Bill Clinton promised to “end welfare as we know it.” What happened?
Welfare As We Knew It
The Wall Street Journal comments Welfare As We Know It Is Back—and It’s Bipartisan
Bill Clinton won election in 1992 on a promise to “end welfare as we know it.” When running for re-election four years later, he declared “the era of big government is over.” Alas, welfare is back in fashion like girls’ overalls, ushering in a new era of bipartisan big government.
Nearly half of New York City residents are on Medicaid. As are 40% of Californians. Since the ObamaCare expansion took effect in 2014, Medicaid enrollment has swelled. Meantime, states are gaming the program’s rules to wring more money out of Washington.
California imposes a tax on insurers to obtain more federal matching funds, which allows it to extend coverage to millions of undocumented immigrants. The Golden State expects to receive some $120 billion in Medicaid matching funds this year, more than Florida’s entire state budget.
During the 1990s, both parties sought to crack down on such schemes. In 1991, George H.W. Bush signed a bipartisan law to prevent states from using taxes on healthcare providers to milk more federal matching funds, some of which they then kicked back to those same healthcare providers. Even Reps. Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer voted for it.
California, New York and other states then devised ways to circumvent the law’s limitations. Many Republican-led states have joined the Medicaid racket—why give up a free lunch that others are taking? But someone has to pay, and it will be future taxpayers.
Many Republicans in Congress who campaigned against ObamaCare—here’s looking at you, Josh Hawley—are refusing to close Medicaid’s all-you-can-eat buffett. Some are spooked by Democratic claims that any changes to the program, however modest, will throw poor people to the wolves.
As the 1990s welfare reforms suggest, shrinking Medicaid can be a political winner if Republicans make a moral case for it. That means explaining how ObamaCare perversely encourages states to spend more on able-bodied adults than the disabled and discourages work.
If Republicans can’t or won’t make this argument and surrender the battlefield to Democrats, they deserve to lose.
Clinton Made Matters Worse
Clinton did end welfare “as we knew it”. But he made matters worse.
I wrote about this in 2015. Here’s a refresher course.
October 4, 2015: Fraudulent Medicare, Medicaid, EITC, Tax Refunds, etc. Total $1 Trillion Since 2003
Disability fraud is rampant.
- States’ Incentive to Promote Disability Fraud: States Have an Incentive to Promote (Not Stop) Disability Fraud; So How Much Fraud Is There?
- 14 Million on Disability: Unwilling to Work; 25% in Hale County AL Collect Disability, 14 Million Nationwide; A Simple Solution
- Why Work?: Why Work for $7.25 When Welfare Pays $15.00 in 12 States and $8.00 in 33 States? Is a Low Minimum Wage the Problem?
- Puerto Rico Fraud: Puerto Ricans Get U.S. Disability Benefits for Inability to Speak English; Disability Deal Explained
- Police and Fire Fraud: 102 Police and Firefighters Caught in Disability Scam
- Claims Hit Record: Disability Fraud Holds Down Unemployment Rate; Jobless Disability Claims Hit Record $200B in January
Clinton Ends Welfare “As We Know It”
Want to understand the huge spread in disability fraud? Look no further than Bill Clinton as explained in detail in link #1.
This all goes back to 1996 when president Clinton promised to “end welfare as we know it“. Clinton did indeed do just that, and fraud is the result.
Why?
The federal government pays disability, but states pay part of welfare costs. This creates a huge incentive for states to actively promote disability fraud (simply to get people off state-sponsored welfare programs).
And that they have done. A primary example pertains to Hale County (see link #2).
25% of the people in Hale County Alabama collect disability. They are all tied to Hale county’s Dr. Timberlake.
Dr. Timberlake asks a simple question to all his patients. “What grade did you finish?” If you claim “back pain” and do not have a degree, Timberlake believes you are disabled.
The Journal is wrong. Welfare is not back as we knew it. Instead we have the worst of welfare and the worst of disability fraud.
The “One Big Beautiful Bill” Will Continue Spending at Biden’s Level
On May 12, I commented The “One Big Beautiful Bill” Will Continue Spending at Biden’s Level
Please note The GOP Surrenders on Medicaid
The House bill shrinks from a fight over able-bodied men on the dole.
The work requirement doesn’t kick in until 2029—a political lifetime from now. The bill also sets up a waiver process, which states have long abused to evade work rules in food stamps.
But far more notable is that the bill fails to end Medicaid’s outrageous bias toward prime-age men who can work. The feds pay 90% of the cost of able-bodied adults eligible for Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act—but only roughly 50% to 77% (depending on the state) for pregnant women, the blind and so on.
Republicans won’t even insist that able-bodied persons must work.
And people are bragging Trump will bring down inflation.
If this budget passes, there is no way inflation comes down other than a huge recession that destroys demand.
Welfare Reform Odds?
February 12: Trump Says he Will Love and Cherish Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid
The new softer side of Trump now cherishes Medicaid. Is everyone happy?
April 5, 2025: Trump Sides With Elizabeth Warren, Won’t Sign a Bill That Cuts Medicaid
What a fiscal joke the Republican party has become.
There are allegedly some 10,000 food additives used in the U.S. Most food products in a grocery store are processed. Pesticides are sprayed on crops that aren’t. Nine published peer reviewed studies determined that unvaccinated children are healthier than vaccinated. There is something wrong with the whole picture. It is made difficult to grow up healthy.
The environment is also polluted with all sorts of detritus, such as microplastics, that are surely affecting EVERYONE negatively, whether you be rich or poor. And yet, Trump is busy cutting the EPA, the FDA, NIH, etc.
A lot of the additives in our food are there to make the look good, make the food have a longer shelf life or make the food easier to transport. All are part of the underpinnings of our Capitalistic economic systems and the never-ending drive for more profit.
Cutting healthcare for the needy while providing Israel 1000lb bombs to level Gaza is so on brand for this country and this administration.
Perfectly normal. Perfectly healthy. Look! A helicopter!!!
Everything is connected. Cuts to these services will get pushed to the states. State taxes will rise while federal stays the same.
People who cant afford healthcare will show up to the emergency room and get services anyway. That cost will be passed on to those who can afford it. Insurance premiums or self pay.
Maybe we should have universal healthcare. With tariff income paying for it. Least everyone would be contributing so to speak. Similar to the fed gas tax.
First, essential healthcare, annual preventative care, was the foundation of the Medicaid Act. Most significant state residency is the cause of eligibility, since the individual state is responsible for about half of the annual costs. Medicare A, B,and D, may actually be combined for an indigent person. The person must be an actual resident of the state. There are important exceptions state residents that are incarcerated or active military, or retired military have their own healthcare system called Tricare, or in NY, the incarcerated have the DOCCS healthcare system. Medicaid in NY is out of control. The use of waivers has accomplished little towards actual improvement in health of indigent people, just made it more complex. I suggest that everyone in NY look at an interesting website “seethroughny.com” and be amazed how many high 5 and 6 figure people earn to manage the NY Medicaid System, when the actual NY Medicaid system is primarily outsourced, often to NY state-funded NGOs like the Rockefeller Foundation, and CDHS. The vast NY Social Services Industry fights among themselves for their share of indigent NY residents to enroll them with a game called Facilitated Enrollment in Medicaid/CHP, the employment title paid for by the taxpayers. For usually dysfunctional families NY created the Child Health Plus Program because the family ‘Head” was unable to support the healthcare needs of the children in the family unit (I know great family planning) and learned about CHP from actually good services like Planned Parenthood, that never seems to live up to its name. Just listen to the Erie County Clerk now Governor by default talk about Medicaid. Ignore the fact that she looks like Joan Rivers did about Edgar died.
“Medical science has made such tremendous progress that there is hardly a healthy human left”
Hmm, United Heathcare, down again.
Cut the fat and save billions of dollars and pounds.
Meanwhile my healthcare premium has quadrupled in ten years so these clowns can get free healthcare.
But, but think of all the shareholder value that’s been added!
Let’s just kill the entire program. Libs will cry no matter what so let’s really give them something to cry about.
“But someone has to pay, and it will be future taxpayers.”
Nope, fiscally responsible Republicans are getting ready for another big tax cut so that growth will pay for all the extra spending, as it has always done!
Chronic end game Fiat disease.
That headline is a wow……….But can I change it to “We import poverty every mother Fing Day?
And what does that say about the border the last 4 years? If those people are undercounted then this is worse?
Isn’t it time for a NY Times headline about how poverty is growing? LOL
If you import poverty every day then what do you expect the numbers to look like?
And I am NOT saying we should not help people , we should. But we cannot import poverty like we have over the last 4 years.
Yeah, catastrophic disease discovered at age 13, my lucky number, BTW.
Six months in hospital with four major abdominal surgeries between the age of 24-26.
Something maybe congenital.
Had to rip my guts out to cure me.
SEVENTH OF EIGHT kids with no disease in a typical protestant dad marriage to a hot catholic wife.
Home from WW2 and went boom-boom.
Musk might approve of this behavior…
I’ve been a life long athlete, in case you care.
Bankrupted me because I was just a kid working my behind off in a company that provided top shelf blue cross insurance, didn’t matter though.
My bill was north of one million dollars in 1986!!!
Whatever, I’ve been on borrowed time for so long couldn’t give two shee-ahts about current affairs.
All fun and games until you have to live like a troll under the proverbial bridge for ten years before a lender will meet with you.
The moral of this sad and too common tale is don’t get sick in USA unless you are indegent.
P.S.
Buddy of mine is indegent, his wife got two brand new hips at 64 years old on my COMEBACK KID dime!!!
Upside down world we live in.
Sleep well comrades.
If only people could learn how to profit from misery, the world would be a happier place.
.
Go look and United Healthcare stock chart. Accused of massive medicare fraud.
Stock down about 50%
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/UNH/
I warned people here to stay away from health insurance companies.
I am 72 and poor. I can’t afford any kind of insurance. I use almost no medical services at all, but if and when I needed any help, Medicaid is there first. Common doctors want to prescribe me all kinds of outlandish stuff anyway. I only use the very few that help and do not refill or use the expensive and useless stuff that they ply so readily. That saves the gov thousands right there. Sadly, I could not even see a doctor around here if I wasn’t positioned on the dole. I do not fear budget cuts at all, I can see how much of it is waste. If ‘they’ should determine that my life and value is unfit, then so be it. I don’t think it matters much, and remain a beloved musician and helper of many folks around here anyway.
You are not saving the governments thousands by being on Medicaid. You are costing the government and the taxpayers.
Good job. I have a friend who does everything they toss at her because she says it doesn’t cost anything. I remind her it costs the taxpayer plenty. I asked her if she would do half the things if she had to pay for it, and she says she wouldn’t. I applaud your restraint, and thanks for saving us all from the cost of unnecessary interventions. I now have my friend pushing the vacuum around to Andre Rieu music instead of Physical Therapy. She always wanted a lighter vacuum, but has now found new joy in the vacuum she has.
Cut – the fast carbs and seed oils. that is!
Here’s a related article:
The world may be upside down. But the National Medicaid with expenses supposed to be shared approximately 50% with a participating State Medicaid Program. It was enacted after Medicare to provide indigent Medical Care. NYS has used Medicaid for purposes unintended too long. The NYS Compliance Programs are comprised primarily of unemployable individuals referred to the Executive Chamber for the political party in power by the County Chair unable to pass a Civil Service examination.
Govt buildings are putting up huge banners of Trumps face
Just spendin that money aint we?
like Cuba? is this really happening? wow. idiocracy.
Like Mussolini?
Remember, Mish, that a very big portion of Medicaid goes to very old people, especially in nursing homes. It’s one welfare program that benefits the middle class who don’t have to pick up those costs for their parents.
Better to have a one-layer public system of healthcare for all citizens, like Canada, Europe and most of the First World have.
Absolutely. The crazy quilt sort of system we have is not only wasteful but also results in people getting tossed between healthcare systems, esp between Medicaid and ACA aka Obolacare.
donorCRAT Party fans would claim that Obolacare is so great but all it did is to add one more patch to the crazy quilt that we already had, even as it raked in hundreds of billions of dollars into the coffers of predatory for-profit health insurance companies.
Obamacare was a good attempt at providing universal healthcare. However it was initially a 6 month healthcare contract so the capitation seemed low. The AMA was instrumental assisting the implementing the non-profit Blue Cross and Blue Shield. Even during this period doctors grouped together to actually fund hospitals. This stopped when MA was implemented. The basic problem with Obamacare was the confusion whether it was a fee for service plan or managed care plan.
Uhh, prolly not.
Wealthy canadians come to the U.S. for surgeries.
Wait time in Canada is way to looong.
In the UK, wait times are ridiculous as well.
And health care is rated low by recipients.
Depending on your insurance and location, wait times in the US can be longer than either. Unless your wealthy and can afford to fly somewhere else. Adding the wealthy into the dialogue never leads to enlightenment.
My wait time in South Korea… I’ve never even made an appointment. You don’t have to. I’ve always walked in and have always been seen in less than an hour, even with specialists. I usually go to specialists in Korea since you don’t have to have a referral. In the USA, it’s days and even weeks to see a specialist.
My total cost for an emergency appendectomy with three nights in the hospital, meds, and everything was around $350. At the same time, my aunt had a routine abdominal operation at Tennova in Knoxville, TN and she was billed over a half million dollars.
My Korean national health insurance was around $100 a month and the only time it didn’t cover something was when I had a vasectomy, which was reasonable. It’s an elective surgery and Korea is trying to raise its birthrate, the world’s lowest. In the USA, in 1996, I was billed over $2000 for a colonoscopy when I was a student at UT. My health insurance didn’t cover any of it. I saw on Aaron Clary’s YouTube channel where he paid $3600 and none of his was covered either. Last May, I had a colonoscopy in Korea along with a stomach endoscopy, anesthesia, and a full health check for less than $75. Everyone with Korean national health insurance gets a free health check every other year, in my case even years since I was born in an even year. South Koreans have the third longest life expectancy while Americans can’t afford preventative healthcare and die relatively young. My taxes are lower in Korea too.
I’m currently in the USA and I don’t have health insurance since American health insurance companies never cover anything. One of my friends from high school was hospitalized with Covid at the same time as her friend and they spent the same length of time in the hospital. She had insurance and her friend didn’t. She had to pay twice as much as her friend for the same care BECAUSE she had health insurance.
If South Korea did not have a predatory export policy and actually defended itself the cost of healthcare and other services would rise dramatically. In the US all Medicare recipients get a free annual medical physical. Likewise it is possible to get a free annual physical if you know the to complicated and overlapping US healthcare system. Your colonoscopy cost you that amount because you didn’t “stay within your network,” or you opted for inadequate healthcare insurance with low monthly capitation.
The issue is that medical providers are actually employed by the Canadian government and UK government. Both nations has serious issues with budgets. Canada is not a federal republic, but a group of provinces that exert much influence.
This is true and needs to stop. People should be allowed to easily end their lives when they want. Those families who want to continue to prop up grandma/grandpa, even though all they do is spend their days laying in bed watching reruns on TV, need to pay the bill for this themselves.
10% of Medicaid recipients are seniors and they account for 20% of Medicaid spending.
And?
Actually in NY 40% of the population have Medicaid. Additionally NY offers Child Health Plus but is rather laggard in providing statistics about enrollment. Your metrics in general are somewhat incorrect. Seniors eligible for Medicaid, can get Medicare when they are at a certain age, or under various circumstances.
“he middle class who don’t have to pick up those costs for their parents” Only if assets are in trust.
This is a matter of sorta. NYS has a look-back of 7 years to determine if a person is eligible for Medicaid and an LTC. There is a cottage industry of lawyers in NY will offer fees for explaining this. The matter of Reverse Mortgages, and even purchasing whole life insurance to avoid ineligibility, is often suggested. Usually if the person desiring LTC uses various legal options but that still includes using MA not the way it was intended. Half or more of the total MA costs including LTC is paid by the taxpayers, including what’s lest of the middle class. MA allows for the ownership of a car, a small bank account. If there is a house, it will be literally be collateralized by NYS Medicaid. However if the individual does enter an LTC and is eligible for MA, usually the person should also apply for Medicare. This is called a Dual Eligibility and perfectly legal. That is why individuals should consider getting Long Term Insurance while employed, than pay the premiums when not employed for a deducible expense. I know it sounds rather complicated but I when I worked for NYS I recovered quite a bit of money identifying ineligible MA recipients. MA is a program of healthcare for indigent people, with some exceptions, not a welfare program.
In 2021, seniors and people with disabilities accounted for 51% of Medicaid spending, despite representing a smaller portion (23%) of the enrollment. Medicaid is the primary source of coverage for nearly two out of every three (approximately 63%) nursing home residents nationwide.
Because of demographics with the baby boomer generation now in nursing homes, that is why Medicaid spending during Birdbrain Biden was more than Pentagon and national security spending.
Maybe in 20 years Medicaid won’t be as large because of demographics, or perhaps it will remain this because of third world immigration to the USA.
California commiting fraud with Federal dollars to the tune of $120 billion/yr. Shocker! Lol!!!
1990 was a long time ago and fiscal restraint whooshed by about $20 trillion dollars back. There’s no stopping the Doom Train no matter how hard Ron Paul tries to pull the emergency brake.How can you blame poor fellows in coach for swiping a chocolate almond or two from the dessert tray as it rolls past up to super, ultra, posh 1st class?
We need covidcon clawbacks from Billy Gates.
Rachel Reeves has utterly lost control of public spending and is putting the economy in peril
The Office for National Statistics revealed that the UK borrowed £15 billion more than forecast in the year to March.
In total, we borrowed a shocking £151.9 billion over the last twelve months, £20 billion more than the previous year, and much more than the Office for Budget Responsibility had forecast. Last month alone, we racked up another £16.4 billion in debt, the third highest March figure since records began.
Meanwhile, in a stagnant economy, corporation tax revenues have proved disappointing as companies struggle to make any money. VAT is no longer raising the amount expected as struggling households rein back their spending. Even worse, these are only the “provisional” figures. If anyone feels like a bet, here is a certain winner. When the final numbers are tallied up, they will be far worse.
The borrowing numbers are only going to go higher over the course of the summer. The huge rise in National Insurance charges will hit the public sector as hard as any private sector employer; it will add hundreds of millions to the cost of employing the 6.1 million people who work for the Government.
Businesses are already laying off staff and closing units – look at the decision by Morrisons to close 52 cafes and 17 convenience stores as a typical example of what is happening right across the country – to save on costs, and this will hit income tax and VAT revenues.
https://archive.md/uAvok#selection-3303.245-3307.301
If we had single payer universal healthcare like other civilized countries we could deal with this problem. You want to kick poor people off medicaid and have people dying in the streets? As it is, we have very expensive for profit healthcare with worse patient outcomes than any other western country.
This is true and is also why the system will never change, barring some financial catastrophe that makes business as usual unworkable.
However, in the next 5-20 years, the system is going to be self-destruct when MD’s, medical services and so forth are replaced by AI/Robots. At that point, all medical services will be free.
So, “patience, Grasshopper”.
I will on Elysium by then.
Uhh, prolly not.
I was married to a European.
Wait times are now so long that people are suffering like dogs.
Wealthy canadians come to the U.S. for surgeries.
Wait time in Canada is way to looong.
In the UK, wait times are ridiculous as well.
And health care is rated low by recipients.
The Canadian Healthcare is a great concept. Problem is that the taxpayers of Canada cannot provide the funds to make it great. The last attempt was to admit immigrants based upon their pledges of using wealth to expand the tax base. That isn’t going to well. There is and always will be reciprocity in medical research between Canada and the US, and Mexico that has caused significant breakthroughs. If Mr. Kennedy would ban “advertising the latest and best” pharmacy on US Television, then allow China to become part of the very expensive logistics, the cost of healthcare in North America would actually decline.
This is not much of an argument any longer when US wait times are just as bad if not worse. Wait time is US for specialists is now months or longer and it’s next to impossible to find a primary care physician. At least you won’t end up bankrupt from medical bills in a country with socialized medicine. Our for-profit system has failed.
We could deal with this problem without single payer. Denninger often mentions that if anti trust law was enforced, the cost could drop as much as 80%. Trump enforced the border and illegal entries dropped over 90%.
How is single payer going to help? It won’t increase the number of Doctors, Nurses or Hospitals. Nor will it increase the money available for health care.
Single payer is just going to be Medicare for all. Given costs are out of control how do you think that is going to help.
Get the Federal government out of the Medicaid program. Let states run their own Medicaid programs.
California Governor Newsom seeks to scale back free healthcare for migrants
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/california-governor-newsom-seeks-scale-back-free-healthcare-migrants-2025-05-14/
You mean illegal alien.
They are properly referred to as the “undocumented” here in CA. Failure to abide by this nomenclature will get related posts deleted on social network sites like NextDoor. [lol]
It may be fraud and may be bad but it’ll get 10x worse when real medical problems start hitting the American population as it ages over the next decade. Had lunch with an old friend, told me her husband had prostate cancer got it removed. Another friend had prostate cancer, had laser surgery and now cancer back again. And yet another friend has a tumor in his head but he was a chain smoker and still smokes today. A mom from my son’s old scout troop has terminal cancer as well.
Recently had a boomer relative pass away from pancreatic cancer that spread everywhere. I’d say 60% of the people I know have some type of severe illness and even some of the younger ones in their 20s and 30s have something. Heck, my brother-in-law seems to have perpetual knee replacement issues and he’s only 50. Evidently, if you’re an avid runner, you’re gonna need new knees at some point.
If the math is shocking now, it will be insanely shocking in a few years.
Got exit strategy?
Thank God they were fully vaxxed.
6 times …
And now you have top notch crackhead leadership that says you shouldn’t take medical advise from him. Of course, what’d you expect from the Secretary of Health.
https://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/2025/05/14/robert-f-kennedy-jr-vaccine-question-congressional-hearing/83631566007/
Xavier Becerra was the Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Joe Biden and he was a lawyer and a politician yet he was giving the whole country medical advice and we know the results.
what’s wrong with an old heroin addict who staged a hit and run in central park with a bear cub and his bike, when he was in his 50s?
Kennedy said, “What we’re trying to do is to lay out the pros and cons, the risks and benefits accurately as we understand them, with replicable studies.”
He is correct.
He is not your doctor.
I’m glad I don’t know you.
You better find some new friends. All that sickness could be contagious!
As to “Heck, my brother-in-law seems to have perpetual knee replacement issues and he’s only 50″, not true. I’m 70+, hike/jog 500-1000 miles yearly and my knees are in great shape. No pains at all. I used to have some knee pain back in the 2005 time frame but believe I have solved those problems through the use of supplements glucosamine HCL/MSM and NAC + daily stretching.
As to your BiL, he probably got a crappy replacement job done from poor MD’s.
A lot depends on just genetics.
That’s a cop-out rationalization that can’t be addressed.
It’s not a rationalization but a fact. If you do sports that don’t conform to your body plan you will get hurt. Most people learn this by high school. Some never learn and have to have various body parts replaced because they persisted doing sports they shouldn’t have been doing. Pain is your body’s way of telling you something.
The above is true. It could mean that you are training wrong, eating wrong, you need rest or you shouldn’t be doing whatever is causing the pain.
But poor genetics is small percentage excuse in my belief. There is no study on this subject to my knowledge, so no way to get a firm answer as to the role of genetics in problems (either physically or mentally).
But OK, maybe people should be evaluated at birth and those deemed having poor genetics should be culled?
Sham surgery just as effective as real arthroscopy and has lower infection rates.
https://theconversation.com/placebo-or-sham-surgery-is-not-a-cruel-trick-it-can-be-very-effective-229896
The answer is DATA DATA DATA. There are 3.1 million knee and hip replacements each year and the growth rate is 14%.
Doug is correct, you have good genetics to avoid that fate.
https://snhhealthcare.com/how-many-knee-and-hip-replacements-are-performed-in-the-us-each-year.html
Oh please. Quoting the number of operations as a rational is beyond dumb.
Probably 50% of the number you quote(assuming it is accurate) could be rehabilitated were they to consult knowledgeable people and were they willing to put the necessary work and diet changes in place to do so.
Many get knee and hip operations because they are overweight and their infrastructure isn’t capable of supporting their excess weight day after day.
Never forget that surgeons get paid to operate. You don’t make $1 million+ yearly on office visits and prescribing Ibuprofen/Tylenol
So data was provided and you don’t believe it. End of discussion, believe whatever you want.
Garbage data isn’t worth bupkis. Surely you’ve heard of GIGO?
I used to be an avid runner especially in cross-country running but around 40 years old my ancles started to hurt badly. My doctor said it wasn’t going to get better and if I continue I will need new ancles. I stopped running and started walking and have no problems with ancles or knees. Those I know who kept running have big problems now and have a hard time even walking.
Is “ancies” what the French call ankles? [lol]
I made a spelling mistake. It happens. It’s easy to do when you switch languages. C before an L is common in French while K before L is nonexistent. I made the error. Do you want a formal apology?
You aren’t alone- Jojo pretended to quote your post but mistakenly typed “ancies” instead of “ancles”.
Fortunately in the near future these comment sections will be dominated by ‘AI’ and such errors will cease!
Oops! 🙂
ancles are usually married to uncles…
My doc told me to do swimming instead of running for exercise because he’s seeing too many knee replacements.
i’m fairly certain in NYS, the feds do not pay more than 25% of the cost. so it’s a states rights issue.
obamacare was medicaide for all, plus the exchanges. in ny state, medicaide is very great service. of course the taxpayers end up paying for it. so it’s a feedback loop.
word salad for other people paying your bills.
the us tax code is jock full with free money. best to learn the rules of the game as a young man.
Zion Don is adding more to the deficit than demented Biden. And Trump tards criticize fiscal conservatives Massie and Rand for pushing back on Trumps big beautiful spending bill that has no spending cuts.
massie was mum on that Qatari plane bribe. Weird, right?
He had only one wife to give for his country.
But he does have children. After they kill one family member to send a message, they remind you that you still have other family left. Seth Rich had a twin brother. At first his parents hired a private investigator. A couple days later, they let him go and clammed up.
The logical solution is single payer funded by a national sales tax and or payroll tax. This solves all the mentioned issues. We are the only developed country without it. We have double per capital health care costs and the worst health. We do have the richest political class who like the parasites they are live off the donor class to appease their money masters.
As a hard-hearted conservative, I’ve always been opposed to any form of welfare or government supplied medical benefit except for Medicare, which workers at least pay for.
But now, we are a country of early-onset obesity brought about by the diet that keeps grain farmers and middle men in business. Politicians do nothing but support these parasites.
I’m 80 years old and still working, thank God. You don’t want to see my tax bills. My wife wonders what happened to our money this year. I told her to watch videos of cheap cruise ships and riots in Chicago, NY and LA.
These are the people living off our tax money with all the time in the world. Deadbeats and Illegals protesting against the very idea of getting rid of them, with the Democrats full support.
Please get out more?
Look at stuff daily produced by those you disagree with!
Holy mothers of bigotry try to imagine a world where you’re always right?
Could be you are an 80 year old moron!
Grow up already and wise up!
Life is too short not to entertain the dark side however you define, the dark side.
Yikes!
Sherman Act
Clayton Act
Robinson-Patman Act
Start perp walking the pharma / heathcare execs right to the Florence, Colorado pen. They are a more dangerous element to society than Uncle Ted and El Choppo.
I would add that in most of the country there is no free market in health care. There is one hospital in town and you are going there.
It’s a natural monopoly.
It sounds like Medicaid needs reform, not to have an axe taken to it. If the Feds only paid, say, 80% of it, states would have an incentive (the other 20%) to make sure it only goes to worthy recipients. It’s too complex an issue for simplistic slogans: “don’t touch Medicaid” or “cut spending on Medicaid”.
I am looking forward to being able to go on Medicare. If that makes me a commie, so be it. “Medicare for All” isn’t without merit – especially since it would make it easier to force down the amount of money that goes to doctors, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies.
currently on avg the feds pay about 50%
MediCARE is very different from mediCAID. You paid into medicare with your social security contributions. When you qualify for Medicare you will have to pay for it monthly, if you are able to collect social security at the same time as you signup for Medicare, it will be deducted from your monthly social security payments.
Make sure you at least sign up for part a when you turn 65 (actually you can do it several months before you turn 65 – at least 3 months – maybe more)
Thanks. I know it’s different. I’ve come to believe that the entire American insurance/healthcare/pharma complex is such a conspiratorial clusterf*** that a basic, government-funded cradle-to-grave medical insurance system would be better. That’s especially true since half the population is too senile or too dumb or too crazy to navigate the insurance market and to comprehend what they owe to whom. In network, out of network. The EOB (explanation of benefits) “This is not a bill” notices pile up on the floor.
It won’t matter. There won’t be enough doctors or nurses to treat all the boomers. Expect long wait times to get anything done and you’ll probably die waiting. I’ve posted various links to all the rural hospitals shutting down across America as supporting evidence.
Many doctors and nurses are fleeing red states as well due to their stupid laws regarding when a pregnant woman can be treated for health issues. No one wants to end up in jail for religious nonsense stupidity.
Hal on Earth gets it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeffXduR6VI
Doctors who made $300k – $1mil+ for 30 years will quit and live off their millions. Young smart people will still go into medicine, though, because even if salaries dropped by 1/3 it would still be good money compared to other career choices. There are more people wanting to get acceptance to med school than there are slots for them. Doctors in the UK make far less than in the U.S. There is savings to be had even while increasing the supply of doctors. Nurses are a little tougher to fill, since they’re paid so much less. If government were the main insurer, pharma companies wouldn’t be able to charge as much. Would fewer drugs come to market? Yes.
Medical professionals are no more going to accept cuts in compensation any more than workers in Trump’s new factories are going to work for $5/hr to be competitive with overseas factories because that is what they make in some place like China or Vietnam or Bangladesh.
Instead, medical workers will be replaced by AI’s just as any new factories will be “staffed” by robots.
No one will become doctors if they only make $300k instead of’$450k? I don’t believe that. Doctors will accept cuts in pay. Maybe not 60 year old doctors, but 30 year olds and upcoming ones will. It’s a stable income. Thinking they can all get other private sector jobs that pay as much is delusional – especially since not all jobs align with their skill set.
Try paying attention for a change. If you were informed, you would understand that replacing medical personnel, from MD’s to nurses to film readers, etc. is a lot closer than many want to believe.
This is being done primarily to save money but also to address shortages of human medical people, who take too long to train (for those qualified to be trained).
You might also refer to this article that I have posted in the past: MD’s are not going to take cuts anymore than anyone else would voluntarily. Most people live at or above the income they bring in. Taking cuts just isn’t possible for most.
It won’t matter. MD’s will be replaced by AI’s shortly and they can work 24 hours a day through your computer at home. You won’t even have to go to an MD’s office in most cases!
My prayer slash selfish wish every night
Let me die in my sleep and please don’t wake me up while it’s happening.
Lucky sob’s who are granted this end.
You and I will have high drama with percentages on survival times and endless treatments in hospital.
Slicing and dicing, irradiated, castrated, lambasted, tattooed, screwd, glewd, hopefully blewed? until we cackle one last death rattle into the never ending abyss.
That last paragraph sounds like what a lot of young people are doing to themselves these days.
I took a 10 day trip to Vietnam (Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh), loved it and the people. It was fascinating to walk the streets of Hanoi. You could be in the jungle so to speak in minutes. I didn’t fully realize they have a “Non-Aligned” national defense policy. Thanks for sharing.
It’s hardly different at all.
Both are federal insurance programs. If you ‘pay’ for decades into Medicare, but then die at age 59, you get squat. Because you did not meet the insurance eligibility parameters of being sick at an elderly age.
Medicaid is a federal insurance program for being poor. If you don’t ever become poor, you don’t get it (lucky you). But your tax dollars go to insure everyone.
If you don’t like federal insurance programs, so be it. Cut both – if you can get the Congressional votes. But otherwise, they are still both federal insurance programs, just set up for two different groups.
so, try not to die, before you can collect. and if you do happen to die early, your medical insurance will be the least of your worries.
The name of Medicaid should be changed. It is too often mixed up with Medicare. They are two completely different programs.
Yes, often purposely conflated by the mainstream media and other dissemblers.
The govt always takes from the poor
No, this is transfer payment to the poor for consumption.
Consumption made up of 70% of GDP and Medicaid contribute.
Ask Musk what we did.
No. They take from the middle class to give to the poor and people too lazy to work.
Of those on Medicaid in NYC 38% of them are children enrolled in New York’s Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). CHIP pays when children need medical care. NY has seen a 20% drop in enrollment as the covid measures are being unwound. It is still too much but I felt it necessary to point out that so much of them are children and seeing the cost of healthcare these days I have no problem with that. From experience of a part of my family there they do a good job with the kids when they need something.
The answer is sterilization.
Weren’t you against the COVID ‘jab’? Then why are you promoting forced sterilization?
You’re a Neanderthal
Did you see how much that ethylene oxide decades-long gradual pollution release lawsuit cost that place in Willowbrook, Illinois?
Sure. You go first.
People should not have kids if they cannot afford to provide for them and raise them.
And no, I don’t want to hear the whining about “if only thing X” hadn’t happened, everything would be fine. That’s a bogus excuse.
Kids are used everywhere to justify everything because like kittens and puppies, kids are mostly cute, until they reach their teens.
Kids are being used by politicians and their hanger-on’s who don’t want to lose this government largesse. THE CHILDREN are always used as an excuse to do or not do something.
If you wait until you can afford to have kids you will never have any.
That sounds like a good thing if otherwise their destiny would be to wind up poorly raised, living with the assistance of welfare and food stamps, not having proper dental or medical care, wearing clothes from Goodwill with the parents constantly fighting/arguing over not having enough money, not able to repair the car, not able to go on vacation, etc., etc.
I’ve been through this personally. Wipe those stars from your eyes Bunky. You’ve fallen into the trap of believing that having kids and a family is the purpose of being on this planet..
They aren’t bad baked at 400 degrees, the sauce is the secret. The leftovers aren’t good though.
LBJ’s legacy lives on, grows and thrives. The Ponzi however has a termination date.
Ever since I was old enough to comprehend the end of times I’ve been anticipating them.
Many decades later, still waiting.
Get out and enjoy life if you can.
Probably are not privileged to witness such an grand event…
welfare means less or no incentive to work – it also means paying more and getting less – cutting medicaid is a start – making it more difficult to get and reducing benefits is also a start – after a while it can be looked at again to see how the changes actually worked.
That is some fertile ground for budget cutters.
More money to MICS!!!
If’n their aim was straight they’d off loads of dead weight.
I’ve had a bulls eye on my back since the day I was born.
Lousy shots, wasted ammo.
Practice makes perfect.