In other words, half of the people in Texas who have no medical insurance now would be able to obtain insurance, if Gov. Perry would relent on his heartless commitment to... well, to whom, exactly? His refusal is even bad for the state's health care industry! ThinkProgress put it this way back in July:
...Between Perry's dismissal of people's need for medical insurance (reminiscent of the CEO of Whole Paycheck a few years ago) and Mitt Rmoney's remarks about the 47% who are dependent on the government, this seems to be "National Republican Blame‑the‑Victim Week." They really are proper bastards, aren't they?
Perry’s announcement is an especially harmful move because Texas will benefit more from the Affordable Care Act than any other state. Texas was recently ranked worst in the country for health care delivery by the federal Agency for Health Care Research and Quality, scoring “weak” or “very weak” in nine of 12 categories. Perry’s office discounted the study as overly broad, and has argued that Texans’ real problem is personal health choices, not lack of health insurance.
More than 25 percent of Texans – 6,234,900 people – are uninsured, the highest rate in the nation. ...
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So WTF are Perry and three other Republican governors thinking? Matthew DeLuca at The Daily Beast attempts to answer that question:
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Perry may not like the idea of expanding Medicaid, ... Some studies show that without the Affordable Care Act, the number of uninsured Texans could climb all the way to one third of the population.
Health care is one of the state’s biggest industries, and hospitals in Texas are likely to push hard in the coming months to get the Lone Star State to take Obamacare into its warm embrace. ...
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Let me insert a note: a quick glance does not show any change in Perry's position since July (ThinkProgress Aug. 27, Dallas Morning News Sep. 17). Resuming DeLuca:
...Could we please arrange for a deck chair for Gov. Perry? His disinclination to implement federal law (even if he is legally entitled... can I say "entitled" about a Republican?) reminds me of the Tea Party, or worse. Say, could we arrange for the TP to make up the rest of the "thousand people"?
The Affordable Care Act is supposed to go into full effect in 2014, but Perry says he will not implement the expansion of Medicaid or creation of a state health-care exchange prescribed by the law. ...
“To expand this program is like adding a thousand people to the Titanic,” Perry said Monday on Fox News. “You don’t expand a program that is not working already.”
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When oh when will Texans take back their state? I just can't believe that Texans in both parties of moral integrity and common sense can let this disaster stand.
ReplyDeletekarmanot, Texas is districted to emphasize the rural vote, and rural Texans largely vote Republican for social-cultural or religious reasons. That won't change anytime soon, I'm afraid. It would be best if I just moved somewhere else. But that will have to be in another lifetime...
ReplyDeleteAfterthought: Gov. Perry rode into office after GeeDubya became preznit, with the financial support of a group of El Paso businessmen, who for years straight-out owned him, and were not shy about admitting it. Now, in the days of Citizens United, Perry has underwriters with more money than God, and his appropriate title is "Governor‑for‑Life."
ReplyDeleteWe would more than welcome you two and assorted kittahs to Northern CA. You would like it here.
ReplyDeleteThat is indeed most kind of you, karmanot. I am uncertain if I will ever be physically able to move again, even across town. But it is good to know we have friends in other, more reasonable places!
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