The Baucus Bill is a Nightmare and the Horrors are in the Fine Print- Insurance Companies must be so happy with Baucus

Note to Reader: I sat up and read this tonight, it is basically the same bill that was leaked two weeks ago which had an Ex Wellpoint Employee name on it. So these are some of the finer points that I picked up after first 2.5 hour read through. I will keep dissecting it daily for revelations. He came to the Podium yesterday alone, with no other Senators or anyone. He stumbled through the press conference,bumbling and stuttering. I wondered even then if he had read it....and he also did acknowledge by name WHO else was consulted....that bothered me. So I am hard on him, 20 years as a nurse I expect People to be cared for, not turned away by Government Enabling the Insurance Industry...

Before you read below , remember that more than 50 Million have NO Health Insurance and NO healthcare. 500,000 currently are fighting Cancer after being cancelled and denied care, and remember these are the ones that had Insurance. 22,000 die per year with NO healthcare, more than 179,000 have died without Care since 2001. We need the Public Option and we need a Plan that does not FINE middles class and working poor. Please keep these numbers in mind when you call your Senator and the Whitehouse 202-456-1414. ( Reconciliation might be only option left for Senate).
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{{{Before you read this there is an Elephant in the Living Room we need to discuss, (and no it is not the Baucus 3.1 Million Dollar Insurance Payment). The Elephant is that we are in a Healthcare Crisis, that was created BY the Insurance Companies Deciding WHO and WHAT THEY would pay for, and THEY have created a Crisis leaving 50 Million People without Healthcare.500,000 People are currently fighting Cancer with NO healthcare and No Insurance. 62% of ALL Bankruptcies are caused by Medical Debt- and this is including people that had Insurance and were denied care. }}}
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Baucus has had all year, and summer to consult with VNA, AMA and existing clinical programs and Doctors and Nurses, if he did, this bill is not written in that manner. Patients have been turned into mere customers, even though that does not acknowledge the Aspects of ILLNESS and Disease. This was written as though this plan is for healthy people looking for healthcare. In this Country we have Millions that have not had any access to ANY care in years, and yes some of them have health problems. It also barely addresses the need for Preventive care, Holistic Care, Dental Care or Mental Health Care,so payment for those are not acknowledged as needed care.
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In Baucus Bill ( Click the title to download actual bill) ::
The name of the Bill is " The Healthy Future Act" ( Healthy for WHO ? It should be just called the Rape and Pillage Bill... It will be healthy future for the Insurance Company if this goes through.)

LIE No1::Pre-Existing Conditions have not been converted into "Risk Factors".
Baucus came out yesterday and said it was a good bill and that it would bring new rules and laws, and that the Pre-existing Condition Situation would be changed. He was not kidding. NOW IN THE BAUCUS BILL PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS ARE RISK FACTORS. I call this Semantical Surgery.....For example: AGE and Geographical Location will be used to set Rates and Assist the Insurance Companies in deciding WHO gets Care and What they pay. ( Older adults could easily pay 5 Times as much as someone younger-and it's allowed, it's formulated into the plan ??!!).

"Pre-existing Condition" ( especially those that have already been refused coverage already) is decided BY the Insurance Companies and they can decide WHO and HOW many of Certain Conditions,and they also can CAP Care as these individuals are thrown into "HIGH RISK POOLS".

Here is Something Interesting that No One has ever revealed before, the HIPPA law that was passed in 1996 was always taught to Nurses as a Law that protects Patients Privacy. But in the Bill there is more details of the HIPPA law as it was Originally written:
"The Federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA, P.L. 104-191) established Federal rules regarding guaranteed availability, guaranteed renewability, and coverage for pre-existing health conditions in the individual market for certain persons eligible for HIPAA protections. HIPAA guarantees that each issuer in the individual market make at
least two policies available to all ―HIPAA eligible‖ individuals, and renewal of individual coverage is at the option of such individuals, with some exceptions. HIPAA also prohibits individual issuers from excluding coverage for pre-existing health conditions for HIPAA eligibles. In addition, a number of states have enacted guaranteed issue and pre-existing condition exclusion rules. Guaranteed issue refers to the requirement that an issuer must accept every applicant for coverage."

This means that for over 13 years Insurance Companies BY LAW were supposed to be offering care and coverage and NOT capping care, or refusing care or coverage. They were already breaking the Existing Laws.
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According to the way this was originally written NO ONE should have been denied or cancelled due to Medical History. So in the Past 13 years WHY and WHEN did Insurance Companies Give Themselves permission to do this ?
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Other wonders I am still examining in this bill :
(1) FINES $950 to $3800 For UnInsured Individuals and Families, this will mostly fall onto Middle Income Families that can not afford excessively high priced plans and there is NO Affordable plans or options in this bill. NONE and no protections for families, even healthy families. And what of families coping with Cancer, chronic diseases, or birth defects ? Correction, Originally the Bill 2 weeks ago had the Lowest Fine set at $750 And NOW it has been raised to $950. This is Unreal.

(2) It is very unclear What is to happen to Older Adults especially those who are pre-Medicare age. It also seems that if they are older and have a pre-existing condition or illness, they will be tossed in a High Risk Pool and the Insurance Companies will still set rate and WHO and the Rate, and then the Cap is still allowed, and there is NO ONE for people to go to for help or assistance.

(3) Baucus has also added a whole section that is Creating Expectations for Care dictated for Medicare and Medicaid Care. I did not see anywhere where Doctors or Nurses or Clinics were consulted about Creating Cost related goals and outcomes. Care being dictated by measurements that were created by who ?

(4) There are also some sections of this that definitely will be curbing Existing Care and Programs to Elderly, Disabled ( on early Medicare) and the SCHIP programs that supply care to Children nationwide ( 9-11 Million Children). The Program for children if anything has to be flexible to the Economy and the Downfall of a year ago that has now effected millions of Middle Class Families, plunging many into poverty.

(5) And finally there is NO Public Plan and NO Public Option. There is talk of "High Risk Pools " and there is "talk" of creating some "NON PROFIT" Coops ( that obviously can not compete with Big Insurance and DO NOT exist at this time and it is very unclear WHO and HOW they would be set up- there is No plan even offered for Start Up funds or structure). The "Exchange" Plan is not even clearly described- it sounds like that it could be set up much like the High Risk Pools ? and that it could vary from state to state ( and might not even be offered in all states).( I will keep digging at this part- but it looks grim).
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More Posts on this ::
LA Times has more on it.
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Jason Linkins of Huffington Post has even more....
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Do read this post by a mom about her 20 year son....it will really show how REAL this is- HCR is NEEDED NOW...there are lives at stake...
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Joshua Blog has the full slam by Keith on Countdown...
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And Raging Celt says it best.....and on one sentence....read it.