Captain Zero and Health Care: Alaska Embarrassed Again
Alaska is among the states with the highest rate of persons uninsured for health care:
Uninsured by State – from Kaiser Foundation
For Alaska’s overall population, we have the 11th highest rate, tied with North Carolina. We’re not as bad a Texas, which is something WC supposes, but we’re still pretty bad.
Because there is no reason for it. Alaska has the wealth and the resources to provide health care for all who need it.
And now Captain Zero, our very own Governor Parnell, the failed co-plaintiff in the court challenge to the Affordable Care Act, is waffling over whether or not to implement the law. California can’t afford state parks; the Golden State has an excuse, at least, for it’s situation. Texas is governed by an idiot clown, Rick Perry, who utters inanities about freedom in rejecting the Affordable Care Act. And betrays a vast ignorance of both how the Constitution works and how the Affordable Care Act works.
But Alaska doesn’t have the excuse of near-insolvency or an idiot Governor. True, Captain Zero has a decidedly mixed record, but he’s not in the same plane of right-wing lunacy as Rick Perry.
And can everyone please remember that savings on Medicaid are a false savings. People still get sick and injured. The absence of health care makes treatment more expensive, not less. And we all pay when folks with no insurance coverage turn up at the emergency room. Seriously, this isn’t complicated. Alaska wins if it opts into the Affordable Care Act. Everything else is particularly stupid politics. Do the right thing, Governor.
The same impediment to the consistency that you called for yesterday is at work here. Do not be consistent. Do not do anything that might be supportive of a measure supported by Pres. Obama. Follow these mandates even at the cost to your constituency. It reminds me of the news report within the last week or so that said that in some key electoral states (which ones aren’t key, right?) that have GOP governors, those governors are being urged by the national GOP and campaign to NOT brag about improved economic conditions in their states. Iowa and Florida were two that are mentioned, and Iowa’s unemployment is getting near 6%-range, I think, and Gov. Terry Branstead was bragging about it. But the point of that was to maintain the denial that there is ANY improvement under Pres. Obama. Thus, if those GOP governors brag about their improved conditions, esp a battleground state like Florida, the Obama-Biden campaign would capitalize. Therefore, don’t brag. Today’s and yesterday’s postings seem to bear out the lesson, which is that the first loyalty is to one’s caucus and not to the country.
Paul Eaglin
Fairbanks
paul2eaglin
July 12, 2012 at 8:44 am
these days all representatives of the GOP in any state, at any level of government, is pathologically opposed to anything “tainted” by the current White House resident. the esteemed governor of texas, for example, uses words very carefully when decrying the Affordable Health Care Act. he said that every texan currently has access to health care without the Iron Fist of The Feds. one of his aides, after the firey speech, defined the phrase, “access to health care” by saying anyone can go into a hospital/clinic/etc.. apparently, who pays the bill after they walk into the care facility isn’t important right now. perry will address that picayune detail for the 25% of texans without insurance Real Soon Now.
Dan Garrett
July 12, 2012 at 11:34 am
Today’s Boston Globe has an article about a study of success in the Massachusetts health care law. It reports a Blue Cross program that achieved substantial savings, driving costs down significantly during the period studied, and describes the program. In normal times and circumstances, this would be touted in a presidential campaign. But that is one of this year’s intolerable conditions, for it might lead reasonable people to believe that ACA can achieve similar successes if implemented in good faith and over a broad constituency.
The Boston Globe online report is behind a paywall. But 50 cents will get you today’s entire edition of the Boston Globe in the Kindle edition.
Paul Eaglin
Fairbanks
paul2eaglin
July 12, 2012 at 10:09 pm