Healthcare funding and political campaigns

Healthcare financing

Affordable health care has taken on a new meaning with recent news regarding campaign contributions in relation to presidential campaigns, specifically $20 million bestowed upon Barack Obama’s presidential bid, directly related to the health care industry.  The amount of $20,175,303 is nearly three times the amount presented to rival John McCain, who came in a distant second at $7,758,289, according to a report in Raw Story. 

These latest figures in financial development were provided in an exclusive analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan/nonprofit group that tracks political money, and is the most comprehensive information available to date on Obama’s financial ties to the health care industry; and ultimately with the healthcare bill.  This information also helps explain vast differences between campaign promises and professional courtesies.  

While there are some who will suggest those healthcare resources were funneled toward Obama’s camp based strictly on life expectancy, others will argue the actions were simply determined by who was expected to win.  Imagine, for a moment, Sarah Palin attempting to handle health care reform.    

Compensation

Paybacks come in many forms, and nowhere has that been more obvious than in the healthcare debate of 2009.  According to the Raw Story report as well as the Center’s website, Obama received $19,462,986 from a variety of components within the health sector.  These include health professionals ($11.7m), hospitals/nursing homes ($3.3m), pharmaceuticals/health products ($1.4m), and health services/HMOs ($1.4m).  Another $712,317 (this number derived from the site’s insurance and finance sector) came from health insurance industry contributions.  Miscellaneous health donations (unavailable on the site) of $860,411 are also factored into the total amount.  

Although no one would ever suggest fraud, one has to ask why these numbers are being reported now, instead of nine months ago.  A legitimate follow-up question would be how much influence over public policy will $20 million get you?  

Evidently quite a bit.  Long gone from the president’s hope and change library are the chants of healthcare reform and in their place we now hear healthcare insurance reform.  With political performance during the last quarter of 2009 bordering on abysmal, affordable healthcare for many was destined for the trash bins.  

Consider the $20 million as performance pay.  Meanwhile, professional athletes are barred from betting on sports.    

Political Factors

Oversight

Perhaps its just oversight on the part of our political powers that they would play yet another of their games late on a Friday afternoon in mid-November.  It’s the perfect time to lose significant actions in society’s weekend activities.  A significant action, for instance, regarding prisoner and detainee abuse photos.  It’s certain that even if the mainstream media were to report on it, the people would be more interested in testosterone induced football players and cheerleaders doing what they do best.  

Sort of.  The executive branch, while perhaps not thinking about cheers and squeals and grunts and groans,  banks on the weekend as a guiding force in its desperate search for campaign help.   Prison abuse goes unchecked, unanswered, and unaccounted for.  

Access Documents

On this most recent of late Friday afternoons our Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates (yes, he of Bush Junior fame), exercised some of his most recent new found powers.  Any thoughts of detainee abuse photos seeing “the light of day” will remain just that, thoughts.  

Thanks to a a provision in the Homeland Security appropriations bill passed by Congress in October, Gates has the power to withhold pertinent information (i.e. “protected documents”) that could be construed as endangering U.S. citizens or U.S. soldiers or government employees deployed outside the United States.  This provision in turn gives its thanks to two bastions of civil liberties, Joe Lieberman (I - Connecticut) and Lindsey Graham (R - South Carolina), who are the original sponsors of this political marketing endeavor.  

From the Congressional Record, June 17, 2009, we have these words of wisdom by Graham: “Secondly, I wanted to be assured by the administration that if the Congress fails to do its part to protect these photos from being released, the President would sign an Executive order which would change their classification to be classified national security documents that would be outcome determinative of the lawsuit. Rahm Emanuel has indicated to me that the President is committed to not ever letting these photos see the light of day, but they agree with me that the best way to do it is for Congress to act.”  

You’ve just got to love “the light of day” concept.  The absurd idea that the Freedom of Information Act could be used in a positive manner to access documents of historical significance has been dealt a knockout blow, sponsored in part by hope and change. 

FOIA Requests

For nearly six years the ACLU has been attempting to gain access to the images.  First, through a FOIA request filed in 2003 and then sued the aforementioned Bush Junior administration.  A US District Court ordered the release of the photos, affirmed by the US Court of Appeals.  Additionally, the district court stated that Junior’s administration was attempting to expand FOIA exemptions to protect their actions while suppressing “global controversy.”

Thanks to the efficiencies of our judicial system, the case was headed for the Supreme Court.  Then of course came the Lieberman-Graham amendment along with the “light of day” banner being displayed on that fast moving to a sudden stop hope and change bandwagon. 

While the Barackstar professes that the images “are not particularly sensational,” the executive branch still feels the need to act under the cover of weekend squeals and groans.  Oh yes, and oversight.  

Asking The Right Questions

Worst Disaster

Three days after Ft. Hood’s worst disaster, a shooting spree that left 13 dead and 30 wounded, our infotainment-based media continues in its absurd and pathetic reporting of the incident.   What we do know, we think for certain, is that Nidal Malik Hasan is a psychiatrist, with the rank of Major, in the United States Army.  

Hours after the incident, news reports were based on an instant creation of hysteria and sensationalism.  Half-staffed in coverage and half-baked in their ability to do a good job, much less a decent one, news reporters instead gave us hype. This hype was based on  information received from a military installation in lockdown mode.  Three days after the fact, the facts trickle out, sensationalism still reigns.

While internet discussion boards are filled with hate, racism, and bigotry over this major disaster, little is offered up toward a rational thought process.  Nor is anyone questioning the information offered up by the military.  Any information released was, is, and will continue to be based on the age-old CYA policy.  This seems to be especially true with the military’s modus operandi.    

Ask The Right Questions

Why does the media continue to provide information to the general populace based on information provided that is based on anonymity?  How can we get accurate information if someone is providing that information without fear of accountability?  

While army officials continue to present the story that a lone gunman did all this killing and wounding with only two handguns, as presented by CNN and seemingly every other news outlet, ballistics tests from casings strewn about the murder site have yet to reach a conclusion.  A conclusion that, no doubt, will be announced by the military industrial complex as it stays in the CYA mode.  

Performance Evaluation Process

While the kicking of a downed human continues, little is said about the suspect reaching the rank of Major in one of the world’s most powerful militaries.  Instead, as Osman Danquah states, we hear “I didn’t get the feeling he was talking for himself, but something just didn’t seem right.”  This in reference to Hasan’s seeking counsel from Danquah regarding what to tell fellow Muslim soldiers regarding the killing of Iraqis and Afghanis in those U.S. military-occupied countries.  Danquah is the co-founder of the Islamic Community of Greater Killeen.  Another question, if things didn’t seem quite right, did Danquah report any of this?  It’s just a question, but maybe it’s one of the many right questions.

How about Major Hasan’s performance evaluation?  This man reached the rank of Major based on his performance.  Right?  Again, questions.  This of course leads us to the question of staff evaluations.  Who was, or is, responsible for determining where Hasan’s performance evaluation report lands?  On whose desk does the report ultimately land?  Better yet, in which file cabinet is the report stashed?  Who evaluates those who evaluated Hasan?  So many questions that may never be asked.

Anyone or any entity can present their own agenda, passing it off as fact, as long as the right questions aren’t asked.  Infotainment remains king, even in tragedy.