Americans, at least those with a modicum of humanity left in their personal standards, should be outraged at the actions of the so-called "health insurance industry."
Self-described "conservatives," most of them proudly wearing the neocon Republican imprimatur, have accused Obama of setting up death panels to "pull the plug on grandma," and "counseling veterans to commit suicide" are on the side of health insurance industry.
Since those so-called health insurers routinely deny coverage to applicants and toss out anyone with any imagined "pre-existing condition," it should be obvious even to a neocon with half a brain that death panels are already in existence in board rooms of America's health care and insurance industries.
All 10 Republican members of the Senate Finance Committee voted to keep the insurance industry's death panel in place by voting against the public option, the single measure that would remove the only death panel in existence. Why do so many senators and their coddled health insurance industry lobbyists want to keep the status quo? The reason may be summed up in one word, money.
From 2000 to 2007, with the assistance of President Dubyah, their kept man in the White House, profits at the top-10 public-traded health insurers increased by 428 percent.
In 2007, CEOs of those 10 companies received an average salary of $11.9 million. How does anyone rate a salary of $1 million. More to the point, from where does all that money come? It comes from the pockets of Americans who have no choice but purchase disgustingly expensive policies from which those incredible salaries are paid. Of course premiums increase, how else can they expect such outrageous salaries?
The sad point is there are supposedly two primary political parties. The truth is they're all hypocrites be they Democrat or Republican, having the same standards, crooked in the extreme, with their hands deep in the lobbyist's cookie jar.
Health care firms increased their already huge lobbying efforts in the second quarter of 2009 by $133 million, becoming lobbying's largest industry spender.
Karen Ignagni, the chief lobbyist for the Health Insurance Trade Association, made $1.65 million in 2007. What did you earn this year? The real and existing conservative-supported health insurance industry death panels will continue to decide who lives or dies from their corporate board rooms.
Single-payer is the only hope American's have now or ever for real and true health care; otherwise we're doomed.
