Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Michael Moore is getting rave reviews. He is definatively in his element. (click here)


Dedicated to "good people who struggle, who work hard and who've had their lives ruined by decisions that are made by people who do not have their best interest at heart."

One of the reviews stated, "Capitalism" is stereophonic. Mike sort of brushed it off as a typical Italian observation of operatic content. But, I have to say in agreement that when I listened to the 'composite of sounds' incorporated in The Trailer to 'Capitalism, A Love Story' it shocked me to my toes. There were huge conflicts of sounds that tied together all kinds of emotions people were feeling. The 'composite of sounds' did it well. Very well. The melding of sounds eerily conveyed the violation of trust the American people had of their government.

I can't wait to see the movie on October 2nd. It should be more than interesting and I hope every American takes the time for insight as only Michael Moore can compose it.
I hope he enjoys his reviews. I wish him great success with an obvious work of passion.

September 5th, 2009 11:20 pm

Michael Moore Slams Bailout of Wall Street, Wants 'Money Back' (click here)
By Farah Nayeri
Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Michael Moore launched his movie "Capitalism: A Love Story" at the Venice Film Festival today, staging an all-out attack on the free-market system and on the U.S. government bailout of financial institutions.
"Capitalism is an evil, and you cannot regulate evil," Moore, an American director and satirist, says in his two-hour documentary, one of 24 films vying for the top Venice prize. "You have to eliminate it and replace it with something that's good for all people, and that something is called democracy."...


September 5th, 2009 1:37 pm

AIG gets some tough love from Michael Moore (click here)

Ouch! – this could be painful. Beleaguered bosses at American insurer AIG (or Chartis as it now wants to be known) are bracing themselves for an uncomfortable few days.
Dashwood, edited by Jonathan Russell / Telegraph
Michael Moore's latest film Capitalism: A Love Story will have its first screening at the Venice Film Festival this week before opening early next month.
Although Moore is looking wider than just AIG's part in the global economic meltdown he saves some special treatment for the insurer.
"This is Michael Moore, I have come to make a citizen's arrest of the board of directors of AIG," he says as he turns up outside the US insurer's headquarters with the requisite loudhailer....

And, yes, I do remember Lehman Brothers and I remember the zealots that caused their collapse and rejoiced over it by offering fragments of pennies on the dollar for stocks. And look what we are left with today, Goldman Sachs, the losers of all losers if it weren't for their corruption in Hankie Paulson.

The Last Days of Lehman Brothers (click here)

Wednesday, BBC2, 9pm
By Paul Whitington
If there was one single event that made the world sit up and realise it was in the middle of an almost unprecedented financial meltdown, it was the collapse of blue-chip Wall Street giant Lehman Brothers almost exactly a year ago....

They're SLIMEBALLS. There isn't any other word to describe the 'beasts of wall street.' There just isn't. Not in the English Dictionary. Predatory, maybe. Bottom feeders on the ladder of Integrity. They 'clean up well' at your expense. Look at the heidousness of what GMC is pulling. They JUST left bankruptcy court and already they are violating the very trust of the agreement with TWO NATIONS of people and the 'spineless' let them get away with it. It's just amazing.

No, this isn't about Urban Sprawl. It is about the size of a small city losing health care coveraage.



10,000 working parents in Arizona to lose health insurance (click title to entry - thank you)
State is unable to provide matching funds for federal program

by Casey Newton
Sept. 8, 2009 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic
Nearly 10,000 working parents will lose their health insurance this month in the wake of state budget cuts, leaving some families with nowhere to turn as they seek affordable coverage.
KidsCare Parents, a program that provides low-income families with inexpensive insurance, will end Sept. 30. The Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, which administers the program, could not pay the $6 million annual cost following cuts by the Legislature. The state faces a $3 billion budget shortfall.
The move comes as demand for government assistance is skyrocketing. Arizona has lost an estimated 240,000 jobs since December 2007, and AHCCCS has added 150,000 people to its rolls since January....



September 8, 2009 4:14 PM
Sen. Reid: Health Reform 90 Percent Done (click here)

Posted by Stephanie Condon

After meeting with President Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said today that health care reform is 90 percent done and that Republicans still have a seat at the negotiating table. President Obama has often said that Republicans and Democrats can agree on 80 percent of the health care reforms Congress should enact -- that it is the remaining 20 percent that has stalled legislation. "In our conversations today, we think we're up to 90 percent," Reid said from outside the White House. "We have 10 percent to work on, and we can do that."...

One of the purposes to USA health insurance reform is to promote efficient use of infrastructure while giving our citizens incentives to improve their longevity through good health practices. This section of the bill addresses ways to achieve better 'performing' health care keeping in mind the end result is to be a healthier and happier populous.

Page 443, Lines e through 21:

TITLE III—PROMOTING PRIMARY CARE, MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, AND COORDINATED CARE
SEC. 1301. ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATION PILOT PROGRAM.
Title XVIII of the Social Security Act is amended by inserting after section 1866C the following new section:
‘‘ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATION PILOT PROGRAM
‘‘SEC. 1866D. (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct a pilot program (in this section referred to as the ‘pilot program’) to test different payment incentive models, including (to the extent practicable) the specific payment incentive models described in subsection (c), designed to reduce the growth of expenditures and improve health outcomes in the provision of items and services under this title to applicable beneficiaries (as defined in subsection (d)) by qualifying accountable care organizations (as defined in subsection (b)(1)) in order to—

No one expects change to the American populous overnight. That is especially true for the people that already have health insurance. It is even more true for Americans that are lucky enough to belong to health insurance plans that provide incentives for better health through reductions in cost.

So, short of requiring every American to achieve The President's Physical Fitness Award, there can be models of new modalities of providing health care that will also provide 'feedback' regarding ways to incentivize a better more efficient health care delivery system that provides better outcomes to Americans.

This section addresses the opportunity to improve health care delivery and outcomes of patients. After all what good is health care insurance reform if does nothing about improving the outcome of patients?

Page 444, Lines 7 through 15:

‘‘(b) QUALIFYING ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATIONS (ACOS).—
‘‘(1) QUALIFYING ACO DEFINED.—In this section:
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The terms ‘qualifying accountable care organization’ and ‘qualifying
ACO’ mean a group of physicians or other physician organizational model (as defined in sub15
paragraph (D)) that—

It is interesting. This section of the Bill provides for monetary incentives to physicians and groups of physicians that provide documentable improvements in their patient conditions while reducing the cost of care delivery. If there is no remarkable improvement there will be no paid incentive. The section doesn't ask for payment to the Secretary if the circumstances prove to worsen though. Now, that would be a sincere disincentive.

Page 447, lines 1 through 14:

‘‘(E) The group provides notice to applicable beneficiaries regarding the pilot program (as determined appropriate by the Secretary).

‘‘(F) The group contributes to a best practices network or website, that shall be maintained by the Secretary for the purpose of sharing strategies on quality improvement, care coordination, and efficiency that the groups believe are effective.

‘‘(G) The group utilizes patient-centered processes of care, including those that emphasize patient and caregiver involvement in planning and monitoring of ongoing care management plan.

The 'idea' of posting outcomes of these pilot programs to a 'Best Practices Network or Website' reminds me of the 'short track' to medication approval by the FDA should it prove to be more a miracle medication than expected.

By posting statistics to the 'Best Practices Network' physicians from around the country can learn how to best streamline their practices to help improve patient outcomes while holding down costs.

It also is a 'transparent' method to monitor these programs so there can't be any abuse or short cuts that might actually compromise patient outcomes and safety. And there is nothing like Peer Review among providers regardless their specialty or credentials. I imagine one of the most frequent visitors might be administrators as well as Physician Peers.

Page 450, lines 1 through 12:

‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause
(ii), a qualifying ACO that meet or exceeds annual quality and performance targets for a year shall receive an incentive payment for such year equal to a portion (as determined appropriate by the Secretary) of the amount by which payments under this title for such year relative are estimated to be below the performance target for such year, as determined by the Secretary. The Secretary may establish a cap on incentive payments for a year for a qualifying ACO.

There isn't anything about this House Bill that hasn't been well planned or considered.

Page 453, lines 22 through 25

‘‘(1) STARTING DATE.—The pilot program shall begin no later than January 1, 2012. An agreement with a qualifying ACO under the pilot program may cover a multi-year period of between 3 and 5 years.

Page 455, lines 18 through 25 and Page 456, lines 1 through 3:

‘‘(g) EXTENSION OF PILOT AGREEMENT WITH SUCCESSFUL ORGANIZATIONS.—
‘‘(1) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years after the date the first agreement is entered into under this section, and biennially thereafter for six years, the Secretary shall submit to Congress and make publicly available a report on the use of authorities under the pilot program. Each report

shall address the impact of the use of those authorities on expenditures, access, and quality under this title.

Page 456, lines 16 through 21:

‘‘(3) TERMINATION.—The Secretary may terminate an agreement with a qualifying ACO under the pilot program if such ACO did not receive incentive payments or consistently failed to meet quality standards in any of the first 3 years under the program.

Page 457, lines 13 through 19:

‘‘(B) CERTIFICATION.—The Chief Actuary of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services shall certify that 1 or more of such models described in subparagraph (A) would result in estimated spending that would be less than what spending would otherwise be estimated to be in the absence of such expansion.

Just in case anyone is wondering why this Bill is always discussing Medicare and Medicaid, it is obvious; the USA government has authority to change the structure of these institutions to accommodate better performance of care models to insure outcomes. But, there is also a provision to include private payers as well. So, I imagine some of the better known health systems will be first in line for the incentive.

Page 459, lines 4 through 8:

‘‘(3) INVOLVEMENT IN PRIVATE PAYER ARRANGEMENTS.—Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing qualifying ACOs participating in the pilot program from negotiating similar contracts with private payers.

There is also a pilot program incentive for Home Health Care:

Page 460, lines 17 through 26 and Page 461, lines 1 through 3:

‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM.— The Secretary shall establish a medical home pilot program (in this section referred to as the ‘pilot program’) for the purpose of evaluating the feasibility and advisability of reimbursing qualified patient-centered medical homes for furnishing medical home services (as defined under subsection (b)(1)) to high need beneficiaries (as defined in subsection (d)(1)(C)) and to targeted high need beneficiaries (as defined in subsection (c)(1)(C)).
‘‘(2) SCOPE.—Subject to subsection (g), the pilot program shall include urban, rural, and underserved areas.


Here again some of the finest health care delivery systems will be participating as they probably already have models in place that can set the trend early and successfully. The rules and regs go on for some pages, but, then it enters into increased payment reimbursement for Certified Nurse Midwives. I doubt that is much about Medicare, but, I am sure there are the exceptions.



Page 483, lines 10 through 20 provides for Preventive Care Services:

SEC. 1305. COVERAGE AND WAIVER OF COST-SHARING FOR PREVENTIVE SERVICES.
(a) MEDICARE COVERED PREVENTIVE SERVICES DEFINED.—Section 1861 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x), as amended by section 1235(a)(2), is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘Medicare Covered Preventive Services
‘‘(iii)(1) Subject to the succeeding provisions of this subsection, the term ‘Medicare covered preventive services’ means the following:
prostate cancer screening, colorectal cancer screening, diabetes self management training services, glaucoma screening, medical nutrition services, preventive physical exam, cardiovascular screening blood tests (cholesterol is my guess), diabetes screening, ultrasound screening for AAA (abdominal aortic aneursym), pneumonia, influenza and hepatitis B vaccines, mammograms, pap smears, bone density screenings, kidney disease education and other not yet specified preventive services.

All these services, including sigmoidoscopes and colonoscopies including any removal of tissue for diagnostic purposes when necessary, are all 100% paid for by the insurance without any cost sharing.

There will no longer by Clinical Social Work Services provided at Skilled Nursing Facilities. There are plenty of other professionals at SNFs so excluding Social Work Services is more than appropriate when viewed as duplication of expertise. It will be considered included in the lump sum payment to the facility.

There will be Marriage and Family Counceling Services and Mental Health Councelor Services.

Page 489, lines 19 through 25 and Page 490, lines 1 and 2:

SEC. 1308. COVERAGE OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPIST SERVICES AND MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELOR SERVICES.
(a) COVERAGE OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPIST SERVICES.—
(1) COVERAGE OF SERVICES.—Section 1861(s)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(s)(2)), as amended by section 1235, is amended—


The coverage will be 75% of the cost. The Marriage and Family Councelor services are very limited in a Skilled Nursing Facility. Reimbursement is in conjuction with referral by a physician.

The next major section begins on Page 501, entitled "TITLE IV—QUALITY, Subtitle A - Comparative Effectiveness Research

...until tomorrow's read...

The violence in Iraq is due to increased tensions with Syria. Our soldiers need to come home. We are not part of a diplomatic deployment.


Blasts kill four U.S. troops in northern Iraq (click here)
Tue Sep 8, 2009 12:02pm EDT
"Blasts kill four U.S. troops in northern Iraq"
BAGHDAD, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Two roadside bomb attacks killed four U.S. soldiers in northern and central Iraq on Tuesday, the U.S. military said, an unusually bloody day for American soldiers as they curtail their military their military activities....

...Talabani, a Kurd, told Reuters (click title to entry - thank you) after meeting with the council that the escalation of tensions was 'unacceptable.''
"This is not in the interest of Syria, Iraq or (other) Arab nations. Such a stand from the Iraqi government, without consultation with the presidency council, is illegal," he said.
A diplomatic feud has cropped up between the neighbouring nations since Aug. 19, when militants blew up truck bombs at two ministries in downtown Baghdad, killing almost 100 people.
Iraqi officials have blamed the attacks on Sunni Islamist al Qaeda militants and members of Saddam Hussein's banned Baath party, believed to be in Syria....

As Iraq establishes its presence on the world stage it will engage in relations with neighboring countries. It is not up to the USA Troops to 'refight' the war in Iraq to secure the interests of the new government.

Iraq had over six years to work out the wrinkles with countries at their borders and they didn't. A primary reason they didn't is because of the presence of USA troops.

One of the early directives that failed under the Bush/Cheney White House was the demand on Bremer to secure the borders of Iraq from infiltration of foreign entities from causing problems. It never happened and perhaps now that the USA is leaving the government of Syria will finally take their responsibility seriously and stop migration of hostile elements over its border into Iraq.

General Motors Company is in violation of their Agreement with the USA and Canada (click here)



On several counts, GMC is in violation of the agreement signed with the USA and Canada.

1. Under its plan, GM will sell substantially all of its global assets to the New GM.

2. The New GM will:
- Focus on four core brands in the U.S. - Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC - with fewer nameplates and a more competitive level of marketing support per brand

- More efficiently utilize U.S. capacity while increasing over time the percentage of U.S.sales manufactured domestically


Other than the $8 billion of debt owed to the U.S. Treasury and the Canadian and Ontario governments by the New GM, all amounts owed by GM or the New GM to the U.S. Treasury and Canadian and Ontario governments would be equitized in exchange for the New GM securities described above, and no other debt will be owed by GM to the U.S. Treasury and the Canadian and Ontario governments.

3. GM Europe Restructuring
GM announced separately today,
GM Europe has an agreement for €1.5 billion of bridge financing from the German government and a Memorandum of Understanding to partner with Magna International Inc. Under the agreement, the Opel/Vauxhall assets have been pooled under Adam Opel GmbH, with the majority of the shares of Adam Opel GmbH being put into an independent trust (the balance to remain with General Motors), while final negotiations with Magna proceed. Negotiations to close the agreement should take several weeks.

The European Restructuring 'verbiage' is included as part of the agreement for the New GMC in the Agreement with the USA and Canada governments. There is a clear understanding such a sale would go forward with liquid assets returned to GMC for operations and payment of debts.

GMC is gambling on 'sparking' a new market place in Europe for technology perfected with the Volt. There is absolutely no guarantee there will be such a market available and they are in violation of the agreement with the people of the USA and Canada.

In seeking to continue to manufacture autos in Germany, it is moving jobs that rightfully belong in the USA with the sale of Opel to Europe.

GMC is in GROSS and FRANK violation of the agreement crafted to protect the company from a liquidation of its assets to help insure American Auto Workers still continued to be employed and retirees were provided for in the best interest of the USA economy.

The company should be seized and operated to the satisfaction of both governments under management supervised by a Board of Trustees that will serve the best interest of the American and Canadian people, to insure the integrity of the Agreement and compliance with the repayment of the GMC debt !

Geither needs to 'get the lead' out of his lethargy and indifference and insure the sale of Opel to Magna as the German government perfers and as insures the BEST interest of the people of both Canada and the USA. In case Mr. Geithner doesn't 'get it,' it is called living up to the letter of the law. It is enforceable in court. Anything short of it is negligence of the power of his office !


05.09.2009 18:41
Steinbrueck to Geithner: Germany wants Opel decision (click here)

LONDON, Sept 5 (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck said he told U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Saturday that Berlin wants a decision on the future ownership of Opel, which parent GM is considering selling.
Steinbrueck said he reiterated Germany's preference for a bid from Canadian auto parts maker Magna, which is competing with Belgian-listed financial investor RHJ for Opel.
'I told him (Geithner) our position -- that it's very important to us to fill this vacuum with a decision,' Steinbrueck said of the drawn-out process to decide the future ownership of Opel.
'My impression is that the U.S. government is leaving the decision to the GM board,' he told a news conference in London.
The U.S. Treasury owns a 60 percent stake in GM, acquired by providing some $50 billion in taxpayer loans and bankruptcy financing to the automaker.

And a word from our right wing bigots - "I don't want THOSE people talking to my children."


The message of hate spewed by the Right Wing regardless of 'rank' in its militia, is grossly Un-American.

The Obamas are parents of young children growing up in a world that is highly competitive and unforgiving. They know the pressures children face and are sympathetic to the reality such competition can have on someone that is a bit different, unimpressive or feels defeated before getting started.

Michelle and Barak are remarkable people in their 'own stories' of success and accomplishment. They weren't born to wealth or priviledge, didn't have movie star charisma and suffered loss of close family members long before anyone should. I don't know any other persons more qualified to speak to the school children of America than the President.

I recall the warm, open and endearing reception Michelle received while visiting in Great Britain. What more can be asked of a First Lady, but, the gracious compassion of caring.

It is reassuring to know our nation's children are not overlooked regardless of the obvious devotion by this administration to solve the problems of educating, which are compounded by a struggling economy adding complications at home. The timing to The President's speech is perfect, when everyone is back in school at the beginning of achievement and not the end of year test results.

Barak has dedicated himself to this end. He graduated from a prestigious law university to act in service to his community and ultimately to his nation. He is selfless in his achievements and that is a rare quality to find in anyone, yet alone the President of the USA. I applaud 'his moment' and hope he engages this opportunity at the beginning of every school year.





Obama's trip to the blackboard jungle (click title to entry - thank you)
By Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist
So what did America learn about itself -- and President Barack Obama --during the silly run-up to his speech Tuesday to the nation's schoolchildren?
-- First, that a lot of Americans on the far right go plainly bonkers when they think a president they didn't vote for is going to be allowed to speak to their kids.
That shows just how unruly and how uncivil these critics are. And, dare we say, how disrespectful they are to the office of the President of the United States.
-- Second, that judging the speech before it was given was a huge mistake, especially by the GOP wingnuts who simply want to tear Obama down.
My favorite quote so far: "It's a good speech. It encourages kids to stay in school and the importance of education, and I think that's what a president should do."
That's from a should-be-sheepish Jim Greer, the Florida GOP chairman who last week accused Obama of wanting to "indoctrinate America's children to his socialist agenda."
-- And third, that the Obama administration is tone-deaf when contemplating how the president's actions will be seen by its still-powerful opponents, led by the shock troops in radio and TV such as Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh.
Make no mistake: The speech Obama is giving today should be seen by students. It is inspiring.
Given the low expectations of so many kids today by so many teachers and administrators, Obama's speech might just help inspire someone like, well, like a younger version of the president to do something special with his or her life.
That would be a clear victory for Obama.