Last week, Insure Tennessee, Gov. Haslam's plan to expand Medicaid,
died in committee when seven of 11 state senators vindictively voted
down a plan to bring health insurance coverage to the poorest
Tennesseans. This gang of seven Republicans — Mike Bell, Janice Bowling,
Todd Gardenshire, Frank Nicely, Brian Kelsey, Kerry Roberts and Rusty
Crow — has not only left us in deep trouble by refusing to protect both
the lives and the livelihoods of Tennesseans, but has also revealed some
important truths about the essence of their party.
We hate the
poor. If you are poor, Republicans don't care about you or your life.
They don't want to provide you with medical insurance coverage even if
it is at little to no cost to our state. Bottom line: Your life and your
health do not matter to them.
We aren't interested in creating
jobs. If you want more jobs in Tennessee, don't look to Republicans to
help. A study released recently by the University of Tennessee's Center
for Business and Economic Research found that Insure Tennessee would
support 15,000 full-time jobs and would bring $1.14 billion into
Tennessee's economy, creating $909 million in new income for state
residents. But because the gang of seven killed the plan in committee,
that money and those jobs will never make it to our state.
We
don't want the health care business to thrive. If you are in health care
as a hospital owner, shareholder, manager, doctor or staff, Republicans
don't care enough to support your business. The Tennessee Hospital
Association, the Tennessee Business Roundtable and the Tennessee Medical
Association all knew this bill would be a boon to not only getting
patients better care, but also to their bottom line. In fact, state
hospitals in Tennessee needed Insure Tennessee to pass so badly that
they offered to make up for the state's leftover burden, so the state
government wouldn't have to pay anything at all. But still, Republicans
said "no dice."
We don't care about our rural constituents at all.
If you live in a rural area, Republicans don't want you to have quick
access to hospitals and their emergency rooms. After Haslam refused the
Medicaid expansion funds in 2013, four rural hospitals have closed in
Tennessee, and now 54 more out of 125 hospitals statewide are at risk
for closing because of the lack of Medicaid expansion combined with
other factors. Without either the ACA's Medicaid traditional expansion
or Insure Tennessee, 18 counties are at risk for not having a hospital
within their borders at all. Apparently, if you have a heart attack — a
medical situation where every moment counts — these Republicans don't
mind if you have to drive outside your county to find an emergency room.
But no biggie. The gang of seven has chosen to kill the bill that would
have supported statewide access to health care.
We hate Obama and
Obamacare so much that we can justify abandoning any moral convictions
we may feel to take care of the poor when they become sick. Even the
minister who opened the special legislative session with a prayer asked
God to "save Tennessee from the edicts of Washington, D.C." instead of
invoking the Beatitudes: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the
kingdom of God. Blessed are those who are merciful, for they will be
shown mercy." The Bible's teaching appears lost on the men who voted
down Insure Tennessee.
And last, Haslam is so incredibly
ineffectual as a leader he has let $1 billion of federal money earmarked
for Medicaid expansion slip out of our hands when it could have been
saving lives. Instead, he's let our Tennessee tax dollars go to other
states to fund their health care. And then once he realized his decision
to refuse that money was putting pressure on the economy, killing jobs
and closing hospitals, he couldn't even get his own party to pass his
plan to right his wrongs.
With the likes of the cruel gang of
seven and our governor, these hateful and petty Republicans are
obviously incapable of leading Tennessee. Let's vote them out of office
as soon as we can.
T. Robert Hill is a lawyer and former chairman of the Madison County Democratic Party. Contact him at (731) 423-3300.
source
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
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