<div dir="ltr"><div>A: I didn't say millions lost their health care, I said millions lost their health care<strong> plan</strong>.  Though they were promised they could keep what they had, many were forced to obtain different plans that cost them more, covered procedures that they would never need<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif;display:inline">​ or want​</div>, had<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif;display:inline">​ much​</div> higher deductibles, and in general were inferior to what they had before.</div><div><br></div><div>B: I'm unsure of the relevance of your assertion that 8 to 10 million folks have signed up for o-care unless it's that with any luck at all you will be given <div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif;display:inline">​the​</div> opportunity to be amongst them. </div><div><br></div><div>C: "...pins, rods, screws,... something you will just have to live with.." I'm going to have to go with yes unless you find the alternative more appealing. It's likely that democrat care will cover that option should you choose it.</div><div><br></div><div>And finally D: Thanks for the creepy proposition. I'm flattered, I guess but, at my advanced stage of life switching teams is pretty much out of the question.</div><div><br></div><div>g</div></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Feb 2, 2015 at 1:51 PM, Tom Hansen <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com" target="_blank">thansen@moscow.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div dir="auto"><div><span></span></div><div><div>Any evidence of "<span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">millions of Americans to lose the health care" under the Affordable Care Act, Mr.  Crabtree?  Or is this merely more hot air?</span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)"><br></span></div><div>At last count eight million to ten million people signed on to the Affordable Care Act.</div><div><br></div><div>And . . .</div><div><br></div><div>As far as my "<i>own little world</i>" is concerned, Mr. Crabtree . . . Being a disabled Army retiree with screws, rods, pins, and Degenerative Osteoarthritis in my right leg . . . Well, that's something I'll just have to live with, huh? </div><div><br></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)"><b>F*CK</b>, Mr. Crabtree.  The only thing missing is <b>you</b>.</span></div><div><br><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">Seeya 'round town, Moscow, because . . .</span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">"Moscow Cares"</span></div><div><a style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)" href="http://www.moscowcares.com/" target="_blank"><font color="#000000">http://www.MoscowCares.com</font></a></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">  </span></div><div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">Tom Hansen</span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">Moscow, Idaho</span></div></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">"There's room at the top they are telling you still.</span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">But first you must learn how to smile as you kill,</span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">If you want to be like the folks on the hill."</span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">- John Lennon</span></div><div><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">  </span></div></div><div><br>On Feb 2, 2015, at 1:34 PM, Gary Crabtree <<a href="mailto:moscowlocksmith@gmail.com" target="_blank">moscowlocksmith@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br><br></div><blockquote type="cite"><div><span>When Obama care caused millions of Americans to lose the health care</span><br><span>they were promised they could keep and forced then to scramble for</span><br><span>more expensive health plans that were less suitable to their needs you</span><br><span>thought that this was a wonderful step forward for the country. Surely</span><br><span>you can't be objecting to a little health care presto change-o coming</span><br><span>into your own little world?</span><br><span></span><br><span>g</span><br><span></span><br><span>On Mon, Feb 2, 2015 at 6:21 AM, Tom Hansen <<a href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com" target="_blank">thansen@moscow.com</a>> wrote:</span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>Is this what happens under a Republican-controlled congress?</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Privatization of health care insurance for military retirees?????</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>If it works, DON'T FIX IT ! ! !</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>I am a disabled retiree (with a service-connected disability rated at 45%).</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>I would HATE to have to pay commercial health insurance premiums . . . and</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>hope I am covered if I should ever have to be admitted to the hospital.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Courtesy of the Army Times.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>--------------------------------------</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Commission Calls for Abolishing TriCare</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>A congressional commission has called for an overhaul of the military health</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>system that does away with Tricare, changes the medical command structure</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>and seeks to improve Defense Department coordination with Veterans Affairs.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The goal of the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Commission’s plan according to its final report released Jan. 29, is to</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>preserve the quality of combat care that saved many troops’ lives in Iraq</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>and Afghanistan but also improve access to health treatment for those who</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>use the system.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Under the recommendations, active- duty members and mobilized reservists</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>still would receive medical care from the U.S. military, with easier access</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>to specialty care in the civilian sector if they need it.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>But their family members, and retirees under 65 and their families, would be</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>covered through commercial insurers, similar to plans run under the Federal</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Employee Health Benefits Program.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Active-duty families would get an allowance to cover their insurance</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>premiums, called the Basic Allowance for Health Care.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Retirees below Medicare-eligible age would pay their premiums out of pocket,</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>though at a lower cost thancivilianplansas“recognition” of their service,</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>under the plan.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The program would be run from the Office of Personnel Management, just as</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>the FEHBP is, negating the need for the huge Tricare contract management and</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>oversight structure that exists in the Pentagon, according to the report.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>But this would not be FEHBP, commission members stressed, because that</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>program doesn’t offer options appropriate for military beneficiaries with</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>their unique requirements, including the availability of military treatment</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>facilities and readiness demands, the commission wrote.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>“By moving toward private insurance, beneficiaries of the plan would have</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>improved access to health care. ... It also solves some of the issues with</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>mobilization and place monthly pension checks with 401(k)-style investment</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>accounts. That suggested the government contributions should be at least</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>16.5 percent of basic pay, with higher rates for deployed service members or</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>high-demand career f ields.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>That plan went nowhere after it was criticized by troops, disavowed by the</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Pentagon leadership and landed with a thud on Capitol Hill.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Last March, the Pentagon’s personnel and readiness office broke its long</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>silence and offered several detailed and complex alternatives to the current</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>system: hybrid options that included both a TSP with government</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>contributions and smaller, partial pension checks before traditional</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>retirement age.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>That plan also included some lump-sum payments for troops staying at least</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>20 years, offering a “transitionpay”equaltoasmuchas three years’ basic pay.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The nine-member commission is chaired by Maldon. Other members include</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Pressler, Dov Zakheim, Edmund Giambastiani, Peter Chiarelli, Bob Kerrey,</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Christopher Carney, Michael Higgins and Stephen Buyer. N care they now have,</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>under the plan.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The commission also recommends that DoD create a four-star Joint Readiness</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Command that would lead much of the portion of the Joint Staff that is</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>responsible for readiness. This structure, commissioners said, would improve</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>coordination across the services in treatment, transportation and care for</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>injured and ill troops.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>“Joint readiness today is at a high level because we’ve just been through</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>more than a decade of war. This seeks to preserve that function,” Daigle</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>said.The commission also suggests changes to programs for beneficiaries with</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>special needs, to more closely align them with state Medicaid programs —</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>something advocates have sought in recent years.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The commission also called for improving coordination between DoD and VA</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>health services, to include creating a uniform drug formulary for smooth</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>transition of prescriptions, establishing standard reimbursement and</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>completing the effort to create a joint electronic health record system.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The report estimates changes to the health programs could cut the Pentagon</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>budget by $26.5 billion from fiscal 2016 to fiscal 2020 and save $6.7</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>billion a year by 2033.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Unlike the retirement portion of the report, which would apply only to new</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>recruits, the health care portion of the recommendations would affect all</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>family members, retirees and their families — except for those on Tricare</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>For Life — once signed into law.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Joyce Raezer, executive director of the National Military Family</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Association, said she polled 20 military spouses shortly after the report</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>was released and said most were “intrigued” by the recommendations,</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>particularly the prospect of greater choice.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>“Generally, the option for choice in this arrangement ... they like that.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The Tricare bureaucracy is cumbersome,” Raezer said.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>But spouses added they would need help understanding their options and</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>choosing plans, and they also wondered how such a system would work across</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>state lines and overseas.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>“The biggest concern is about education,” Raezer said. “We have been</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>educating the whole country about health care with the Affordable Care Act</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>right now. This means we’d need to educate retirees and family members</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>--------------------------------------</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Seeya 'round town, Moscow, because . . .</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>"Moscow Cares"</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span><a href="http://www.MoscowCares.com" target="_blank">http://www.MoscowCares.com</a></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Tom Hansen</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Moscow, Idaho</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>=======================================================</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span> List services made available by First Step Internet,</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span> serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>               <a href="http://www.fsr.net" target="_blank">http://www.fsr.net</a></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>          <a href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com" target="_blank">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</a></span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>=======================================================</span><br></blockquote><span></span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>=======================================================</span><br><span> List services made available by First Step Internet,</span><br><span> serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.</span><br><span>               <a href="http://www.fsr.net" target="_blank">http://www.fsr.net</a></span><br><span>          <a href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com" target="_blank">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</a></span><br><span>=======================================================</span></div></blockquote></div></div></blockquote></div><br></div>