Trees In What Was A Building

post from Texas Liberal on 19 January 2011 11:59:28 PM. © Texas Liberal

Here are trees in what was once a building in the Mt. Auburn neighborhood of Cincinnati. Nothing is forever. Nothng is even for all that long. Make the best of each day, while at the same time seeing the big picture. Photo copyright Neil Aquino.

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Bullish Blue Dogs Oppose Health Care Repeal

post from FiveThirtyEight on 19 January 2011 11:55:40 PM. © FiveThirtyEight

Some moderate Democrats who voted against the health care bill opposed an attempt to repeal it.

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O'Reilly Pretends Emergency Health Care Is Free

post from Media Matters for America - Latest Items on 19 January 2011 11:52:09 PM. © Media Matters for America - Latest Items

Bill O'Reilly downplayed concerns about Americans not having health insurance, saying, "Hospitals are mandated to treat uninsured people." In fact, uncompensated care shifts the burden of providing care to the insured and to government budgets.

O'ReillyCites Emergency Care To Dismiss Concerns About Uninsured Americans

O'Reilly: "GoodGrief! Hospitals Are Mandated To Treat Uninsured." Responding to Rep.Sheila Jackson Lee's concerns about the possibility of uninsured Americansdying if health care reform is repealed, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly said:

Goodgrief! Hospitals are mandated to treat uninsured people, even if they're in thecountry illegally. Also the feds already subsidize medical insurance for thepoor. [Fox News, The O'Reilly Factor, 1/19/11]

Paying ForUninsured Care Increases Insurance Premiums, Burdens Government Budgets

Uncompensated Care Leads To Higher Premiums For Insured. A studyby Families USA found that:

Because of the high cost of health care,uninsured people are less likely to get the care that they need when they needit, and they are more likely to delay seeking care for as long as possible.When a health problem becomes so serious that treatment can no longer bedelayed, the uninsured seek care. Then, they struggle to pay as much of theirbills as they can: In 2008, the uninsured paid an average of 37 percent of thecost of care that they received out of their own pockets. However, they cannotusually afford to pay the whole bill on their own, and a portion goes unpaid(this is called "uncompensated care"). To cover the cost of this uncompensatedcare, health care providers charge higher rates when insured people receivecare, and these increases are passed on to those who have insurance in the formof higher premiums, known as a "hidden health tax." In 2008, for example, this"hidden health tax" increased premiums for family health coverage by an averageof $1,017, and, for single individuals, by $368.
If nothing is done to reduce the number ofuninsured and the uncompensated care that is provided to them, premiums willcontinue their rapid ascent, and evermore people will be priced out ofcoverage. This vicious circle can be stopped, and the price of coverage can bestabilized--but only if we expand coverage.
As coverage is expanded under the House bill,the amount of uncompensated care for the uninsured will fall, and doctors andhospitals will no longer have to pass on the cost of this care to insurers.Insurers, in turn, should then be in a position to slow the rate of increase inthe premiums they charge. [Families USA, July 2009]

Shifting Costs Of Uninsured Strains State And Local GovernmentBudgets. The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured reported:

More uninsured puts pressure on state budgets because states often finance uncompensated care at local hospitals and clinics. Uncompensated care is also financed by Medicaid and Medicaredisproportionate share hospital payments, some indirect graduate medicaleducation payments, state and local appropriations, and a variety of otherprograms such as the Veterans Administration, the Indian Health Serviceand Community Health Centers. There is also some "shifting" of costs to theprivately insured. Most of these revenue streams are not likely toincrease in the current environment in response to a larger uninsuredpopulation, thus most of these costs that we project are likely to borneby providers, states and or their localities or the uninsured will haveless access to care. At a 7 percent unemployment rate, theincreased costs of funding additional uncompensated care costs at currentlevels would be $3.2 billion and $7.2 billion at 10 percent unemployment.[Kaiser Family Foundation, January 2009]

Uncompensated Care Estimated To Have Cost Federal, State, AndLocal Governments $42.9 Billion In 2008. The Kaiser FamilyFoundation also reported that the primary source of funding for uncompensatedcare of the uninsured is federal and state governments:

Federal and state government dollars are theprimary source of funding for uncompensated care of the uninsured.
Combining federal, state, and local fundingstreams, $42.9 billion dollars will be used for uncompensated care for theuninsured in 2008 - which will cover at least 75% of the total uncompensatedcare amount this year.
Federal dollars, largely flowing through theMedicare and Medicaid programs, account for 60% of these government dollars.
Two-thirds of government spending for uncompensated care goes tohospitals--paying for nearly $29 billion of the $35 billion they will incur.[Kaiser Family Foundation, August 2008]

UninsuredHave Higher Mortality Rates Than Insured

StudyFound Lack Of Insurance Was A Factor In Almost 45,000 Deaths Each Year. A study entitled"Health Insurance and Mortality in US Adults" concluded that those withoutinsurance had a higher mortality rate than those with insurance. By applyingthat ratio to 2005 census data, the study concluded that lack of insurance wasa factor in almost 45,000 deaths every year. The report concluded that"[u]ninsurance is associated with mortality. The strength of thatassociation appears similar to that from a study that evaluated data from themid-1980s, despite changes in medical therapeutics and the demography of theuninsured since that time." [American Journal of Public Health, Vol99, No. 12, December 2009, via Media Matters]

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Open Thread

post from Crooks and Liars on 19 January 2011 11:30:04 PM. © Crooks and Liars

enlarge Credit: Blue Gal

I won't win because I altered the dimensions of the original, but here's what I did with Stephen Colbert's portrait challenge. You can enter yours via Colbert Nation, and click the image above to see a larger version of mine.

Open thread below.

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http://crooksandliars.com/bluegal/open-thread-568

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Our Stunning First Lady Upstages the Presidents

post from Taylor Marsh on 19 January 2011 11:27:14 PM. © Taylor Marsh

First Lady Michelle Obama is wearing Alexander McQueen.Nice touch. Kenneth Roth, executive director for Human Rights Watch, was among the guests at the state dinner this evening.The food sounds sumptuous, lobster my favorite, but the entertainment is[...]

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Our Stunning First Lady Upstages the Boys

post from Taylor Marsh on 19 January 2011 11:27:14 PM. © Taylor Marsh

Nice touch. Kenneth Roth executive director for Human Rights Watch was among the guests at the state dinner this evening.The food sounds sumptuous, but the entertainment is right where my music tastes live. Jazz.The theme for the evening was[...]

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Open Thread and Diary Rescue

post from Daily Kos on 19 January 2011 11:16:04 PM. © Daily Kos

Tonight's Rescue Rangers are Alfonso Nevarez, ItsJessMe, sunspark says, grog, dopper0189, and vcmvo2 as reader and editor.

The rescued diaries are:

TheGrandWazoo gives us another lesson on persuasion in Convincing Lies and Failed Truth. (Alfonso Nevarez)

Avatar? RoboCop? The Breakfast Club? Iron Man? The Incredibles? Batman? The Dark Knight? Rimjob asks which are The Most Interesting Examples Of Alleged Film Subtext? (ItsJessMe)

Dr Teeth thinks it is time we began a serious discussion about The China Problem. (sunspark says)

revgerry launches a three-part series about a city the diarist loves: My Tucson. (ItsJessMe)

NNadir discusses a recent scientific paper on Oxygen Separation Via the Application of High Temperatures. (ItsJessMe)

jimluce offers some perspective on Jean-Claude Duvalier: His Place in Haitian History. (ItsJessMe)

TheGrandWazoo points us to the Most important story I've read in a long time and offers some thoughts of his own. (sunspark says)

fivefouranonymous urges us to get the word out on a powerful new tool: Get Specific: New District by District Analysis of HCR Repeal. (ItsJessMe)

jotter has today's High Impact Diaries: Janury 18, 2011.

emeraldmaiden has tonight's Top Comments 1/19/11 - Loving Maru.

Enjoy and please feel free to promote your favorite diaries from the last twenty-four hours in this Open Thread!

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-Rescue

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Late Night: Joezymandias

(An original Pome by Thersey Thyshhe Therssey. Ahem.)[...]

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Beck Tries To Whitewash His History Of Calling
Obama Racist

post from Media Matters for America - Latest Items on 19 January 2011 11:01:05 PM. © Media Matters for America - Latest Items

Glenn Beck made the laughably false claim that he only made "one comment, one time" accusing President Obama of being racist, adding, "and I made it early in the morning." In fact, Beck has repeatedly accused Obama of racism and of using the presidency to "settle old racial scores."

Beck:"I Made One Comment, One Time" Calling Obama A Racist - "And I MadeIt Early In The Morning"

From the January 19 editionof Fox News' Glenn Beck:

BECK:A year and a half ago I made one comment, one time, about the President of theUnited States. And I made it early in the morning and I made it at a time whenI was trying to figure out what the heck was going on. Look for the context.I'm not gonna -- I don't need to give it to -- I believe you've probablyalready done your own homework even if you hate me.
Whatwas the context? I was trying to figure out what was happening. What is causingthis guy to react and act the way he does. It was immediately something that Irealized I shouldn't have said out loud because I hadn't finished my thinkingon it. Said it was wrong to say. I don't even believe it. Didn't take me longto not even believe it. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, rife with cartoons depicting serape-and sombrero-clad Mexicans with thickmustaches. The book also uses a cartoon Chinese takeout container to representChinese immigrants. [Arguing With Idiots, pgs. 140-141, 295]

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C&L's Late Night Music Club With T. Rex

Genre: T. RexTitle: Mystic Lady
video details and more

I could go on for days about how much I love T. Rex, especially 1972's The Slider. Mark Bolan's songs are nearly perfect, and producer Tony Visconti derserves bucketloads of credit for shaping and defining the sound of the 'Glam' era. I once read an interview whith the legendary producer where he attributed the greatness of his recordings to technological limitations in the studio. Without the ability to edit and overdub limitlessly, everything that went to tape had to mean something and it was harder to ruin something by overthinking. Either way, he got results. What are your favorites from the Glam old days?

Slider (Dlx)