SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
July 31, 2015
Sullivan’s
Salvos 8/4/15
In this edition:
*Minimum Wage
*Medicaid Managed Care
*Endorsement
*Crying Wolf
*Interesting Stats
*Did You Know?
*Minimum Wage
I
know I promised more info on the minimum wage proposal currently before the
Board. That will appear in Salvos next week – promise!
*Medicaid Managed Care
Medicaid
just celebrated its’ 50th birthday. Medicaid and Medicare were among
the greatest achievements in the history of our great nation. Health care for
the poor… we have been called to provide this at least since Jesus walked the
earth. The US finally got around to it in 1965.
Iowa will soon be embarking upon a system of “managed care” for folks
enrolled in Iowa’s Medicaid program. I do NOT believe this will be a good thing
for our poorest residents.
Managed
care is a pretty simple notion. The idea is that healthcare is full of waste
and fraud, and managed care companies will root that out. Without all this
waste and fraud, the costs will go down.
The
problem is, managed care companies rarely root out waste or fraud. They take an
easier route. They simply cap services, and let the rest of the healthcare
system sort it out. The managed care companies make their millions, and
patients and providers fight over what is left. In my opinion, managed care is
nothing more than a transfer of public tax dollars to private companies who are
GUARANTEED to hurt the poor. Rather than being encouraged, managed care by
private companies should be illegal. But that is not the environment in which
we live.
Allow
me to back up a moment. Medicaid (often referred to as Title 19) is the federal
program that provides government health insurance to our poorest residents.
Medicaid was passed in 1965 as an addition to the Social Security Act, a key
component in President Lyndon Johnson’s “War on Poverty”.
While the vast majority of the funding for Medicaid is federal,
each state pays a portion based upon the relative wealth of that state.
Connecticut pays the most, Mississippi the least. Iowa is in the top half when
it comes to relative wealth; in fact, our state match just went up because of
the recent good years enjoyed by the ag industry.
Over time, states have argued for and received greater flexibility
in designing state Medicaid programs. This is where the managed care concept
began, and how it is spreading to states with Republican governors. In
fairness, over the years, Medicaid has become a bigger and bigger piece of each
state’s budget.
While many conservatives will try to tell you Medicaid has “not
worked,” the reality is a very different story. In fact, 72 million Americans
received some type of Medicaid service last year, almost 1 in 4. These services
were provided at an average cost lower than private insurance, and at an
average administrative cost MUCH lower than private insurance.
Will
managed care improve things? No, it will not. Unless you own one of the firms
that is about to suck millions of our tax dollars from our poorest residents.
If you own one of those, you’ll be fine.
*Endorsement
I
heard a rumor that I was the first elected official in the whole US to endorse
Bernie Sanders for President. Unfortunately, I cannot recall where I heard
this.
I
suppose it is possible, given that things start earlier in Iowa. But I still
find the idea fascinating. It might be a cool thing to tell my grandkids some
day.
I have searched online, and cannot find anything definitive.
Salvos readers are knowledgeable folks. Anyone out there know anything about
this?
Meanwhile,
take some time and check out Senator Sanders for yourself! It feels great to
hear a candidate speak truth to power!
*Crying Wolf
If
you have listened to anything Governor Branstad or Speaker Paulson have said in
the past few months, you know Iowa has no extra money. Right? You have heard
them say it ad nauseam.
There
is no more money for K-12 education. No money for mental health. No money for
Regents institutions. No money for anything. We require austerity!
Wait until next year! Branstad and Paulson will be advocating for
a BIG income tax cut. (The benefits of which accrue primarily to the richest
Iowans.) There will not be any budgetary concerns then! Iowa will have PLENTY
of money for an income tax cut!
Honestly,
it makes me want to puke. Our elected officials are willing to throw 3 million
Iowans under the bus in order to benefit a few huge out of state corporations.
It is truly sickening.
*Interesting Stats
From
“Occupy Democrats” comes the following set of statistics. All stats are
adjusted for inflation. All are referenced to EPI, Bloomberg, or the US
Department of Labor.
Since 1978,
the cost of:
College
tuition has increased 1,120%
Medical care
has increased 601%
Food has
increased 244%
Shelter has
increased 380%
Meanwhile, the
pay of:
Average
workers has risen 10%
Minimum wage
workers fell 5.5%
Average CEO
pay increased 937%
No
further comments. Just interesting!
*DID YOU KNOW?
72 million Americans are enrolled in Medicaid – 17.3% of the US
population. They only use 16.6% of the healthcare dollars, however – which demonstrates
that Medicaid is very cost effective. Despite the fact that Medicaid covers
most of the nursing home care in the US, children are the largest group of
enrollees, at 47 million.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
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---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 2:59 PM
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