Well Mr. P&G, I guess you approve of doctors sending people home with no health care when they consider you terminal. And telling you since you smoke I wont treat you. Putting you on a waiting list, with no idea for how long, when you have debilitating pain. As a matter of fact you will go on a waiting list for most operations. I have
a relative waiting now for an operation for a
hernia. At least now he is scheduled, but had to
wait for a few months. By the way, read the little article below and these are the people you want to write the laws covering your health care.
washingtonpost.com
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Senate Votes To Privatize Its Failing Restaurants
By Paul Kane
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 9, 2008; A01
Year after year, decade upon decade, the U.S. Senate's network of restaurants has lost staggering amounts of money -- more than $18 million since 1993, according to one report, and an estimated $2 million this year alone, according to another.
The financial condition of the world's most exclusive dining hall and its affiliated Capitol Hill restaurants, cafeterias and coffee shops has become so dire that, without a $250,000 subsidy from taxpayers, the Senate won't make payroll next month.
The embarrassment of the Senate food service struggling like some neighborhood pizza joint has quietly sparked change previously unthinkable for Democrats. Last week, in a late-night voice vote, the Senate agreed to privatize the operation of its food service, a decision that would, for the first time, put it under the control of a contractor and all but guarantee lower wages and benefits for the outfit's new hires.
The House is expected to agree -- its food service operation has been in private hands since the 1980s -- and President Bush's signature on the bill would officially end a seven-month Democratic feud and more than four decades of taxpayer bailouts.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), chairman of the Rules and Administrations Committee, which oversees the operation of the Senate, said she had no choice.
"It's cratering," she said of the restaurant system. "Candidly, I don't think the taxpayers should be subsidizing something that doesn't need to be. There are parts of government that can be run like a business and should be run like businesses."
In a letter to colleagues, Feinstein said that the Government Accountability Office found that "financially breaking even has not been the objective of the current management due to an expectation that the restaurants will operate at a deficit annually."
But Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), speaking for the group of senators who opposed privatizing the restaurants, said that "you cannot stand on the Senate floor and condemn the privatization of workers, and then turn around and privatize the workers here in the Senate and leave them out on their own."
The Senate Restaurants, as the food service network is known, has a range of offerings, from the ornate Senate Dining Room on the first floor of the Capitol, where senators and their guests are served by staffers wearing jackets and ties, to the huge cafeteria in the Dirksen Building and various coffee shops throughout the Senate complex.
All told, they bring in more than $10 million a year in food sales but have turned a profit in just seven of their 44 years in business, according to the GAO.
In a masterful bit of understatement, Feinstein blamed "noticeably subpar" food and service. Foot traffic bears that out. Come lunchtime, many Senate staffers trudge across the Capitol and down into the basement cafeteria on the House side. On Wednesdays, the lines can be 30 or 40 people long.
House staffers almost never cross the Capitol to eat in the Senate cafeterias.
"It's so bad that the Senate hasn't yet figured out that House 'Taco Salad Wednesday' trumps any type of entree they have to offer," said Ron Bonjean, a former press secretary to both the House speaker and the Senate Republican leader.
"Those who think the House and Senate don't talk enough clearly haven't been in the Longworth cafeteria on the House side at lunchtime recently. Senate staffers have been flocking there for better food, more options, and you get some exercise to boot," said Brian Walsh, spokesman for Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.),who frequently dines on the other side of the Capitol.
In the past 10 years, only 20 new items have been added to the Senate menus. So rare are new entrees that last year's arrival of daily fresh-made sushi was treated in some senatorial quarters as if a new Nobu had opened in the Capitol dining room.
Even revenue in the once-profitable catering division has been decimated, as senators have increasingly sought waivers to bring in outside food for special events with cons uents and private groups.
Operation of the House cafeterias was privatized in the 1980s by a Democratic-controlled Congress. Restaurant Associates of New York, the current House contractor, would take over the Senate facilities this fall. The company wins high praise from most staffers and lawmakers, who say they are pleased with the wide variety of new items offered every few months.
Most important to Feinstein, Restaurant Associates turns a substantial profit -- paying $1.2 million in commissions to the House since 2003. Company officials did not return telephone calls seeking comment.
The rules committee began exploring its outsourcing options in 2005, when Republicans controlled the chamber. When Democrats took power last year, Feinstein ordered several studies, including hiring a consultant to examine management practices, before deciding privatization was the only possibility.
In a closed-door meeting with Democrats in November, she was practically heckled by her peers for suggesting it, senators and aides said.
"I know what happens with privatization. Workers lose jobs, and the next generation of workers make less in wages. These are some of the lowest-paid workers in our country, and I want to help them," Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), a staunch labor union ally, said recently. The wages of the approximately 100 Senate food service workers average $37,000 annually.
Feinstein made another presentation May 7, warning senators that if they did not agree to turn over the operation to a private contractor, prices would be increased 25 percent across the board.
Eventually, Democrats agreed to pass legislation that includes guarantees for those who go to work for Restaurant Associates. They would retain their current salaries and federal health and pension benefits. Employees who choose to leave instead would receive buyout packages of as much as $25,000 -- paid by the Senate. Half the current employees are likely to take that deal.
New employees, however, will not receive federal benefits, though they will be allowed to unionize.
By one estimate, Restaurant Associates would turn a large profit within three years and would begin paying about $800,000 annually in commissions to the Senate.
In the final days of negotiations, Feinstein rolled her eyes and took a deep breath before explaining the ordeal that the Senate Restaurants had become for her.
"It's clearly not the sort of thing that I ran for the Senate to do," she said. "But somebody has to do it."
The idiots cant even run their own restaurant, they have to privatize it. We have been paying for their meals it seems for some time. Make you feel better.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...l?hpid=topnews
"They have health insurance"
Avg US middle class family of four spends $12K on health care premiums and another $3K out of pocket, ing year after ing year. Assume 2 kids in-house for 20 years, that's $300K, after taxes, for health care, with only minor ($3K) illnesses.
iow, they middle-class family spends over nearly 75%, just for health, every year, of the poverty line for a family of 4.
Ahhh, your tax dollars at work. Calling for Commissions and Internal Investigations to figure out the problems with their government funded food service. Not only that, they had to have a vote on it too.
People wonder why I despise equally those dumb enough to even choose a side in this country, left or right.
Of course it's cheaper, with everyone having to be on a waiting list, the really sick people die before they see a doc.The successful VA would serve as model for how to do it right, as would other countries' national health programs that deliver care to 100% of their people for 2/3 or 1/2 national cost of the USA's
Boutons, have you ever used a VA hospital? If not, STFU... I have have used the VA twice, but will never do so again. I choose to pay more for private healthcare.
"really sick people die before they see a doc."
link? of course not. Just another fear-mongering lie on a par with O'Reilly's "no homeless vets"
100K+ PER YEAR die in USA due to avoidable medical errors. right-wingers don't about that.
200-300 $B tax dollars OVER-spent for health care for uninsured.
no problem for right-wingers
nearly everybody who declares personal bankruptcy does so for medical catastrophe AND they had medical insurance. no problem for bubbas.
I got lots of facts. Aggie gots lots of lies and Repug talking points.
Clanny, go your military ass.
You're have the $ to choose, many aren't.
Typical that you extrapolate failure to the the entire VA system by your extremely limited experience.
LMAO! You talk about you have no knowledge about.
I, of course, have many vet friends. None of my friends with the means to pay use VA healthcare. It sucks. So, it is not only me, it is everyone who has a choice.
You're right I guess I should have known better. Repubs only vote for their own self interests and only care about what affects them. Selfish s that could care less about what is good for society in general. They could care less about people that have zero coverage as long as it's not them or their family. Selfish s.
I use the VA hospital when I have to. While it's not the best (mainly due to what they will and won't cover) I at least have some form of coverage. When it comes to dental, no coverage at all and I am forced to go to T.J. to get my dental work done. I am lucky because T.J. is so close to me, not everybody has that luxury and option. Sad that people, even veterans, have to go out of the country to get the care they need.
What the are you talking about and what the does cafeteria food have to do with healthcare. You sure are grasping at straws. Comparing cafeteria lunch to nationalized healthcare
And sending people home because they have no coverage is what happens in the U.S. It's a common occurrence, look it up I'm sure you'll find all types of occasions when this happens. In Europe they send people home with no coverage when they consider you terminal?? Bull , not true. No coverage since you smoke?? Bull . Have you ever been to Europe?? Because if you have you would know that EVERYBODY and their mom smokes there. You're basically saying nobody has coverage there, because EVERYBODY is a smoker there. Just fear mongering and lies.
I can tell you a story of how American doctors operated on my friend for an appendix and then sowed him up with laser nicks in his abdomen. He complained later of pain in his stomach and they sent him home with Motrin. The pain was unbearable so we took him to a German hospital late at night. Luckily the German doctors treated him immediately and found that he was leaking poisonous fluids into his body. There was no waiting list, he wasn't told he wasn't covered, he wasn't sent home without being treated. He was operated on, stayed in the hospital for weeks with his stomach open to detoxify the poisons in his body. He was not given substandard healthcare, even though he was not a German citizen. The German doctors saved his life and could not believe the care that the American doctors gave him. He was also a smoker by the way, in case you were wondering. This was possible because everybody is covered. And once again no there was no waiting list. He was treated immediately and given proper care.
Will health care quality and speed decline?
If so, I wish death on all politicians who push for this.
Just kidding FBI.
That's weird. I have heard many stories of german health care. I just don't know who to believe anymore!What the are you talking about and what the does cafeteria food have to do with healthcare
And sending people home because they have no coverage is what happens in the U.S. It's a common occurrence, look it up I'm sure you'll find all types of occasions when this happens. In Europe they send people home with no coverage when they consider you terminal?? Bull , not true. No coverage since you smoke?? Bull . Have you ever been to Europe?? Because if you have you would know that EVERYBODY and their mom smokes there. You're basically saying nobody has coverage there, because EVERYBODY is a smoker there. Just fear mongering and lies.
I can tell you a story of how American doctors operated on my friend for an appendix and then sowed him up with laser nicks in his abdomen. He complained later of pain in his stomach and they sent him home with Motrin. The pain was unbearable so we took him to a German hospital late at night. Luckily the German doctors treated him immediately and found that he was leaking poisonous fluids into his body. There was no waiting list, he wasn't told he wasn't covered, he wasn't sent home without being treated. He was operated on, stayed in the hospital for weeks with his stomach open to detoxify the poisons in his body. He was not given substandard healthcare, even though he was not a German citizen. The German doctors saved his life and could not believe the care that the American doctors gave him. He was also a smoker by the way, in case you were wondering. This was possible because everybody is covered. And once again no there was no waiting list. He was treated immediately and given proper care.
yeah, not every german has healthcare.
Believe the Truth!!
Actually only the top 10% are allowed to opt out and get their own healthcare. Everybody else has to be covered by law.
My aunt, for one. So eat and die you little wad.
Oh, and copy and paste jobs from liberal blogs don't qualify as facts.
"My aunt"
please provide details and do entation. else, "eat and die you little wad"
All the stuff I posted is on publicly available info, has nothing to with left or right. It's just the way the "free market/for-profit" health care system has rigged the game to over their clients.
Why would the top ten percent want to opt out if
it is such a good health system. Strange that the
well to do can go the private route.
Like Teddy, reckon he could run off down to
North Carolina, was it, for the best doctor for his
condition was located to get treated under
Universal Health Care? Well he could, but could
you?
How convenient. I'll bet the lawmakers are in that top 10%, excluding themselves from the inadequate system of rationed health care.
"Why would the top ten percent want to opt out if
it is such a good health system"
here's how it works.
The insurance companies keep hiking premiums annually 2x or 3x rate of inflation.
The healthy/wealthy top end can afford, by $$ and by their health, to go shopping for a better deal. If they can't find a better, they stick around, they can afford it, whether they like it or not.
The unhealthy/unwealthy bottom end hang on to their skyrocketing insurance, continuously downgranding their plan so they afford (aka underinsured), knowing because they have a chronic condition, they'll be denied insurance elsewhere.
Finally, they drop out, going completely uninsured.
That's how an insurance company can "ethnically cleanse" its client list of unhealthy (expensive claims) clients on the bottom end.
It's a simple business principle: sell the fewest products at the highest price and margin to people who can pay. Would you rather sell one $250K sell 10 $20K cars?
btw, recent reports show that poor, uneducated people have more disease and die sooner than educated, non-poor. Exactly the kind of ruthless social Darwinism enforced by "free market" the conservatives/Repugs live by.
Access to health care is a "right"?
no, it's a luxury product like any other.
If you can't afford it, off.
that's not true. the girl i knew had no job, thus no healtcare...
Okay you ing . I'll just get my uncle on the phone to scan and email me her medical do ents so I can post them here on the forum, I'll tell him I need them to shut up some liberal wad who wants universal health care in our country because he's too ing stupid to know any better.
You really are a piece of you know that?
When I think of Government-run Health-Care the first thoughts that come to mind are, corrupt and inept.
Health Care is an important issue regarding United States as well as the rest of the world.
From reading the arguments being raised in this thread, I think that the solution would have to combine private insurance market and a little gov’t intervention in the insurance sector. For example, USA needs to keep its thriving insurance market however a couple changes would improve it.
Currently, most of the middle, upper middle, and high class can afford health insurance at the concurrent rates. The problem would be people at the poor class and lower middle class which are individuals that have more health problems and therefore would receive higher premiums. Here is where the gov’t can help the lower class by making a threshold of income and if the income is lower than the threshold the gov’t can help the struggling family with their insurance premiums. For example, some families might be making 50-55,000 a year, which would enable them to pay a portion of their premium and the other one can be covered by the pool mentioned below. If both parents combined are making 30,000 a year; they can’t afford health insurance; however the gov’t can insure them through the Pool (explained below).
Therefore the government can start by passing a bill that requires every insurance company to pay a certain percent of its premiums, contribution, and transfer them to a CRL pool that would be used to cover the lower class population that is unable to purchase insurance. To make up for the fees contributed to the pool, insurance companies can invest their regular amount + the percent charged by the government; which would only contribute to a small amount of loss. Also, the pool’s assets can be invested so that insurance companies would have to pay lower percentage as the pools’ assets cover the risk of the lower class's health claims.
I would like to see everyone get health care but I have lived in a socialized heath care environment in Europe and I did not like it. Currently, my friend’s mother in Europe is waiting for a tumor surgery and if not operated within 4 weeks, she would not be able to recover. Her scheduled date is 2 month from now…..What the is she supposed to do? Wait….
Of course, she is going to another country to receive the surgery.
Also, the service you would receive in socialized health care is horrible…I’d rather work two jobs to pay for a quality health care! Also, there is a higher percentage of people that have died due to medical mistakes in a socialized heath care environment than in the private environment.
Last edited by Emanuel20; 06-11-2008 at 10:28 PM.
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