But I ask you a simple question. Where has the Republican leadership been when we so desparately needed it? They had eight years to put this issue on the top of the agenda and all we got was Prescription Part D Plan for retirees and we barely have the money to pay for that. We need “real” alternatives to the president’s plan for the health care “access” program. We don’t want to hear the republican plan consists of tax credit this or that..Not everything is solved with a tax credit. We want real ideas and a plan to tackle these issues out there.

For example, How can a 55 year old that is laid off and starts a consulting practice get health care that is affordable and without exclusions? How are you going to bring the cost of tests, treatments, crazy expensive prescriptions down to a reasonable level? How is a businessowner supposed to thrive when healtcare is eating away at profits and reducing the ability to keep staff? What will be done when the best doctors move away from health insurance and will only accept private pay on your credit card at 25%. What about tort reform and the atrocious amounts of premiums for orthopaedic surgens and Obgyn’s?

Have you got ideas for that? Great; put it in the sound bite on Meet the Press, on the internet or some other way so we can hear it over the din of the democratic plan.

Please don’t patronize us in thinking we will docily follow the republican status quo. We can’t do that and we are asking, and even pleading for you to step up. Bring in the doctors, businessowners, insurance, and drug companies and ask them what should be done.

Oh and tell your republican colleagues to stop bragging about not voting for this healthcare legislation and offer little else as an alternative. We are tired of it. Come to the game ready to play or stay home. Show leadership, vision, and hope. That is what this country needs right now and we are looking to you and your colleagues to get the job done.

Posted on Sunday, October 04, 2009 – 07:50 pm:

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A friend sent me the following. I do not forward information that I have not checked out so, I followed the steps outlined by the author to search the CBO document. Clearly the CBO has been looking for ways to cut Health Care costs in the future and it looks like we Military Retirees are clearly in their cross-hairs.

For your consideration:

“This is true. It is on pages 77, 172, 218, and 434. You have to dig to see the charges. We (retirees) would lose the Medicare for life benefit and would have to pay. We would lose TRICARE as a total care package. We would not be allowed to keep TRICARE so when Obama stands and says if you like what you have you can keep it, he lies.

This is a “Heads Up” on a battle we are facing now and down the road with the new Administration. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has already drafted proposed legislation that would basically reduce our TRICARE for Life benefits to a system whereby we pay deductibles and co-pays up to $6,301 the first year for you and your spouse, with future years being indexed to increase with inflation. What can we do? The article below, obtained from an Air Force Association and written by BG Bob Clements, best describes what we can do. Please read it and check the links for CBO language and do what Bob says-Send this email to every Military Retiree you know and write and email your Congressman often. For those of you that might have voted for “Change”, you should do it more than often!

TRICARE FOR LIFE’S FUTURE….

TRICARE For Life was instituted to correct the broken promise that military retirees would receive free healthcare coverage for life and it covers the Medicare co-pay. Now a heavy assault has begun on Veterans’/Retirees’ benefits to pay for other programs our President promised during the campaign. And it is a high priority of his administration. The one item of most interest to Retired Military is in Article 189. If approved by Congress the first assault wave would hit in 11 and would hit hard. It would initiate cost sharing to require retirees to pay the first $525 of medical cost and 50% of the next $4,725 for a first year cost of $2,888 per person. It would be indexed to increase with inflation. A reason given for this action (for PR effect) is “overuse” by Retiree s.

For those of you who are covered by TFL you will want to pay attention (Below) to what BG Bob Clements has surfaced about the future of TFL. In any case, on page 189 of the Congressional Budget Office report, see the note below on how to get to that spot, there is a strong recommendation to eventually eliminate the program as it is too expensive. Just another move to slight those of us who dedicated much of our adult lives to the defense of our country.

Strongly recommend that you contact your elected officials and register your strong opposition to the elimination of the TFL program. Heads-up from BG Bob Clements, USAF Ret (P38 Bob)

The following has been added to the Congressional Budget Office Web Site http://www.cbo.gov/ a. Budget, Options, Volume 1: Health Care

(www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=9925)

For those who have never opened one of these web sites from OMB :

1. double click on the above URL

2. click on PDF

3. click on the binoculars

4. do a search for TFL

Now here it is folks and I will guarantee if you sit around on your behind and do nothing about it as they bring these options forward this coming year, you will lose one of the best healthcare benefits that the Medicare eligible retired military have. It is short of the promises made that we fought so hard for back in the late 90s and early 00s but it is still the best healthcare program that anyone in the United States has, bar none.

People who are professionals always look for the channel of least resistance when it comes to cutting money out of the Federal and DOD budget. I can tell you this straight on, military retirees are one of those channels of least resistance noted for sitting around, doing nothing, and waiting for ole Joe to do it for them. You had better wake up. Your medical benefits are prime target. If you lose them, you have nobody to blame but yourself. Let me repeat that … you have nobody to blame but yourself.

The way to secure your benefits is to write to your members of Congress and to keep writing and writing and writing. ONCE IS NOT ENOUGH!! Keep repeating the above statement until you are blue in the face.

Now I’m going to make one more statement to all of you younger people out there who are not yet eligible for TRICARE for Life. HEALTH CARE WILL EVENTUALLY BECOME THE DOMINATING FACTOR IN YOUR LIFE. Remember that . . . . it will impact you big time with the utmost in cruelty unless you are fortunate enough to die from a heart attack or get run over by a truck.

The service organizations will put up a fight, but, they will need your help and can’t do it by themselves. I hope this makes it clear as to what you can expect if you do nothing.

To show you how stupid these professionals can be at times just read the data on the noted sites closely. You will see that in spite of the MTFs (Military Treatment Facility) need to get patients back to keep their doctors busy and the hospitals from going to clinic status, these people from OMB would employ a means to keep retirees from using MTF facilities by charging them a fee for services. How dumb can you get.

Even if you are an Obama fan, and believe that changeth cometh, TFL option from OMB will not go away. They need the money they spend on you for other programs for people who produce nothing but votes to keep their boss in office. If you know of anyone who is Retired Military, please forward this on to them.

Remember- TFL is an “Earned Benefit” that’s been granted by a previous Congress.”

This is not meant to be a criticism of any particular individual or political party. My sole purpose in forwarding it is to inform and permit you to take whatever action you deem appropriate.

Happy travels, John

Are you willing to renounce the public option, single payer, health care coverage you and your family enjoy? Actions speak louder than words.

We can’t go on the way health care is now!

I wish to thank Congressman Culberson for his scrutiny on the pending health legislation. May I suggest that a health services tune-up not be rushed, especially in light of the needs to be addressed and expense. Let the doctors advise what is needed for their patients–with peer correction for abuses. Priority should be what doctors think would work in crafting any legislation. To pay the bill, either find something more efficient via private insurers or government subsidy, but, Heaven help us, if we move to a situation were government workers, not doctors, decide what care should be provided or denied–one BIG 1984 NIGHTMARE, one BIG GOVERNMENT MICROCONTROL, managed by indifferent, academically unqualified, removed civil servants!