should ALWAYS tie in the fight over SCHIP to the need for affordable health care for everyone.

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by: IndySteve @ Sun Oct 14, 2007 at 16:02:59 PM UTC