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 Special
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9-11
Meta Index September 11 2001
CLONING
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SENIOR News:
20080921
 John
McCain -  Corporate
-  Government
- Disaster
-  Politics
- US_Debt
-  Healthcare
- Social
Security - Rights
-  Book
- 2008
Election
"Naomi
Klein: Financial crisis part of Bush 'shock doctrine'."
... "The bailout of Wall Street’s largest players by the federal government
is another example of the [Republican President] Bush administration pursuing
a corporate agenda at the expense of average Americans, a prominent author
argued on Friday." ... "In a Friday night interview on HBO's Real Time
with Bill Maher, Naomi Klein said President Bush’s $700
billion proposal to rescue the financial sector stems from a profiteering
streak that has dominated the last eight years." ... ""The disaster is
far from over," Klein said. "The disaster was on Wall Street and they have
moved the disaster to Main Street."" ... "Referring to the bailout, Klein
said the "bomb has yet to detonate" and that the real crisis will strike
when tax payers are overwhelmed when faced with the debt from the bailouts."
... "According to Klein, the bomb will detonate if
Sen. John McCain becomes president and "rationalizes" that it is necessary
to privatize government programs like social security and healthcare because
neither the government nor Americans can afford them." ... ""The real disaster
has yet to come; the real disaster is the debt that is going to explode
on American tax payers," Klein said." ... "Klein’s book, "The Shock Doctrine:
The Rise of Disaster Capitalism," outlines how crises, real or perceived,
have been used by governments, especially the United States under George
W. Bush, to strong-arm
a disoriented citizenry into accepting changes to its rights, and its
government, that it wouldn't otherwise accept." -By
David Edwards and Andrew McLemore -RawStory.com
 WATCH:
Naomi Klein on Republican Bush's "Shock Doctrine"
John
McCain -  Barack
Obama - Health-Care
- Economy
-  Parents
- Social
Security - Journal
-  Fla
- 2008
Election
"McCain
Health-Care Article Fuels New Clash Over Economy."
... "An article [by McCain] about health care published in an obscure journal
led to a new skirmish Saturday between the campaigns of [2008 Election
Presidential Candidates] Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain
over who should be trusted with the ailing economy." ... "The article was
published in Contingencies magazine, which is produced under the auspices
of the American Academy of Actuaries. In it, McCain touted his plans for
increasing competition in health care as one way to expand coverage and
reduce costs." ... "McCain wrote, "Opening up the health insurance market
to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last
decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less
burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation."" ... "Obama,
appearing at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Fla. [Florida],
mocked his rival for sounding out of touch at a time when Washington is
moving rapidly to re-regulate the financial industry to curb the excesses
that put the system into near-paralysis in the past week." ... ""So let
me get this straight -- he wants to run health care like they've been running
Wall Street," Obama told the audience. "Well, Senator, I know some folks
on Main Street who aren't going to think that's such a good idea."" ...
"With millions of Americans worrying about their retirement security as
federal officials rushed to stabilize the shaky financial system, Obama
also seized on McCain's support for partial privatization of Social Security.
He said McCain was prepared to gamble with people's life savings." ...
""If my opponent had his way, the millions of Floridians who rely on it
would've had their Social Security tied up in the stock market this week,"
he said. "Millions would've watched as the market tumbled and their nest
egg disappeared before their eyes. Millions of families would've been scrambling
to figure out how to give their mothers and fathers, their grandmothers
and grandfathers, the secure retirement that every American deserves.""
(1, 2)
-By Dan Balz -WashingtonPost
20080613
 Tim
Russert - Barack
Obama - John
McCain -  Internet
-  EMail
-  Media
- 
- Politics
- Religion
-  Indiana
-  Illinois
-  US
-  Iraq
-  Iran
-  Military
- Money
- Social
Security - 2008
Election
[NOTE:
On the day MSNBC's Meet
the Press television political journalist Tim Russert died, MSNBC published
this interview with Tim Russert:]
"Vigilance
needed on campaign claims: Big issues, not smears,
need to be the focus." ... "Msnbc: Tim, www.fightthesmears.com
is a web site launched by the [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate]
Barack Obama campaign to combat potentially damaging rumor about the candidate
and his wife, Michelle. Is this necessary? How big of a problem is
this really?" ... "Tim Russert: It’s amazing how much the Internet
has changed our lives. People get emails that make accusations without
foundation and they are circulated around the country within seconds and
suddenly become topics of conversations around water coolers or in lunchrooms."
... "I remember being in Indianapolis [Indiana's capital] covering the
Indiana primary and a man came up to me and said he wasn’t going to vote
for [Illinois] Senator Obama because he was very concerned about the comments
made by Jeremiah Wright, Obama’s pastor. I said, “That’s interesting.
As a reporter, I’m curious what comments particularly bothered you?”
He said, “Well, I can’t think of any that come to mind, but I also read
on the Internet that he’s a Muslim.” And I said, “Now wait a minute.
You can’t have both. You can’t be offended by his Christian minister
and then say he’s a Muslim. You’ve got to pick one.”" ... "But that
just underscores what we’re dealing with in this modern era." ... "Now
I’m told there’s a counter organization with a very similar name that is
going to be positioned and posted to spread the rumors, so that people
that go to the Internet to get clarification will go to the wrong web site
and get confused." ... "It’s a virus. You have bloggers on both sides,
liberals and conservatives, Republicans and Democrats all trying to utilize
this vehicle without any kind of fact checking and without any kind of
editorial control." ... "Msnbc: Given the way people use the
Internet, do you wonder if there are going to be some things said or done
during the course of this campaign that will be very unsettling?" ... "Russert:
That’s what we have to be conscious of and vigilant against, particularly
at the end of the campaign as things are put out there. We’ve already
had a few fake videos with different words dubbed in and people say, “This
must be true because I saw it on the Internet.”" ... "What we hope to do
in this campaign is recognize there are big differences on big issues between
John McCain and Barack Obama – the war in Iraq, Iran, Social Security,
taxes. You don’t need to get into this other stuff. If it does
surface, then I think the mainstream media has an obligation not to just
instinctively put it out there without vetting it. Or, if it is something
that is manufactured as a virus, report on that – who did it and why.
But sometimes it’s very hard to trace it back to its original source."
-MSNBC
20080611
Barack
Obama - John
McCain - Money
- Politics
-  Workers
- Retirees
-  Homeowners
-  Students
-  Farmers
- Families
- US_Debt
-  Law
- Illinois
-  Arizona
- 2008
Election
"A
Preliminary Analysis of the 2008 Presidential Candidates' Tax Plans."
[Full
Report PDF] ... "Senator [from Illinois and 2008 Election Democratic
Presidential Candidate Barack] Obama would permanently extend certain provisions
of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts primarily affecting taxpayers with incomes
under $250,000; increase the maximum rate on capital gains and qualified
dividends; and enact new and expanded targeted tax breaks for workers,
retirees, homeowners, savers, students, and new farmers. Senator [from
Arizona and 2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain
proposes to extend permanently the AMT "patch" that has prevented most
individuals and families with incomes below $200,000 from being affected
by the tax, and in our interpretation of his proposal, Senator Obama would
do the same." ... "Although both candidates have at times stressed fiscal
responsibility, their specific non-health tax proposals would reduce tax
revenues by $3.7 trillion (McCain) and $2.7 trillion (Obama) over the next
10 years, or approximately 10 and 7 percent of the revenues scheduled for
collection under current law, respectively. Furthermore, as in the case
of [Republican] President Bush's tax cuts, the true cost of McCain's policies
may be masked by phase-ins and sunsets (scheduled expiration dates) that
reduce the estimated revenue costs. If his policies were fully phased in
and permanent, the ten-year cost would rise to $4.1 trillion, or about
11 percent of total revenues." -TaxPolicyCenter.org
20080422
-
 Smog
-  Science
- Elderly
- Children
-  Environmental
- Safety
- Government
- Politics
-  Fuel
- Industry
- Clean
Air - Law
- "Scientists:
Smog contributes to premature death." ... "Short-term
exposure to smog, or ozone, is clearly linked to premature deaths that
should be taken into account when measuring the health benefits of reducing
air pollution, a National Academy of Sciences review concludes." ... "The
findings contradict arguments made by some [Republican President Bush]
White House officials that the connection between smog and premature death
has not been shown sufficiently and that the number of saved lives should
not be calculated in determining clean air benefits." ... "The report released
Tuesday by a panel of the Academy's National Research Council says government
agencies "should give little or no weight" to such arguments." ... ""The
committee has concluded from its review of health-based evidence that short-term
exposure to ambient ozone is likely to contribute to premature deaths,"
the 13-member panel said." ... "It added that "studies have yielded strong
evidence that short-term exposure to ozone can exacerbate lung conditions,
causing illness and hospitalization and can potentially lead to death.""
... "Ground-level ozone is formed from nitrogen oxide and organic compounds
created by burning fossil fuels and is demonstrated often by the yellow
haze or smog that lingers in the air. Ozone exposure is a leading cause
of respiratory illnesses and especially affects the elderly, those with
respiratory problems and children." -AP
via -CNN
-
 Women's
- Health
- Science
- Life-Expectancy
-  Washington
- "Life
Expectancy Drops for Some U.S. Women: Historic Reversal,
Found in 1,000 Counties, May Be Result of Smoking and Obesity." ... "For
the first time since the Spanish influenza of 1918, life expectancy is
falling for a significant number of American women." ... "In nearly 1,000
counties that together are home to about 12 percent of the nation's women,
life expectancy is now shorter than it was in the early 1980s, according
to a study published today." ... ""I think this is a harbinger. This is
not going to be isolated to this set of counties, is my guess," said Christopher
J.L. Murray, a physician and epidemiologist at the University of Washington
who led the study. It is being published in PLoS
Medicine [PDF], an open-access journal of the Public Library of Science."
... "The study found a smaller decline, in far fewer places, in the life
expectancy of men in this country. In all, longevity is declining for about
4 percent of males." ... "The phenomenon appears to be not only new but
distinctly American." ... "Life expectancy is not a direct measure of how
long people live. Instead, it is a prediction of how long the average person
would live if the death rates at the time of his or her birth lasted a
lifetime." ... "About 33 percent of women are now obese, compared with
31 percent of men. Extreme obesity is twice as common in women (7 percent)
as in men (3 percent)." (1, 2)
-By David Brown -WashingtonPost
20080418
-
Barack
Obama - United
States - Social
Security - Health
Care - Housing
- Markets
- Public
Schools - Poverty
- Race
-
 Global
-  Climate
- Law
- Politics
- 2008
Election - "[Robert
Reich:] Obama for President." ... "I believe that
Barack Obama should be elected President of the United States." ... "Although
Hillary Clinton has offered solid and sensible policy proposals, Obama's
strike me as even more so. His plans for reforming Social Security and
health care have a better chance of succeeding. His approaches to the housing
crisis and the failures of our financial markets are sounder than hers.
His ideas for improving our public schools and confronting the problems
of poverty and inequality are more coherent and compelling. He has put
forward the more enlightened foreign policy and the more thoughtful plan
for controlling global warming." ... "He also presents the best chance
of creating a new politics in which citizens become active participants
rather than cynical spectators. He has energized many who had given up
on politics. He has engaged young people to an extent not seen in decades.
He has spoken about the most difficult problems our society faces, such
as race, without spinning or simplifying. He has rightly identified the
armies of lawyers and lobbyists that have commandeered our democracy, and
pointed the way toward taking it back." ... "Finally, he offers the best
hope of transcending the boundaries of class, race, and nationality that
have divided us. His life history exemplifies this, as do his writings
and his record of public service. For these same reasons, he offers the
best possibility of restoring America's moral authority in the world."
-By Robert
Reich
20080410
-
John
McCain - Health
-
 History
- Senior
- Politics
- Parents
- Women
- Education
- Science
- Money
- 2008
Election -  WVa
- "Dean:
McCain's Age Worries Voters: DNC Chair Cites Health,
'Old-Fashioned' Views." ... "Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard
Dean said Thursday that swing voters participating in focus groups commissioned
by the D.N.C. [Democratic National Committee] bring up [2008 Election Republican
Presidential Candidate] John McCain's age unprompted." ... ""We didn't
bring it up, but they volunteered it," said Dean who explained that voters
have two concerns about McCain's age. "One was a health concern, the other
was, and this is really interesting . . . that his views are old-fashioned.""
... "At the age of 72, McCain would be the oldest newly elected president
in U.S. [United States] history if inaugurated in 2009." ... "Referring
to what Dean characterized as the party's most conservative focus group
in Charleston, W. Va. [West Virginia], the DNC chairman said "the women
in that group were shocked that [McCain] believed health insurance shouldn't
cover birth control pills and they were shocked about his belief in abstinence
only education."" (1, 2)
-By Teddy Davis and Mike Elmore
-ABCNEWS.com
20080306
-
 Dick
Cheney
- Corporate
- Military
- Government
- KBR-Halliburton
-  Cayman
Islands -  United
Arab Emirates (Dubai) - Secret
- Iraq
- Oil
- Infrastructure
- History
- American
- Workers
- Health
- Security
- Legislation
-  Massachusetts
- "Top
Iraq contractor skirts US taxes offshore: Shell companies
in Cayman Islands allow KBR to avoid Medicare, Social Security deductions."
... "Kellogg Brown & Root, the nation's top Iraq war contractor and
until last year a subsidiary of Halliburton Corp. [Corporation], has avoided
paying hundreds of millions of dollars in federal Medicare and Social Security
taxes by hiring workers through shell companies based in this tropical
tax haven [Cayman Islands]." ... "More than 21,000 people working for KBR
in Iraq - including about 10,500 Americans - are listed as employees of
two companies that exist in a computer file on the fourth floor of a building
on a palm-studded boulevard here in the Caribbean. Neither company has
an office or phone number in the Cayman Islands." ... "The Defense Department
has known since at least 2004 that KBR was avoiding taxes by declaring
its American workers as employees of Cayman Islands shell companies, and
officials said the move allowed KBR to perform the work more cheaply, saving
Defense dollars." ... "But the use of the loophole results in a significantly
greater loss of revenue to the government as a whole, particularly to the
Social Security and Medicare trust funds." ... ""Failing to contribute
to Social Security and Medicare thousands of times over isn't shielding
the taxpayers they claim to protect, it's costing our citizens in the name
of short-term corporate greed," said [Massachusetts Democratic] Senator
John F. Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee
who has introduced legislation to close loopholes for companies registering
overseas." ... "With an estimated $16 billion in contracts, KBR is by far
the largest contractor in Iraq, with eight times the work of its nearest
competitor." ... "The [secret] no-bid contract it received in 2002 to rebuild
Iraq's oil infrastructure and a multibillion-dollar contract to provide
support services to troops have long drawn scrutiny because [Republican]
Vice President Dick Cheney was Halliburton's chief executive from 1995
until he joined the Republican ticket with [Republican] President Bush
in 2000." ... "The largest of the Cayman Islands shell companies - called
[SEII] Service Employees International Inc. [Incorporated, which is not
associated with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU)], which
is now listed as having more than 20,000 workers in Iraq, according to
KBR - was created two years before Cheney became Halliburton's chief executive.
But a second Cayman Islands company called Overseas Administrative Services,
which now is listed as the employer of 1,020 mostly managerial workers
in Iraq, was established two months after Cheney's appointment." ... "If
KBR's American workers averaged even as much as $63,000 per year, they
and KBR would have owed more than $100 million per year in Social Security
and Medicare taxes, split evenly between them. Over the course of the five-year
war, their tax bill would have been more than $500 million." ... "The real
managers of Service Employees International work out of KBR's office in
Dubai. KBR and Halliburton, which also moved to Dubai [an emirate of the
United Arab Emirates], severed ties last year." -By
Farah Stockman with contributions by Stephanie Vallejo and Matt Negrin
-Boston/Globe
20080206
-
 Hillary
Clinton
- Barack
Obama
- Government
- Economic
- Legislation
- Veterans
- Health
- Retirees
- Unemployment
-  New
York
- Illinois
- 2008
Election - "Republicans
block Senate economic stimulus plan." ... "Senate
Republicans on Wednesday narrowly blocked a Democratic-backed economic
stimulus plan that was costlier than a House of Representatives-passed
measure by extending cash rebates to retirees and disabled veterans and
stretching out unemployment benefits." ... "The [Democratic] bill [defeated
by the Republicans] further broadened the benefits by allowing cash payments
to an estimated 250,000 disabled veterans and 20 million senior citizens
who get government benefit checks but have little or no earned income."
... "[2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate and New York Senator]
Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and [2008 Election Democratic Presidential
Candidate and Illinois Senator] Barack Obama of Illinois, who are battling
for the Democratic presidential nomination, interrupted their campaigns
and returned to Washington to cast votes in favor of the measure." (1,
2)
-By Richard Cowan and Donna Smith with contributions
by David Alexander -Reuters
-
John
McCain
- Barack
Obama
- Hillary
Clinton
- Government
- Economic
- Legislation
- Vets
- Health
- Elderly
- Unemployment
- Arizona
- Illinois
- New
York
- 2008
Election - "McCain
Caves To Far Right, Skips Vote On Economic Stimulus That He Promised To
Support." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential
Candidate] John McCain (R-AZ [Republican-Arizona Senator]) has been repeatedly
claiming on the stump that passing an economic stimulus package is at the
very top of his agenda. He has told audiences that the “first thing we
gotta do is pass the stimulus package through the Senate.” During a Jan.
[January] 24 GOP debate, he explicitly pledged to vote on such legislation
when it reached the Senate. Watch McCain make this promise on repeated
occasions: [VIDEO:
"McCain Said It Was Important To Pass The Stimulus."]" ... "As
recently as this morning, McCain again told reporters that he planned on
returning to the Senate for this evening’s vote on the economic stimulus,
stating that Congress needed to quickly
pass legislation." ... "The measure, blocked by conservatives, fell
just one vote short of the 60 needed to end debate. At the “last minute,”
McCain decided to skip the vote, even though his plane landed in DC in
time. McCain claimed that he was “too
busy“:"
"“I
haven’t had a chance to talk about it at all, have not had the opportunity
to, even,” McCain said. “We’ve just been too busy, focused on other
stuff. I don’t know if I’m doing that. We’ve got a couple of meetings
scheduled.”"
"Both
[2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidates and Senators] Sens. Barack
Obama (D-IL [Democratic-Illinois Senator]) and [2008 Election Democratic
Presidential Candidate] Hillary Clinton (D-NY [Democratic-New York Senator])
were able to return to the Senate and vote
on the bill." ... "The stimulus package, which included “$600-$1,200
rebate checks for more than 100 million Americans,” would also have
provided “$44 billion in help for the elderly, disabled veterans, the unemployed
and businesses.” The bill was opposed by hardline
conservatives whom McCain is hoping to woo. By not voting for bill,
as he had promised, McCain caved to the right wing and turned his back
on 20
million seniors and 250,000 disabled vets."
-ThinkProgress.org
-
John
McCain
- Government
- Economic
- Legislation
- Seniors
- Veterans
- Health
- 2008
Election - "McCain
Misses Vote on Economic Stimulus." ... "[2008 Election]
Republican presidential candidate John McCain skipped a difficult Senate
vote Wednesday on whether to make 20 million seniors and 250,000 disabled
veterans eligible for rebate checks as part of a proposed economic stimulus
package." ... "[Republican] President Bush and Republican leaders, as well
as conservatives McCain was scheduled to woo on Thursday, vehemently oppose
the expanded benefits and subsidies." ... "That put McCain in a bad political
spot." ... "Voting "no" with Republican leaders would have offended millions
of Social Security recipients and the disabled veterans not scheduled to
receive rebates. Voting "yes," on the other hand, risked alienating Bush,
GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] leaders and conservatives already
suspicious of McCain's political leanings. McCain was speaking Thursday
before a meeting of the Conservative Political Action Conference, a group
that booed him last year in absentia." ... "For McCain, not voting meant
not going on the record either way. He has missed all eight Senate roll
call votes this year." -By Laurie Kellman with contributions
by Libby Quaid and Andrew Taylor -WTOPnews.com
-
Hillary
Clinton
- Barack
Obama
- John
McCain
- Government
- Economic
- Legislation
- Veterans
- Health
- Elderly
- Unemployment
- New
York
- Illinois
- Arizona
-
 Nevada
- 2008
Election - "Republicans
join to block stimulus bill." ... "The fate of $600-$1,200
rebate checks for more than 100 million Americans is in limbo after Senate
Republicans blocked a bid by Democrats to add $44 billion in help for the
elderly, disabled veterans, the unemployed and businesses to the House-passed
economic aid package." ... "The tally was 58-41 to end debate on the Senate
measure, just short of the 60 votes Democrats would have needed to scale
procedural hurdles and move the bill to a final vote." ... "[2008 Election]
Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton [and Senator] of New
York and [2008 Election] Barack Obama [and Senator] of Illinois flew to
Washington for the vote. GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican 2008 Election
Presidential Candidate] front-runner John McCain [and Senator] of Arizona
did not vote." ... "Supporters actually had 59 votes in favor of the Democratic
proposal, but [Nevada Democratic Senator Harry] Reid switched his vote
to 'no' at the last moment, a parliamentary move that allows him to bring
the measure up for a revote." -By Julie Hirschfeld
Davis and Andrew Taylor -AP
via -SeattlePI
20080103
-
Barack
Obama
-
 John
Edwards
- Hillary
Clinton
-  Iowa
-Political
- Generation
- Senior
-  People
- 2008
Election - "Why
Obama Won." ... "[2008 Election Democratic Presidential
Candidate] Barack Obama's victory in the Iowa caucuses was driven by his
support from a new political generation, according to a CBS News entrance
poll of Democratic caucus-goers." ... "In a night of record turnout for
the Democratic caucuses, Obama and his message of change captured the vote
of the first-time caucus-goers, as well as the votes of young people and
political independents." ... "In contrast to Obama's strong support among
the young, [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate John] Edwards
and [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate Hillary] Clinton appealed
to older voters. Edwards won Baby Boomers with 31 percent, to 28 percent
for Clinton and 27 percent for Obama. Clinton handily won the senior vote
with 45 percent of those 65 and older, compared to 22 percent and 18 percent
for Edwards and Obama respectively." ... "Edwards' strong suit was his
ability to empathize with people. Nineteen percent of attendees said having
a candidate who cared about people like them was their most important character
consideration, and 44 percent of them supported Edwards." -By
Monika L. McDermott -CBSNews
20071227
-
Government
- Corporations
- Employee
- Retirees
- Health
- Law
- Politics
- History
- "U.S.
Ruling Backs Benefit Cut at 65 in Retiree Plans."
... "The [Republican President Bush run] Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
said Wednesday that employers could reduce or eliminate health benefits
for retirees when they turn 65 and become eligible for Medicare." ... "The
policy, set forth in a new regulation, allows employers to establish two
classes of retirees, with more comprehensive benefits for those under 65
and more limited benefits — or none at all — for those older." ... "More
than 10 million retirees rely on employer-sponsored health plans as a primary
source of coverage or as a supplement to Medicare, and Naomi C. Earp, the
commission’s chairwoman, said, “This rule will help employers continue
to voluntarily provide and maintain these critically important health benefits.”"
... "But AARP and other advocates for older Americans attacked the rule.
“This rule gives employers free rein to use age as a basis for reducing
or eliminating health care benefits for retirees 65 and older,” said Christopher
G. Mackaronis, a lawyer for AARP, which represents millions of people age
50 or above and which had sued in an effort to block issuance of the final
regulation. “Ten million people could be affected — adversely affected
— by the rule.”" ... "The new policy creates an explicit exemption from
age-discrimination laws for employers that scale back benefits of retirees
65 and over. Mr. Mackaronis asserted that the exemption was “in direct
conflict” with the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967." ... "Under
the new rule, employers may, if they choose, provide retiree health benefits
“only to those retirees who are not yet eligible for Medicare.” Likewise,
the rule says, retiree health benefits can be “altered, reduced or eliminated”
when a retiree becomes eligible for Medicare." ... "Further, employers
will be able to reduce or eliminate health benefits provided to the spouse
or dependents of a retired worker 65 or over, regardless of whether benefits
for the retiree are changed." -By Robert Pear
-NYTimes
20071007
-
 Drug
- Money
- Sales
- Politics
- Elderly
- Consumer
- Health
- Law
-  Audits
-  Michigan
- "Medicare
Audits Show Problems in Private Plans." ... "Tens
of thousands of Medicare recipients have been victims of deceptive sales
tactics and had claims improperly denied by private insurers that run the
system’s huge new drug benefit program and offer other private insurance
options encouraged by the [Republican President] Bush administration, a
review of scores of federal audits has found." ... "The problems, described
in 91 audit reports reviewed by The New York Times, include the improper
termination of coverage for people with H.I.V. and AIDS, huge backlogs
of claims and complaints, and a failure to answer telephone calls from
consumers, doctors and drugstores." ... "Since March, Medicare has imposed
fines of more than $770,000 on 11 companies for marketing violations and
failure to provide timely notice to beneficiaries about changes in costs
and benefits." ... "The companies include three of the largest participants
in the Medicare market, UnitedHealth, Humana and WellPoint." ... "The audits
document widespread violations of patients’ rights and consumer protection
standards. Some violations could directly affect the health of patients
— for example, by delaying access to urgently needed medications." ...
"Representative Bart Stupak, a Michigan Democrat who is chairman of the
investigations subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee,
said he had “verified countless stories of deceptive sales practices by
insurance agents who prey upon the elderly and disabled to sell them expensive
and inappropriate private Medicare plans.”" (1, 2)
-By Robert Pear -NYTimes
20070912
-
US
- Seniors
- History
- International
-
 Japan
- "U.S.
deaths rise by 50,000 in 2005, a disappointing reversal."
... "he number of deaths in the United States rose in 2005 after a sharp
decline the year earlier, a disappointing reversal that suggests the 2004
numbers were a fluke." ... "But, U.S. life expectancy inched up to 77.9
from the previous record, 77.8, recorded for 2004. The increase was more
dramatic in contrast with 1995, when life expectancy was 75.8, and 1955,
when it was 69.6." ... "The U.S. continues to lag behind at least 40 other
nations. Andorra, a tiny country in the Pyrenees mountains between France
and Spain, has the longest life expectancy, at 83.5 years, according to
the U.S. Census Bureau of 2004 international data. It was followed by Japan,
Macau (which is part of China), San Marino and Singapore."
-AP via -IHT.com
20070817
-
John
Edwards
- Iowa
- Oil
- Drug
- Seniors
- Health
- Business
- Law
- 2008
Election - "Edwards
Attacks 'Robber Barons,' Lobbyists to Win Votes in Iowa."
... "[2008 election Democratic Presidential Candidate John Edwards,] In
campaign speeches and conversations with voters, the presidential candidate
calls some companies ``robber barons.'' Business lobbyists have ``rigged''
the system to block fair trade policies and efforts to curb reliance on
overseas oil, he says. Drug and insurance companies are to blame for 83-year-old
Marguerite Erickson's $3,000-a-year health bill, he told her at a rally
in Perry this week." ... "Did she believe it? ``You bet,'' she said after
the event. ``I think he's got the right idea.''" ... "Edwards's populist
themes are nothing new for him. His standard 2004 campaign speech lamented
the existence of ``two different Americas, one for people who have lived
the American dream and don't have to worry, and another for most Americans
who work hard and still struggle to make ends meet.''" ... "Still, his
rhetoric then, and even earlier in the current campaign, lacked the accusatory
edge it has acquired in the past month. ``We need to take back America
from the Washington insiders running the country,'' he said Aug. 14 in
Pocahontas, Iowa. Earlier in the week, Edwards told a crowd in Perry, about
40 miles northwest of Des Moines, that health-care costs remain high because
``we have not taken on and beaten down the drug companies and insurance
companies.'' " -By Nicholas Johnston
-Bloomberg
20070812
-
US
- International
- Seniors
- Babies
- Science
- History
-
 Canada
-  EU
- Washington
- "U.S.
now trails 41 other nations in life expectancy."
... "Americans are living longer than ever, but not as long as people in
41 other countries." ... "For decades, the United States has been slipping
in international rankings of life expectancy, as other countries improve
health care, nutrition and lifestyles." ... ""Something's wrong here when
one of the richest countries in the world, the one that spends the most
on health care, is not able to keep up with other countries," said Dr.
Christopher Murray, head of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation
at the University of Washington." ... "A baby born in the United States
in 2004 will live an average of 77.9 years." ... "That life expectancy
ranks 42nd, down from 11th two decades earlier, according to international
numbers provided by the Census Bureau and domestic numbers from the National
Center for Health Statistics." ... "Researchers said several factors have
contributed to the United States falling behind other industrialized nations."
... "A major one is that 45 million Americans lack health insurance, while
Canada and many European countries have universal health care, they say."
... "Adults in the United States have one of the highest obesity rates
in the world." ... "A relatively high percentage of babies born in the
U.S. die before their first birthday, compared with other industrialized
nations." -AP
via -AZStarNet.com
20070529
-
US_Debt
- Government
- Military
- Seniors
- Money
- Accounting
- Politics
- "Rules
'hiding' trillions in debt: Liability $516,348 per
U.S. household." ... "The federal government recorded a $1.3 trillion loss
last year — far more than the official $248 billion deficit —when corporate-style
accounting standards are used, a USA TODAY analysis shows." ... "The loss
reflects a continued deterioration in the finances of Social Security and
government retirement programs for civil servants and military personnel.
The loss — equal to $11,434 per household — is more than Americans paid
in income taxes in 2006." ... "Modern accounting requires that corporations,
state governments and local governments count expenses immediately when
a transaction occurs, even if the payment will be made later." ... "The
federal government does not follow the rule, so promises for Social Security
and Medicare don't show up when the government reports its financial condition."
... "Bottom line: Taxpayers are now on the hook for a record $59.1 trillion
in liabilities, a 2.3% increase from 2006." -By Dennis
Cauchon -USATODAY
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