Rick Scott Delivers Death Blow to Obamacare Repeal

[babylonsister]

Rick Scott Delivers Death Blow to Obamacare Repeal
By Jonathan Chait


Hasta la vista, baby.

From the moment President Obama set out to reform the health-care system, Republican opposition was a Terminator robot driven by a boundless, remorseless determination to kill. Every single Republican in Congress opposed the bill, and Republicans who even considered supporting something vaguely like it were ruthlessly purged. Even after it was passed, Republicans ginned up far-fetched legal challenges, held endless votes to repeal it, and vowed not to implement it at the state level. They couldn't be bargained with, couldn't be reasoned with, and felt no pity.

The repeal machine has suffered a series of devastating blows — the Supreme Court upholding the individual mandate, Obama’s reelection, the decision of several Republican governors to accept the program’s expansion of Medicaid — and continued to lurch forward. But Governor Rick Scott’s announcement that he will enroll uninsured Floridians in Medicaid appears to be a real death blow, the moment the cyborg’s head is crushed in a steel press.

From the moment he appeared on the national stage, Scott seemed to be engineered to fight health-care reform. The wealthy owner of a vast hospital chain that paid massive fines for overbilling Medicare during his tenure, Scott bankrolled an anti-reform lobby, then ran and won in 2010 on a platform of obsessive opposition to Obamacare. He has steadfastly vowed to turn down federal subsidies to cover his state’s uninsured, and even concocted phony accounting assumptions to justify his stance. Rick Scott really hates health-care reform.

But Scott is a vulnerable incumbent in a swing state. And his refusal to accept Medicaid expansions would have left his state’s hospitals on the hook for $2.8 billion when uninsured Floridians show up in emergency rooms, prompting them to lobby Scott to change his mind. And so he has. For an enjoyable sampling of conservative apoplexy, try Philip Klein (“waving the white flag is an accurate description of Scott’s decision”), Mario Loyola (“the most grievous blow since the Supreme Court’s decision upholding Obamacare last year”), and Michael Cannon (“will he sell out Florida’s job creators too?”).


more...

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/02/scott-delivers-death-blow-to-obamacare-repeal.html

[djean111]

1. To be objective about this, Rick Scott is also going to privatize medicaid services.

He got a waiver for that, I believe.
So, driving factor is not so much reelection as figuring out a way to siphon off federal funds - something he is good at.
The teapers evidently didn't notice that Scott is first and foremost for enriching Scott. Then his buddies.
The teapers were just convenient.
Yay for the repeal dying - although the whole thing sucks and we should have single payer.
But Scott didn't find his heart (can't find what isn't there, ya know) - he just found a way to profit from medicaid.
All, of course, just my opinion.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

7. NPR reported some critical problems with his privatization

though, of course, with privatization, such mismanagement and incompetence is a feature, not a bug.

[winterpark]

2. After he wasted millions in our taxpayer dollars in court! The fucker!! n/t

[babylonsister]

3. I'm SO GLAD Floridians are finally realizing what

a POS this man is!

[Cha]

4. The Repeal Machine Gets Death Blow!

Who'd a thunk it? so much Hot air went into it!

Good ol SCJ Roberts keeping it alive from the SC bench.. who would have called that!? RS thought waving was better than this..

Thanks babylonsistah

[Cha]

5. P.S. Let's Hope he Loses in Spite of his

11th Hour, Surrender!

[sheshe2]

6. I don't care if the Rickster is only doing this to save...

his own political butt. I am happy to know that the uninsured will benefit.

The man that looks like the grim reaper. I hope his aspirations die a slow and painful death!

[djean111]

9. If his privatization succeeds - succeeds for his own purposes - then the uninsured

will not benefit as much as they should, is all I'm saying. Once something is privatized, then profit is the motive, with skating by federal regulations coming in second.
I get to be so cynical because I live in Florida; Scott is an old hand at committing medicare fraud.
I don't think his political butt is all that saved. Should be interesting.
As far as political asses go, the other day the Tampa Bay Times ran a full cover featured article on how Bush should go down as the most humanitarian president, because of his support for AIDS eradication in Africa. Big cover pic of Bush smirking in front of Mt. Rushmore.
Gag-inducing. And this was the day after Hubris was aired - which defines hubris rather neatly. I am assuming Jebbie is trying to rehabilitate his bro's image for 2016 political purposes. Never too early to start - the anti-Hillary folks are already swinging into action.

[King_Klonopin]

8. Regarding those Republican governors who refuse to accept the help

I believe one would have to suspend any and all sense of morality,
conscience and compassion to behave so selfishly.

The fact that they are motivated by pure, political spite makes
it all the more egregious.

Their petty actions have a direct effect on real, living people who
need health care. It all reflects a profound level of immaturity.

Wouldn't it be nice if the people we elected to run our government
actually had some interest in running our government ?