Bush Cuts Children's Health While Rewarding HMOs

[Guest guest]

http://www.misleader.org/daily_mislead/Read.asp?fn=df05272004.html

 

May 27, 2004

 

Bush Cuts Children's Health While Rewarding HMOs

 

During today's trip to Tennessee 1, President Bush will hold a photo-op at a

children's hospital and then attend a $2,000-per-person fundraiser at the home

of a top health insurance executive 2. The two events provide a perfect display

of how the President has misled America on health care policy: at the same time

that he has tried to slash funding for children's hospitals, his budget lavishes

billions of dollars on health insurance companies who fund his campaign.

 

During today's first event, the President is expected to praise children's

hospitals. However, his budget this year proposes to freeze funding for grants

to these hospitals, preventing their federal grants from keeping pace with

inflation 3. He also proposes a $94 million cut to the Community Access Program

4 - effectively eliminating another program that provides grants to children's

hospitals in need. And he is trying to slash $158 million (68%) from training

grants for specialties that include pediatrics 5. These efforts are consistent

with his past policies: last year, the President proposed cutting $86 million

(30%) from grants to children's hospitals 6. And in 2002, he proposed to cut $35

million (14%) from grants for children's hospitals to train pediatricians 7.

 

After his photo-op at the children's hospital, the President will attend a

fundraiser at the home of Clay Jackson 8, an executive 9 at a health insurance

company called BB & T 10. Unlike the children's hospitals whose budgets have been

cut, insurance executives like Jackson have a lot to thank the President for.

For instance, the President crafted a Medicare bill that gives health insurance

companies a new $130 billion subsidy 11, while forcing many seniors off

traditional Medicare and into HMOs 12. The President has also done nothing to

address the skyrocketing costs of health care, sitting by last year as HMOs

raised premiums by 13% 13 and raked in an extra $6.7 billion from Americans 14.

 

Sources:

" Bush to pump health care, campaign coffers with Nashville visit " , WATE.com,

05/27/2004.

" Bush expected in Nashville for Republican fund-raiser " , Nashville City

Paper, 05/11/2004.

AAMC.org, 02/06/2004.

House Budget Committee.

House Budget Committee.

Democratic Policy Committee, 05/20/2004.

Children's Defense Fund Action Council.

OpenSecrets.Org.

" BB & T to Acquire Nashville-Based Agency " , Insurance Journal, 08/04/2003.

BB & T.

F.A.I.R. Medicare.

Public Citizen, 02/13/2003.

" Health costs skyrocket " , CNN Money, 09/22/2003.

" HMO profits jumped 52% " , CBS Marketwatch, 05/04/2004.

 

 

 

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