Obama and U.S. Healthcare

While I like some of the things that Obama is up to, this health
care plan gives me pause. It was quickly put together, no one in
Congress has read it, Obama has not read it, and there seem to be
too many "loose ends".

John David Lewis, a university professor actually took the time to
read the bill. He is not in politics and has no "axe to grind" in
any direction. He just wanted to know how it would affect him and
his family. Here are a few of the things that he found:

Medical Care Rationing: (ii) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN READMISSIONS.
—For purposes of clause (i), with respect to a hospital, excess readmissions
shall not include readmissions for an applicable condition for which there are
fewer than a minimum number (as determined by the Secretary) of discharges
for such applicable condition for the applicable
period and such hospital.

‘(A) APPLICABLE CONDITION.—The term ‘applicable condition’ means,
subject to subparagraph (B), a condition or procedure selected by the Secretary.

‘‘(E) READMISSION.—The term ‘readmission’ means, in the case of an
individual who is discharged from an applicable hospital, the admission
of the individual to the same or another applicable hospital within a time
period specified by the Secretary from the date of such discharge.

‘‘(6) LIMITATIONS ON REVIEW.—There shall be no administrative or
judicial review under section 1869, section 1878, or otherwise of— . . .
‘‘(C) the measures of readmissions . . .

EVALUATION OF THE PASSAGES:

• This section amends the Social Security Act

• The government has the power to determine what constitutes an

“applicable [medical] condition.”

• The government has the power to determine who is allowed readmission
  

into a hospital. This determination will be made by statistics:

when enough people have been discharged for the same condition,

an individual may be readmitted.

• This is government rationing, pure, simple, and straight up.

• There can be no judicial review of decisions made here. The Secretary
  

is above the courts. The plan also allows the government to prohibit hospitals

from expanding without federal permission: page 317-318.