Once again an extremist with limited intelligence is mouthing off about what she can never comprehend....

Did she even write the op-ed? Nuff said

Why does anyone give this woman the time of day? Sure, she looks good, but she's a know-nothing empty suit shilling for whatever GOP drivel she's asked to.

"her argument smacks of pandering to those who don't want the federal government to rein in Medicare costs." -- Uh buddy, they can't rein in costs now. What makes you think another bureaucracy will do the same?

of all the government people out there, it was PALIN who CAUGHT the proposal now abandoned. PALIN wins the points!

You fail to point out that the cost savings for capping malpractice outcomes could be an enormous savings. Tort Reform would be a major plus to everyone except the Lawyers. And all those who believe that a government run health care system would be more efficient and cost less please stand on your heads.

dear mr. healey, why would i write "created" when i MEANT "CAUGHT"? a "death panel" in the health care bill that needs to be dealt with, is the "death panel" for babies at the abortion clinics that the taxpayers, or gramps, should NOT be forced to pay for. abortion has slithered in under "health care". sneaky. sneaky.

The Ultra-conservative right wing nuts like Palin are frothing at the mouth yet again. Why does Obama think there can be anything resembling "bipartisanship" when the opposition is bent on total destruction of his administration? He needs to wake up and smell the napalm. these crazies on the right are strictly Slash and Burn. He needs to use his office to jam down their throats what the country needs: Health care reform; banking reform and an end to corporate control of elections. You can't play footsie with a bunch of die-hard liars and propagandists.

Oh Sarah. Please don't speak. Don't write. Just go home. You are clearly not a thought leader on this issue or anything else.

I just saved my insurance company and myself, many thousands by going to Mayo Clinic for a second (actually 3rd) opinion about a knee replacement. i wonder how many people, no worse than me, have had knee replacements, also cataract surgery, etc. that were unnecessary and may cause much worse problems.. Medicare does need to pay more for general practicianers. gerontologists, etc.

God, how I love Freedom of Speech. It's what keeps America ticking. I hope we never lose it. It doesn't matter whether you're on the Far Left, Far Right, or somewhere in between. Each and everyone of them has something to contribute. Some don't have great track records, but they keep on pursuing, and that's what it's about. Every now and then, someone from somewhere in the soup, points out something important. So, I say to you Sarah, and everyone else, from every angle possible, keep plugging away. Quite the contrary to popular belief, Americans actually are used to this system, and smart enough to figure out what's right for them. Let's not ever suppress Freedom of Speech. Data is key now days, and those who focus on it, have an edge on reporting, and dischiphering the rhetoric.

2 words amount to what Palin is "SICK JOKE"

The majority of seniors know that they will be the losers, should the government be allowed to extend their reach into people's lives.
As long as obama continues to insist in reducing medicare and medicaid payments to pad his health care scheme, and allow illegal immigrants access to insurance paid by Americans, then people like Sarah Palin and myself will work tirelessly to point out that this administration's goal is a bloated, socialized style government like there is in europe.
Americans do not want socialism infecting the fabric of this great country. With help from good Americans like Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck, we can sweep the blight of obama back into the hole that he came from. His incompetence continues to degrade this country and hope for job recovery will only come by taking back the Congress by Republicans and Independents.
With massive taxes awaiting businesses, thanks to obama and the liberal democrats, job creation in this country will not occur until a more favorable and business friendly approach is taken.

The Ultra-conservative right wing nuts like Palin are frothing at the mouth yet again. Why does Obama think there can be anything resembling "bipartisanship" when the opposition is bent on total destruction of his administration? He needs to wake up and smell the napalm. these crazies on the right are strictly Slash and Burn. He needs to use his office to jam down their throats what the country needs: Health care reform; banking reform and an end to corporate control of elections. You can't play footsie with a bunch of die-hard liars and propagandists.

Posted by: jefflz | September 09, 2009 at 04:44 PM

I do not have the vocabulary to come up with this, but off all the points made this is the one that was burning in my head last night. I would like our President to stop being so patient and mature! You can not be rational with an irrational person or people for that matter

Why is anyone even paying attention to this woman?

She's NOT a lot of things: A governor (you need to finish a term to be considered anything- A man going to Army boot camp is NOT a soldier until he completes boot camp). Just because she held the office for half the term, then quit suddenly, bespeaks a lack of ethical responsibility. This is not a governor.

Political hopeful. With the way she muddies the waters on everything she has an opinion about (and there are an unending list), I find it hard to understand where she is coming from. If she ever tries to run for office again, will the people even understand what the heck she says? She'll need a ghost writer with her at all times, so she can read a ready-made response.

courageous. Spouting disinformation through Facebook? She can't stand the light of the media, so she must hide behind her keypad.

But she IS a lot of things: A prostitute. Selling yourself via E-Bay? Yeah, yeah, I know it's a dinner, but she's hawking HERSELF. And not just anybody will be accepted, now that's a PICKY prostitute. Because she is donating to charity, does that also make her a picky prostitute with a heart of gold?

A liar. I suppose by now, she HAS had time to read H.R.3200, and STILL the death panel hogwash. Doesn't she know that WE know what the truth is? Or maybe she's just pandering to the "Orwellers", like Glenn Beck does.

A shill. I suppose if you look at her finance records, you'll see deposits made by the healthcare insurance industry. This would come as no surprise, as hard as she's pushing this nonsense.

A drama queen. Hardly two days can pass before she's spouting more nonsense. The fight with Letterman? That's what clinched it for many,many Americans. She could have been gracious, and accepted his first apology, but she couldn't get enough blood, so she kept it up until she got her way.

A fake. Yeeaah. She knows how to shoot. Like I know brain surgery. She fishes? does she even know which end of the rod she needs to hold? I'm not so sure, considering she's never been.

So, I ask again, why is anyone even paying attention to this woman?

She's enraged with jealousy that Ellen got to be the judge on Idol. They're all death panels to Sassy.

To all concerned Americans; Whould you want Palin to go to Def Con 1 then launch? Think about it!!!!! Very worried about 2012!!!! Smitty.

She's a self-aggrandising nincompoop.

Mr. Healey, it's also dishonest (or, as we conservatives now call it, a lie) to not actually link to Palin's piece in the WSJ, nor to mention the several constructive ideas mentioned in her article which are worthy of serious consideration. She mentions, as just one example, repeal of the federal laws preventing healthcare providers from operating across state lines.

So lets address, instead, your fixation -- Palin does indeed mention "death panels" (the Medicare Advisory Panel) -- unelected officials who will have life-and-death decision making powers over what is or is not covered in your medical plan, and life-and-death decision making powers over what is (or is not) in your formulary (the pharmaceuticals you are allowed to obtain under the plan). If these guys don't think it ought to be covered, it will not be. By setting rules on Government reimbursement under privately run health plans, and using the enforcement instruments Obama has put forth in his speech (the "cadillac tax" on healthcare plans whose benefits go beyond what the "death panels" think ought to be standard), they will stifle our ability to choose a healthcare plan which suits us by making such plans costly to us -- possibly to the point that we cannot afford them.

Given that just a few years ago, CAT scans and MRIs were "cadillac" but are now routinely offered, one can see where our quality of healthcare will suffer. Innovation in the form of new technologies will not be capitalized fast enough (because the "death panel" sees them as "cadillac"), and hence their movement into the mainstream will be slowed.

To fully understand the problems associated with government-run healthplans here in the USA, we don't need to look at the problems in Canada, or in the UK, one merely needs to look at the existing healthcare plans the United States administers for the common folk, such as the Indian Health Service. Here's what the Senators on the Democratic Policy Committee themselves have to say about nationalized healthcare in Indian Country:"For many critical services, patients are subjected to a literal "life or limb" test; their care is denied unless their life is threatened or they risk immediate loss of a limb. Care is denied or delayed until their condition worsens and treatment is costlier or, all too often, comes too late to be effective. " Next up, the Veterans' Administration, which the Times itself has noted in one article had problems: "The stories detailed the substandard facilities and confusing bureaucracy that wounded troops faced once they were released from their initial treatment."

This is the type of treatment we all will be enduring if ObamaCare is passed -- substandard services and confusing bureaucracy.

If liberals want to tout success stories about government medical plans, they merely have to point to either the Congressional or the Presidential treatment plans, and, for example, tout the treatment afforded Senator Edward Kennedy under one of those plans. The conservative response is obvious -- these plans are not presided over by a "death panel", nor are they subject to a "cadillac tax". Maybe they ought to be, but that's a whole 'nuther topic. In any case, do not expect that this type of plan will be the standard under ObamaCare -- remember the "cadillac tax"?

The best moderator of costs and utilization in a healthplan is the marketplace. We currently produce enough doctors and enough medicines and enough equipment to service those who can pay now, and such payments are currently at a level which prevents abuse. If we attempt to increase utilization of any of this infrastructure without significant investment into it beforehand [more doctors, increased pharmaceutical and medical equipment production], we must either ration it, raise the costs of using it, or set penalties for "abuse" -- of which the "death panels" Palin touts will be only a minor case. Those of us who can pay will be competing for services with those who cannot pay, and those who cannot pay will have no incentive to self-ration, so something will have to be done to us all (including those of us paying) to prevent oversubscription.

I'm a senior like you, Mr. Healey, and I happen to like things the way they are, even if I, like everyone else, have had occasional problems with my provider. With my current health plan, I'm the "death panel" -- I make the decisions as to how much healthcare to buy, and I buy the best I can afford. I have options, like anyone else does who needs treatment, but because I pay into the system, I have more options, and I think that's completely fair. If there's going to be a "death panel" deciding my care, I want all the votes, and that's fair too. It's what I have, and what your side would change.

@unclesmrgol -- You're right, I should have included a link to Palin's Op-Ed. That was really bad Netiquette on my part. My apologies to my peers at the Journal.

You are wrong, however, about the proposal for an enhanced MedPAC. It won't have any control over private plans. Just Medicare. And if you're on Medicare, by your definition of "death panel," you're already subject to two of 'em -- HHS and Congress. They set reimbursement levels. The only control you may exert is through the out-of-pocket dollars you may have the ability to spend to buy things Medicare won't pay for. If you've got 'em, good for you.

The question isn't whether government should decide how Medicare dollars are spent -- it already is deciding. The question is whether those decisions should be made by politicians or by medical experts based on what treatments are shown to be most effective. I think most people would agree that the latter approach would be better, although we can certainly debate what's the best way to go about it.

@unclesmrgol -- I think you and I have a basic disagreement on what the problem is with the healthcare system. To me, it's the growing number of people who can't obtain or afford care; a corollary is people bankrupted by healthcare bills. Those are structural problems -- rising costs (fueled in part by improper incentives for providers *and* patients) lead to insurers charging more, covering fewer people perceived as bad risks, and limiting what their policies will pay for. Even people who are happy with their current insurance policies are affected, and not just through higher premiums. Runaway medical spending is a drag on the economy and, soon, a nightmare for taxpayers.

Letting insurance companies compete across state lines does nothing about the problems of cherry-picking or insufficient coverage. It might help healthy people get better deals, but it won't help anyone denied coverage today because they have asthma or had a cancerous skin lesion removed a few years back. The one sure effect would be to promote consolidation among insurance companies. I'm not bothered by such a change, given the efficiencies it might create, but some liberal consumer groups argue that it would reduce competition in the long run, defeating the purpose of the deregulation.

What don't you understand about NO. The President said NO. NO illegal immigrant health care.But let me tell you if a illegle came in with a ill child we will take care of that child. No qustions asked, and you and I will be happy to pay for it!

Sarah Palin is the best thing to happen to the progressive movement since Dick Cheney. Keep those gums flappin' Sarah, we love everything you say!

Breaking news, Ms. Palin: much of what you apparently believe are new proposals represent what has been going on in the federal health care programs for decades. Perhaps now that you've abandoned your day job half-way through its term, you could study health care history and economics? That's usually required of op-ed writers, though the WSJ seems to make an exception in your case.

What makes you think that folks who don't know that HAwaii was a state when President Obama was born there cna read well enough to look at the healthcare bills? Ignorance is bliss and we have a lot of really happy but woefully ignorant people.