I'm really looking forward to Republicans running against something called the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" in November.

Jack Welch predicts doom for the R's.

I'd love to see them make the case for bringing back recission, refusing to cover pre-existing conditions, and kicking your 22 year old children off your family policy.

In the coming months, before the next election, the discontent of the people who were happy with their insurance but whose payments have skyrocketed will easily outnumber the uninsured who actually have seen any benefits by then. Once the states start informing their citizens of what it will take to fund this federal mandate with budget cuts and raising taxes, the democrats had better have their foxholes ready. I truly didn't think that the conservatives could retake the legeslature in my lifetime but now it appears that the donkey's run will only last a decade. Thank goodness.

Is a 'physical conservative' somebody who doesn't exercise much or just somebody who is unfamiliar with a dictionary?

I know a fizzical conservative doesn't like carbonated drinks.

Is a 'physical conservative' somebody who doesn't exercise much or just somebody who is unfamiliar with a dictionary?

Both, I'm thinking. Probably doesn't own a book of any kind and lies around on the sofa listening to Glenn Beck critique the "legeslature?"

(But seriously, Physical doesn't note that the fed plan actually reduces the federal deficit. Wouldn't these states be wise to impose new taxes targeted to those who can best afford them and do the same with regard to their deficits?)

You keep paying those taxes. Ten years ago I retired from a government contractor career on a fat pension in addition to my Social Security so I want to soak you for as much as possible before I croak.

I'm sure you will correct me if I'm wrong but should I assume that, were you literate, you would call yourself a fiscal conservative?

Phsycial:

You fail to realize that you have been paying for indigent care for years. All that unpaid care that hospitals provide to the uninsured gets passed along to those that do pay. So you pay big time in ever increasing insurance rates (so they can then pay the inflated hospital bills to cover the losses incurred with the uninsured, tacking on their inflated charges for the service of paying those bills).

This health care reform will stop that outrageous escalation and will change everything about how all health care is funded.

As a health care professional who has worked with hospital billing and reimbursement, I am delighted to see this change.

I see this change being as evolutionary as in the 80's when hospital Medicare reimbursement went from paying a percentage of billed charges to a flat DRG rate*. This shifted hospitals from padding bills with unnecessary tests and long hospital stays to working to trim costs and length of stay.

That system has about run its course and needs to be revised and this reform package is a great start.

I agree with the CBO, this reform will pay for itself and will help reduce the deficit.

*Do you really want to know what DRG rates are?