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Open letter to readers: Today and tomorrow

By Lynda Waddington | 11.17.11

Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.

ACS lockout continues; plan emerges to repeal sugar protections

crystal_sugar_80
By Virginia Chamlee | 11.15.11

A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.

Cain campaign: Farmers know more about regulations than EPA

hermancain_80x80
By Andrew Duffelmeyer | 11.15.11

The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.

Mathis wins, Democrats maintain Senate control

Liz Mathis
By Lynda Waddington | 11.08.11

The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.

Press Release

PR: Nation should work to address veterans’ challenges

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

BRUCE BRALEY RELEASE — As US involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan ends, it’s more important than ever that our nation works to address the challenges faced by the men and women who fought there.

PR: Honoring veterans, help in hiring

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

CHUCK GRASSLEY RELEASE — A difficult job market is challenging the soldiers, sailors and airmen who have protected America’s interests by serving in the Armed Forces.

PR: In honor of America’s veterans

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

TOM LATHAM RELEASE — No one has done more to secure the freedom enjoyed by every single American than our veterans and those currently serving in the armed services.

PR: Honoring and supporting our nation’s veterans

By Press Release Reprints | 11.11.11

DAVE LOEBSACK RELEASE — Veterans Day is an opportunity to reflect on the service of generations of veterans and to honor the sacrifices they and their families have made so that we may live in peace and freedom here at home.

Braley resists bashing Baucus bill, focuses on final product

By Lynda Waddington | 09.17.09 | 2:03 pm

Although some members of the U.S. House have voiced firm opposition to the long-awaited initial health care reform bill presented this week by U.S. Sen. Max Baucus (D-Montana), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) isn’t necessarily among them. The process is not a sprint, he reminded reporters on his Thursday morning conference call, but more of a marathon in which the finish line must remain the top priority.

“I’m not at all happy with some of the things that were left out of the Senate [Finance Committee] bill, but the reality is that this is not the final Senate bill. It is the chairman’s mark,” Braley said. “It was the product of work by six senators and, in the end, we’re not sure how much the Republican senators contributed to this chairman’s mark since none of them support [it].”

Braley indicated that one of the things that pleased him about the Finance Committee’s initial effort is that it included an extension of a 2003 Medicare reimbursement reform measure intended to better balance payments made to physicians in different geographic regions. Braley noted with disappointment, however, that he has seen nothing within the bill to address overall Medicare reimbursement disparities that leave smaller and more rural states like Iowa receiving significantly lower rates.

“We are working with key senators … to make sure that [Medicare reimbursement disparity reform] language winds up in the Senate bill as well as our value-based reimbursement model that was included in the House bill, based upon legislation that [Wisconsin Congressman] Ron Kind and I had introduced,” he said.

Medicare is the single largest payer for health care in Iowa, and Iowans, just like Americans throughout the nation, pay equal premiums to support the program. Yet the reimbursement distribution formulas contain substantial geographic disparity in patient services and payment levels. It’s an economic disparity that not only impacts Medicare beneficiaries and the medical providers that serve them, but everyday Iowans who often pay higher insurance premiums so that private companies operating in the state can counter Medicare’s shortfalls. In addition, the lower reimbursement rate has also been linked to the overall lack of access to basic and specialized care in less populated states like Iowa.

The Baucus bill will need to gain full Finance Committee approval before it comes before the Senate as a whole, a process that most anticipate will be completed next week. Once the full committee submits its work, senators will weigh the provisions of that bill with one introduced in July by the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee as well as consider additional amendments for items that might not currently be contained in either bill. Only when that process is complete will the Senate have a final health care reform bill, which will ultimately have to be merged with the bill that is passed by the U.S. House.

Braley contends that he is closely monitoring the situation in the Senate, but that his primary concern for now is helping to give the House bill a final polish before it is presented on the floor, which should happen at some point before Columbus Day.

“Our goal is to get the bill passed, to get the Senate to take action so that we can get to conference committee in a timely fashion and, hopefully, get a bill passed and on the President’s desk before the end of the year,” he said. “So, even though I have very serious concerns about some aspects of the Senate bill, this is a long and difficult process, and I think that everyone needs to negotiate and work on this bill in good faith so that it is in the best shape possible when it reaches the President’s desk.”

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Comments

  • DOUGLASFIELD

    * THE FINE ART OF DENYING 45 MILLION AMERICANS HEALTH~CARE IN OUR JUDEO~CHRISTIAN NATION *

    AMERICAN RELIGIOUS LEADERS ALL ACROSS THE USA HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ABLE TO COUNT ON THEIR RELIGIOUS FLOCK TO CONTRIBUTE(TITHE)THEIR HARD EARNED MONIES TO THEIR MINISTRIES EVERY WEEK.

    THE MAJORITY OF AMERICANS ATTENDING RELIGIOUS SERVICES IN THE U.S. ARE MIDDLE~CLASS AND WORKING POOR CITIZENS WHO NOW DESPERATELY NEED THE HELP AND SUPPORT FROM THESE SAME U.S.RELIGIOUS LEADERS IN LOBBYING THE U.S.CONGRESS TO PROVIDE PROPER HEALTH~CARE FOR ALL POORER AMERICANS.

    ***THERE ARE CURRENTLY AN ESTIMASTED 45 MILLION MEN WOMAN AND CHILDREN WITHOUT HEALTH~CARE IN THE WEALTHIEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD????

    SILENT AMERICAN RELIGIOUS LEADERS WHO ALL HAVE HEALTH~CARE FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES IS MUCH MORE FRIGHTENING THEN THE POSSIBLE DENIAL OF A FUTURE HEALTH~CARE PLAN FOR ALL…

    LAWYERS FOR POOR AMERICANS (424-247-2013)
    lawyersforpooreramericans@yahoo.com

  • HSR0601

    The State Of “Yes We Can”, Minnesota !!

    1. As regards a make-believe scheme, the source of funding coming from a middle class is utterly against the commitment of Democratic party.

    2. No cost-competitive advantage does not clear the grave concern about the unsustainable cost of overall health care program in the long run.

    3. Even with some benefit for primary practitioners, the baseless scheme does not come with fundamental payment reform, or a pay for value reimbursement formula. It means that the insurer-friendly scheme is not cleaning up the concerns over a quality issue and $9trillion of deficit over the next decade.

    ((Here is some of CBO analysis : While the costs of the financial bailouts and economic stimulus bills are staggering, they are only a fraction of the coming costs from Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Over the next decade, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that each year Medicaid will expand by 7 percent, Medicare by 6 percent, and Social Security by 5 percent. These programs face a 75-year shortfall of $43 trillion–60 times greater than the gross cost of the $700 billion TARP financial bailout)).

    4. For Medicare & Medicaid system to survive from the most wasteful structure on earth, enough savings by ways of fundamental changes need to be secured, in return, the savings thereof suffice to meet the goal of well-planned public option.

    ((Even with far less visits to docs, which average a half or a third of them in any other free states, Americans pay roughly twice as much per person right now)).

    5. For the record, prior to nation-wide deployment of reform, The State Of “Yes We Can”, Minnesota influenced by Mayo clinic spends “20 percent” less per patient than the national average and 31 percent less than in the highest cost state. It highlights that no substantial tax raise is needed at least for sure.

    ((The $583 billion of revenue package, and the astronomical savings of public option aside, “20%” of $923.5bn (the combined Medicare and Medicaid cost per year, as of July) is around $184.7bn per year and 1.847trillion over the next decade, and this patient-centered value alone could be sufficient to meet the goal of public option)).

    6. In brief, the long-awaited and most hopeful health care plan is to meet these criterias : Affordability, Quality, and A Check function against runaway premiums thereof.

    Clearly enough, due largely to its lower overhead cost, purchasing power and fundamental payment reform, the well-planned public option would be an even better candidate than the fabricated scheme by THE INDUSTRY in these aforementioned regards.

    Thank You !

  • HSR0601

    The State Of “Yes We Can”, Minnesota !!

    1. As regards a make-believe scheme, the source of funding coming from a middle class is utterly against the commitment of Democratic party.

    2. No cost-competitive advantage does not clear the grave concern about the unsustainable cost of overall health care program in the long run.

    3. Even with some benefit for primary practitioners, the baseless scheme does not come with fundamental payment reform, or a pay for value reimbursement formula. It means that the insurer-friendly scheme is not cleaning up the concerns over a quality issue and $9trillion of deficit over the next decade.

    ((Here is some of CBO analysis : While the costs of the financial bailouts and economic stimulus bills are staggering, they are only a fraction of the coming costs from Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Over the next decade, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that each year Medicaid will expand by 7 percent, Medicare by 6 percent, and Social Security by 5 percent. These programs face a 75-year shortfall of $43 trillion–60 times greater than the gross cost of the $700 billion TARP financial bailout)).

    4. For Medicare & Medicaid system to survive from the most wasteful structure on earth, enough savings by ways of fundamental changes need to be secured, in return, the savings thereof suffice to meet the goal of well-planned public option.

    ((Even with far less visits to docs, which average a half or a third of them in any other free states, Americans pay roughly twice as much per person right now)).

    5. For the record, prior to nation-wide deployment of reform, The State Of “Yes We Can”, Minnesota influenced by Mayo clinic spends “20 percent” less per patient than the national average and 31 percent less than in the highest cost state. It highlights that no substantial tax raise is needed at least for sure.

    ((The $583 billion of revenue package, and the astronomical savings of public option aside, “20%” of $923.5bn (the combined Medicare and Medicaid cost per year, as of July) is around $184.7bn per year and 1.847trillion over the next decade, and this patient-centered value alone could be sufficient to meet the goal of public option)).

    6. In brief, the long-awaited and most hopeful health care plan is to meet these criterias : Affordability, Quality, and A Check function against runaway premiums thereof.

    Clearly enough, due largely to its lower overhead cost, purchasing power and fundamental payment reform, the well-planned public option would be an even better candidate than the fabricated scheme by THE INDUSTRY in these aforementioned regards.

    Thank You !

  • HSR0601

    The State Of “Yes We Can”, Minnesota !!

    1. As regards a make-believe scheme, the source of funding coming from a middle class is utterly against the commitment of Democratic party.

    2. No cost-competitive advantage does not clear the grave concern about the unsustainable cost of overall health care program in the long run.

    3. Even with some benefit for primary practitioners, the baseless scheme does not come with fundamental payment reform, or a pay for value reimbursement formula. It means that the insurer-friendly scheme is not cleaning up the concerns over a quality issue and $9trillion of deficit over the next decade.

    ((Here is some of CBO analysis : While the costs of the financial bailouts and economic stimulus bills are staggering, they are only a fraction of the coming costs from Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Over the next decade, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that each year Medicaid will expand by 7 percent, Medicare by 6 percent, and Social Security by 5 percent. These programs face a 75-year shortfall of $43 trillion–60 times greater than the gross cost of the $700 billion TARP financial bailout)).

    4. For Medicare & Medicaid system to survive from the most wasteful structure on earth, enough savings by ways of fundamental changes need to be secured, in return, the savings thereof suffice to meet the goal of well-planned public option.

    ((Even with far less visits to docs, which average a half or a third of them in any other free states, Americans pay roughly twice as much per person right now)).

    5. For the record, prior to nation-wide deployment of reform, The State Of “Yes We Can”, Minnesota influenced by Mayo clinic spends “20 percent” less per patient than the national average and 31 percent less than in the highest cost state. It highlights that no substantial tax raise is needed at least for sure.

    ((The $583 billion of revenue package, and the astronomical savings of public option aside, “20%” of $923.5bn (the combined Medicare and Medicaid cost per year, as of July) is around $184.7bn per year and 1.847trillion over the next decade, and this patient-centered value alone could be sufficient to meet the goal of public option)).

    6. In brief, the long-awaited and most hopeful health care plan is to meet these criterias : Affordability, Quality, and A Check function against runaway premiums thereof.

    Clearly enough, due largely to its lower overhead cost, purchasing power and fundamental payment reform, the well-planned public option would be an even better candidate than the fabricated scheme by THE INDUSTRY in these aforementioned regards.

    Thank You !

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