Decius wrote:
] This is a post election article from Tennessee. The title was:
]
]
] ] Bredesen sees no significant effect of shift in power
] ]
] ] Tennesseans elected the first state senate majority in
] ] 140 years.
] ]
] ] On the issue of TennCare, Bredesen said, "We've always
] ] known there were two options for controlling TennCare
] ] costs so it doesn't take all the resources of state
] ] government."
]
] Five days later, he kills the program.

Well, I'm trying to figure out where the link between Bredesen, a Democrat, and the Republicans is.

] My mother is on Tenncare. She has a condition which in general
] does not contribute much to her healthcare costs. However, no
] insurance company will provide her with general health
] coverage because of it. Tenncare was really her only option.
] She pays more for Tenncare then most people do for their
] health insurance, and she doesn't get much out of it. She is
] often stuck going to ghetto Tenncare doctors who primary treat
] people who are too poor to pay. We have insurance so that in
] the event of something catastropic we're able to pay.

That's why he's been trying to save TennCare. Right now, 430,000 people in Tennessee are able to at least get some form of insurance that they normally wouldn't be able to. However, the system as it exists today is growing at such a rate that it will bankrupt the state in literally just a few years. When TennCare is dissolved, those 430,000 people will be left out in the cold and the remaining 900,000 on the rolls will have standard Medicaid coverag.

] My mother now joins the growing ranks of the uninsured in this
] country, not because she is a leech on the system, as rock
] stupid Republican fucking commentators consistantly claim
] everyone on Tenncare is, but because actuaries have decided
] that they will not cover her at any price.

You think the commentators are rock stupid? How about those that are suing the State and therefore causing the governor to dissolve the program? Drug costs are the largest single expenditure and there are some scary statistics out there... the average number of prescription drugs in the nation is around 6, I believe. The average for people in TN is will over 10! Bredesen wanted to cap the number of drugs per month at 6, with an allowance under very special circumstances after a review. The main issue that people are suing the program over is the number of drugs covered - they want a preferred drug list with negotiated prices, but no cap on how many. The end result is that most people suing for the uncapped drug amount will end up off the rolls as it is. Oh, well.

TennCare was and still is a good idea because people like your mother can't get insurance elsewhere. Sure, it's expensive, but it's better than nothing. As a die hard social liberal, I think we should just have socialized medicine with an option for privately funded doctors, much like the rest of Western Civilization...

RE: YEAH FU@#$ING REPUBLICANS!!@!@!@!#$