How Serious Are Kentucky Republicans About Health care Reform?

Jim Bunning (R-KY), poor thing, looked so very, very old today, snoozing away at the Senate health care debate. It doesn't matter; he hasn't had anything constructive to say in half a dozen years. But his loud snoring was bothering other members who were actually trying to get something done. Funny thing about Kentucky; it's one of the hardest hit states economically-- last Saturday we looked at KY-05, the second poorest district in the U.S. and how it's congressman, Republican Hal Rogers, is helping obstruct meaningful health care reform-- and yet both senators from there are adamantly opposed, and aggressively so, to any of the proposals that would benefit ordinary Kentucky working families. This is especially chilling when you consider that:

• 21 percent of children in Kentucky are obese.

• 22 percent of women over the age of 50 in Kentucky have not received a mammogram in the past two years.

• 36 percent of men over the age of 50 in Kentucky have never had a colorectal cancer screening.

Perhaps that goes a ways towards explaining why both McConnell and Bunning have such abysmal approval ratings from their constituents, 17% of whom report not visiting a doctor due to high costs.

And, remember, the whole state isn't Hal Rogers' poverty-stricken. While KY-05 has a 22% rate of uninsured people, Kentucky's as a whole is "just" 16.1%. According to HealthReform.gov, "the number of uninsured in Kentucky has increased from 458,000 in 2001 to 682,000 in 2008," a real catastrophe for a state that voted overwhelmingly for George Bush in 2000 and 2004 and for McConnell and Bunning at every opportunity. "The percent of non-elderly adults without insurance increased from 14.6% to 21.6%. And this number only considers people who are uninsured for an entire year-- it does not include people in Kentucky who have more recently lost coverage through the recession, or who had shorter gaps in their coverage." That's probably a very significant number. And meanwhile, "the percentage of people with employer-based coverage decreased from 71.3% of the population in 2001 to 63.5% in 2008... "and the proportion of workers from Kentucky without insurance has increased, from 13.2% in 2001 to 19.4% in 2008." These figures includes more than just poor people and more than just a rapidly growing number of middle class individuals. "An additional 22,000 people from high-income households are now uninsured."

The health care reform bills that Bunning and McConnell are threatening to filibuster to death-- the one that put Bunning so soundly to sleep yesterday-- would be far more beneficial to Kentuckians than to most people. First of all, it means lower costs for the state's residents-- not that either McConnell or Bunning gives a hoot about that; both live Inside the Beltway world of make believe and both have the best government-administered health care plan available-- although not available to Kentuckians.

• Ending the Hidden Tax-- Saving You Money: Right now, providers in Kentucky lose over $1.0 billion in bad debt which often gets passed along to families in the form of a hidden premium “tax." Health insurance reform will tackle this financial burden by improving our health care system and covering the uninsured, allowing the 104 hospitals and the 11,318 physicians in Kentucky to better care for their patients.

• Health Insurance Premium Relief: Premiums for residents of Kentucky have risen 61% since 2000. Through health insurance reform, 621,300 to 692,400 middle class Kentucky residents will be eligible for premium credits to ease the burden of these high costs.

• Strengthening Small Businesses: 55,229 employers in Kentucky are small businesses.  With tax credits and a health insurance exchange where they can shop for health plans, insurance coverage will become more affordable for them.

• Reforms that Reduce Your Costs: Under health insurance reform, insurance companies will be prevented from placing annual or lifetime caps on the coverage you receive.  Insurance companies will also have to abide by yearly limits on how much they can charge for out-of-pocket expenses, helping 45,900 households in Kentucky struggling under the burden of high health care expenses.

• Insurance Stability and Security: Health insurance reform will strengthen our system of employer-based health insurance, with an additional 41,200 people in Kentucky potentially getting insurance through their work. Health insurance reform will also ensure that you will always have guaranteed choices of quality, affordable health insurance if you lose your job, switch jobs, move or get sick.

• Eliminating Discrimination for Pre-Existing Conditions, Health Status or Gender: 10% of people in Kentucky have diabetes, and 30% have high blood pressure-- two conditions that insurance companies could use as a reason to deny you health insurance. Health insurance reform will prevent insurance companies from denying coverage based on your health, and it will end discrimination that charges you more if you’re sick or a woman.

• One-Stop Shopping-- Putting Families in Charge: With the new health insurance exchange, you can easily and simply compare insurance prices and health plans and decide which quality affordable option is right for you and your family. These proposals will help the 604,900 residents of Kentucky who currently do not have health insurance to obtain needed coverage, and it will also help the 171,900 Kentucky residents who currently purchase insurance in the individual insurance market.
 
• Guaranteeing Choices: The largest health insurer in Kentucky holds 51% of the market, which limits the choices that you have for finding coverage. With a competitive public insurance option, you will have more choices and increased competition that holds insurance companies accountable.

• Preventive Care for Better Health: 36% of Kentucky residents have not had a colorectal cancer screening, and 22% of women have not had a mammogram in the past 2 years. By requiring health plans to cover preventive services for everyone, investing in prevention and wellness, and promoting primary care, health insurance reform will work to create a system that prevents illness and disease instead of just treating it when it’s too late and costs more.

• Improving Care for Children and Seniors: 22% of children in Kentucky have not visited a dentist in the past year, and 27% of seniors did not receive a flu vaccine. Health reform will ensure coverage for kids’ dental, vision, and hearing needs, and will promote quality coverage for America’s seniors, including recommended immunizations.

Kentucky Republicans have a history of voting against their constituents interests to please the special interests that fund their campaigns. Let's take a look at the state's six congressional districts' home foreclosure rates over the next four years.

KY-01, the south-central and western part of the state (Ed Whitfield, R)- 6,883 foreclosures
KY-02, the center of the state south of Louisville (Brett Guthrie, R)- 10,601 foreclosures
KY-03, Louisville (John Yarmuth, D)- 15,784 foreclosures
KY-04, the northeast along the Ohio River (Geoff Davis, R)- 13,315 foreclosures
KY-05, the southeast Appalachian district (Hal Rogers, R)- 3,412 foreclosures
KY-06, the heart of Blue Grass country near Lexington (Ben Chandler, D)- 10,123 foreclosures

So what's the commonality here and why bring it up? Last March 5 the House passed legislation, the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, 234-191. Both the Kentucky Democrats voted for it and all four Kentucky Republicans voted against it. All indications are that that is precisely what will happen when the House votes on a meaningful health care reform bill. Regardless of how much the bill will ameliorate the problems faced by the constituents who vote in Rogers, Whitfield, Davis and Guthrie-- not to mention the two awful senators-- the entire Kentucky congressional delegation is working to obstruct passage of legislation. (Except Bunning, who's sleeping through the whole mess, and plans to vote no regardless of what's proposed.)

Ironically-- or maybe not-- the Senate candidate for Bunning's seat most likely to walk in complete lockstep with the other anti-family Republicans, Trey Grayson, is leading Ron Paul's son Rand for the Republican nomination-- and is looking like a likely winner against either Democrat! More irony: slightly more Kentuckians support a public option than oppose it! Go figure.