Surviving Capitalism (Not) : An attack on health care in the guise of reform

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Monday, March 22, 2010

An attack on health care in the guise of reform

from World Socialist Web Site. I hadn't heard before that there were cuts to Medicare in the bill. I usually find this source reliable.

The main features of the bill include hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts to Medicare, and the requirement that individuals and families obtain insurance or pay a fine, thus providing a new influx of cash-paying customers for private insurance companies. Businesses are under no obligation to provide their workers with insurance, paying only minimal fines if they do not.

Also, on the same subject an article by Chris Hedges: The Health Care Hindenburg Has Landed
Another source provides a summary sheet of changes, from FDL Action: Fact Sheet: The Truth About the Health Care Bill