Issue #92

by Art Kelly

1. The Houston Chronicle reports that doctors are opting out of Medicare at an alarming rate.

Before 2007, only a handful of doctors in Texas did not take Medicare. By 2008, 42% of all physicians--and 62% of primary care doctors--were no longer taking new Medicare patients.

The latest information “shows 100 to 200 a year are ending all involvement with the program” and 4 in 10 are considering the move, the Chronicle stated.

The President of the Texas Medical Association (TMA), Dr. Susan Bailey, said, “This new data shows the Medicare system is beginning to implode.”

The TMA opposed Obamacare, which cut at least $400 million from Medicare to finance the other provisions of the legislation.

2. Conservative senators have vowed to fight against the confirmation of President Obama’s nomination of Dr. Donald Berwick as Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

FOXNews.com reports that Berwick has been a strong admirer of the British National Healthcare System (NHS), which features rationing and euthanasia.

Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) related that when his wife, Bobbi, was diagnosed with breast cancer that had spread to her lymph nodes, she received timely care that saved her life. But in Britain, it takes 18 weeks to schedule cancer surgery. As a result, if the U.S. were using the British system, which Berwick considers to be “a global treasure,” Bobbi Barrasso would probably have died.

Senator Barrasso pointed out that “American cancer patients have a higher survival rate for every form of cancer than patients in Canada and Britain.”

He asked, “Do I want somebody who favors the NHS in Britain, someone who says they have incredible respect for the way it works and thinks it is the right way to go? Would an American citizen want that person to be in charge of Medicare and Medicaid for this country?”

Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS) tied Berwick’s nomination to Obamacare.

“Dr. Berwick is the perfect nominee for a president whose aim has always been to save money by rationing health care,” Roberts said.

The Boston Globe reports that Republican senators will oppose Berwick’s “statements praising aspects of the United Kingdom’s national health system. They contend his positions show that he would seek to transform U.S. health care into a tightly controlled system, reducing patient choices, and delaying treatments.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) denounced Berwick as an “expert on rationing” and blasted Berwick for applauding the NHS “where care is delayed, denied, or rationed.”

No hearing on Berwick’s nomination has been scheduled before the Senate Finance Committee.

3. Copies are available online of the lawsuits filed by the states against Obamacare.

In last week’s issue of this newsletter, it was reported that some legal scholars, including some liberals, believe the states have identified Obamacare’s constitutional flaws and have devised a credible theory for prevailing in federal courts.

The Florida case, filed by State Attorney General Bill McCollum and joined by 20 other states and the National Federation of Independent Businesses, has an entire website devoted to the case, including a copy of the Amended Complaint, which contains a multi-faceted attack on Obamacare.

Virginia has filed a separate case, which is limited to the constitutional issue of requiring all persons to purchase health insurance policies.

4. The latest Rasmussen poll continues to show 56% of the American people--including 63% of seniors--want to repeal Obamacare.

39% want to keep the new law and 5% are undecided.