Mixed Reactions to Health Care Overhaul in NY

Speaker Nancy Pelosi, after the House passed health care reform, joined by Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland, left, and Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C. (AP)

In today's Times, Op-Ed columnist Paul Krugman declared that yesterday "fear struck out... In the end, a vicious, unprincipled fear offensive failed to block reform... On the eve of the big vote, Republican members of Congress warned that 'freedom dies a little bit today' and accused Democrats of 'totalitarian tactics,' which I believe means the process known as 'voting.'" Meanwhile, in Niagara Falls, someone threw a brick through the front window of Democratic Rep. Louise M. Slaughter's office.

To see how the health care overhaul could affect you, the Times has a helpful breakdown, but reactions from health care workers in NYC were mixed. At NYU Medical Center, Melissa Carbone, a 17-year veteran nurse at the facility who marched on Washington to voice her opposition, told the Post, "I work for one of the top facilities in New York state, and anybody can fall on my doorstep and get any procedure, any day or night, regardless of what their ability to pay is. This has nothing to do with health care, and this has everything to do with forcing people to do something they don't want to do." But Norman Blake, a paramedic at New York Downtown Hospital, told the Daily News, "The more people covered means the hospital stays healthy." Others worry doctors' pay could be cut up to 20%.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat who's represented parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn since 1992, explained his yes vote thus: "We know that 45,000 Americans a year die because they lack health insurance. By extending health insurance to 32 million Americans, most of these lives will be saved. Truly, a vote for this bill is a vote to save 45,000 lives a year. A no vote for this bill is a vote to acquiesce in these deaths."

And during his weekly radio address, Mayor Bloomberg said, "It works out to something like a couple billion in economic impact so you're talking about $4.5 billion in extra taxes on the City and double the economic impact. Now that's one side of the coin. The other side is you get something for it." Speaking to reporters, Bloomberg also said, "You've got to take all projections, even for six months—certainly for the next nine years—with a big grain of salt... What is clear here is that there is an enormous, greater tax burden on people who have certain kinds of income." Specifically, individuals making more than $200,000 a year and couples earning above $250,000 will be required to pay a 3.8 percent Medicare payroll tax on investment income, starting in 2018.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By John Del Signore in News on March 22, 2010 11:20 AM

Comments [rss]

Neverhaditsogood

Mixed in NY, 100% Republican zombies everywhere else.

sidenote

No one knows if this is good or bad for the country - only time will tell.

Eugene

Others worry doctors' pay could be cut up to 20%

Tragic.

nik13

They'll just have to do more Medicaid swindles like those docs in Brighton Beach. Surest & easiest source of steady income.

Spirit of 76

When Democrats do it, it's "totalitarian tactics." When Republicans do the same thing, it's "patriotic duty."

ides_of_march

Happy DEPENDENCE Day America.

Eugene

That's right after Decadence Day, right?

PKMKII

Your tears taste DELICIOUS.

em

+1

hotstepper

oh nancy you wild tigress you! come to daddy. rawr!!

iamdmg

So this bill is estimated to cost something like $900 billion to $1 trillion over 10 years?

The Congressional Budget Office estimates our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could end up costing us over $2.4 trillion after about 10 years. Not to mention the cost of medical care for wounded war vets!

Can someone explain what the issue is since it cannot be spending money...both Repubs and Dems have NO problem blowing tax money on crap. I guess its the restriction on a person's freedom to not afford medical care?

SP

Actually the CBO has estimated that this bill will REDUCE our deficit by over $120 billion over the next 10 years. And that's with the bill as is. When we get the needed fixes in, like a public option or medicare buy in, and anti trust exemptions revoked for the insurance companies, the economic benefits will be even greater.

eyekantspel

lol, right. $120B in savings. I think the CBO projected that would be delivered by the Easter Bunny, right?

Anyone with more than a single brain cell understands that the CBO projection was based on Congress's expressed intentions with this bill standing alone (not including, for instance, the companion "Doctor Fix" bill, H.R. 3961, will cost another 208 Billion over the same period. That alone brings us to a net 88 Billion deficit. And the recently passed bill includes new taxes on those with incomes over $200,000.

Bottom line is that extending coverage to roughly 30 million people plus mandating coverage to those with preexisting conditions is not going to save a dime, only a fool would think otherwise.

That doesn't mean trying to fix healthcare is a bad idea, but pretending we'll save money with this bill is just a lie told to those too stupid or lazy to look beyond the soundbites.

The best news about this being passed is that maybe, just maybe, those idiots in Washington will finally start paying attention to the problem they've ignored for far too long-- jobs.

Stevennnn

If republicans ran this country will would have zero social programs.

thefacts

Congressman Nadler got it right: "Truly, a vote for this bill is a vote to save 45,000 lives a year. A no vote for this bill is a vote to acquiesce in these deaths."

You think the Republicans care about human life? They are more concerned arguing with whether a gastrula has cognizance.

unsunghiro

go nancy, go nancy! it's yer birthday! it's yer birthday!

S.D.

"anybody can fall on my doorstep and get any procedure, any day or night"?

I'm sure that's true for ER, but what about multiple Chemo sessions or weekly Dialysis?

I think not.

Billiamsburg

yeah what a dumb response. 'yeah if someone is dying we will treat them I GUESS' How about preventive medicine? Healthcare is about more than the the ER.

Kojak

True. And its not the hospital who will mostly cover the ER cost. Its the city/state.

JacqueMehoff

stick to nursing ms. carbone. yes you'll treat people regardless of their ability to pay but you'll also send the bill over to a collection agency and most likely get a judgment. but yeah, whatever. judgments are good. I don't even know what to say anymore on this.