By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
After turning down 31 common-sense amendments to the proposed government-run health care plan, the U.S. House of Representatives is poised to vote on a bill that includes radical new measures including mandated national ID cards, government restricted access to disabled citizens and mandatory end-of-life counseling sessions for seniors.
The Eagle Forum, founded by lawyer Phyllis Schlafly, is reporting that in spite of the opposition to health care proposal H.R. 3200, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) remains determined to ram the bill through before the August recess, which begins August 3.
“ . . .(M)any more dangerous provisions have surfaced in the text of H.R. 3200, particularly those that target senior citizens by cutting funding for Medicare and by mandating ‘end of life’ counseling, which should be seen as the beginning of a treacherous path toward government-encouraged euthanasia,” Mrs. Schlafly writes.
“President Obama told the The New York Times in an interview about his health care plan: ‘The chronically ill and those toward the end of their lives are accounting for potentially 80 percent of the total health care bill out here…There is going to have to be a very difficult democratic conversation that takes place.’”
Some of these more alarming provisions include:
• Government real-time access to individual’s finances and a national health care ID card (p.58).
• Government use of left-wing community groups, such as ACORN and AmeriCorps, to register individuals for the government health care plan (p. 95).
• No company or business can sue the federal government for price fixing, which means that there will be no judicial review against a government monopoly of the health care industry (p. 124).
• Any nonresident alien is exempt from the individual taxes, insurance purchasing mandates, and fines which are required of every legal, U.S. citizens (p. 170).
• Government will restrict the enrollment of special needs people (p. 354).
• Government mandates Advance Care Planning Consultation-that is, end-of-life counseling on “the use of artificially administered nutrition and hydration” and other end of life treatments. (Section 1233).
• “Advance Care Planning Consultation” may include a government order for end of life plans (p. 429).
• Government Marriage & Family therapy sessions (p. 489).
• Government will design and implement the Home Visitation Program for families with young children and families expecting children, parenting counseling is included (p. 838-845).
While favoring the above provisions, lawmakers have rejected many common-sense amendments such as:
• Preventing bureaucrats from making personal medical decisions for patients (offered by Rep. Phil Gingrey, R-GA).
• Requiring all Members of Congress to get their health insurance through the proposed government-run plan (offered by Rep. Dean Heller, R-NV).
• Preventing taxpayer-funded health benefits from going to illegal immigrants (offered by Rep. Dean Heller, R-NV).
• Specifying that Congress should read the health care bill before voting on it (offered by Rep. Kevin Brady, R-TX).
• Ensuring that workers who like their current health plan can keep it (offered by Rep. Judy Biggert, R-IL).
• Stopping seniors from being stripped of their health care choices, as the Democrat bill cuts the Medicare Advantage program (offered by Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, R-FL).
• Allowing Americans to continue to enroll in private individual market health plans (offered by Rep. Dave Reichert, R-WA).
• Waive the employer mandate if it will cause layoffs, worker salary cuts, or reductions in hiring (offered by Dave Reichert, R-WA).
Mrs. Schlafly warns that the House is poised to vote before the August recess “because they know that when their Democrat colleagues return to their states and districts to hold townhall meetings, they will not be able to avoid the outrage of opposition from their constituents!”
Citizens are encouraged to contact their Representatives. They can do so through the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 or at www.house.gov/
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