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McCook Gazette
Letter to the Editor

What's confusing?

Monday, December 14, 2009

Dear Editor,

The rules of the U.S. Senate are not confusing, it is the bills our elected officials write that confuse the people. They do not read them when they are finished. They ignore all the letters and calls against the bills.

Please concentrate on the cost of health care and fix that, without gutting the whole, entire system.

We have the best health care in the world, and I hope we can get it fixed.

Tort reform would be a good start. A lot of hard-working tax payers do not hold degrees from Harvard or Yale, but we know when they are being sold a bill of goods we don't want and have it shoved down our throats. We send our officials to Washington with our trust, hoping and praying they will try to do good for the country and the people.

I have always respected our Senator and we see he is trying his best to do what is right. The majority party might change the bill just enough to get the 60 for cloture. They might change again in conference committee, maybe adding (a) government-run (option) and abortion.

When it goes back to the Senate for passage, they might use parliamentary procedure that will only require 51 votes for passage.

This is all just my opinion and right now we still have freedom of speech. Our forefathers must be scratching their heads wondering what is happening to our country.

Still a concerned father and grandfather.

W.O. Wagner,

McCook

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  • Mr. Wagner,

    You remind me of a Montana businessman of 1961, who retained me for six weeks to delve into his busineess and learn why it was not producing profit.

    Forty-two non-stop 16-hour days later, having examined every detail, I presented him a 12-page report, with specific proposals for changes in every part of the business.

    We met in his office at 7 a.m. Monday, where I handed him the report I had finished after a near sleepless weekend.

    I walked down the street for coffee and breakfast, returning at 8 a.m.

    His reponse to my detailed report and proposals --

    "I don't want to change anything, I just want to start making a profit!"

    Consider your own complaint above:

    "Please concentrate on the cost of health care and fix that, without gutting the whole, entire system."

    In other words, DON'T CHANGE ANYTHING, JUST FIX THE PROBLEMS. REDUCE THE COSTS!!!

    Consider how ridiculous that thought is.

    The problems with Health Care in this country are massive.

    First of all, at the present rate of increasing costs-- by 2015, 25% of our Gross National Product will be required to pay for Health Care and Health Insurance.

    Economically, we cannot survive with a healthy economy if Health Care cost continues to exceed 10% of our GNP.

    The Health Insurance Industry had a collective net profit of $2.5-BILLION in 1998.

    Their collective net profit for 2008 ------ $12.5-BILLION.

    [A young M.D., three years after completing his education, internship and residency, working as a General Practioner in a large member-owned Central California Coast group practice -- complained bitterly to me in 1985, "I need to clear $250,000 here annually, working Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. I can't do that and that's not fair."

    A week later, when the group's members voted to raise their nursing staff's salaries to a maximum of $40,000 after 20 years, with advanced specialty training -- His was the lone opposing vote.

    His reason, to provide a less than fair income for the nurses, he would have to work an extra day monthly -- and that was not fair!!!

    It is illogical to expect that Health Care be effectively made less expensive for us as consumers, without major changes in all aspects.

    Particularly, when a large percentage of the lower-level health care workers are grossly underpaid, with many receiving less than minimum wage.

    -- Posted by HerndonHank on Sat, Dec 19, 2009, at 8:19 PM
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