Thread: Hawaii Ending Universal Child Health Care After 7 Mos.

Hawaii Ending Universal Child Health Care After 7 Mos.Friday, October 17, 2008

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HONOLULU — Hawaii is dropping the only state universal child health care program in the country just seven months after it launched.

Gov. Linda Lingle's administration cited budget shortfalls and other available health care options for eliminating funding for the program. A state official said families were dropping private coverage so their children would be eligible for the subsidized plan.

"People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free," said Dr. Kenny Fink, the administrator for Med-QUEST at the Department of Human Services. "I don't believe that was the intent of the program."

State officials said Thursday they will stop giving health coverage to the 2,000 children enrolled by Nov. 1, but private partner Hawaii Medical Service Association will pay to extend their coverage through the end of the year without government support.

"We're very disappointed in the state's decision, and it came as a complete surprise to us," said Jennifer Diesman, a spokeswoman for HMSA, the state's largest health care provider. "We believe the program is working, and given Hawaii's economic uncertainty, we don't think now is the time to cut all funding for this kind of program."

Hawaii lawmakers approved the health plan in 2007 as a way to ensure every child can get basic medical help. The Keiki (child) Care program aimed to cover every child from birth to 18 years old who didn't already have health insurance — mostly immigrants and members of lower-income families.

It costs the state about $50,000 per month, or $25.50 per child — an amount that was more than matched by HMSA.

State health officials argued that most of the children enrolled in the universal child care program previously had private health insurance, indicating that it was helping those who didn't need it.

The Republican governor signed Keiki Care into law in 2007, but it and many other government services are facing cuts as the state deals with a projected $900 million general fund shortfall by 2011.

While it's difficult to determine how many children lack health coverage in the islands, estimates range from 3,500 to 16,000 in a state of about 1.3 million people. All were eligible for the program.

"Children are a lot more vulnerable in terms of needing care," said Democratic Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland. "It's not very good to try to be a leader and then renege on that commitment."

The universal health care system was free except for copays of $7 per office visit.

Families with children currently enrolled in the universal system are being encouraged to seek more comprehensive Medicaid coverage, which may be available to children in a family of four earning up to $73,000 annually.

These children also could sign up for the HMSA Children's Plan, which costs about $55 a month.

"Most of them won't be eligible for Medicaid, and that's why they were enrolled in Keiki Care," Diesman said. "It's the gap group that we're trying to ensure has coverage



http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,439607,00.html

"People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free," said Dr. Kenny Fink, the administrator for Med-QUEST at the Department of Human Services. "I don't believe that was the intent of the program."

Why shouldn't they be entitled to it? After all, illegal aliens kids were getting it for free, without having to verify their family income.

When you start REQUIRING PROOF of income from all adults in each household, only then will you find the ones who truly need it.

Most illegal aliens can afford to pay for coverage, they just don't want to. Well, DUH, no one wants to pay for it when you can get it for free, eh?

It looks like its open season on Conservatives!!

Supreme Court Rules With Ohio Secretary of State on Voter Fraud Rules

http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/10/17 ... ter-fraud/

The U.S. Supreme Court rules with Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, granting her a stay to a temporary restraining order from a federal appeals court that ordered her to provide a system for implementing voter fraud prevention methods.

FOXNews.com
Friday, October 17, 2008

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The U.S. Supreme Court agreed with Democratic Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, granting her a stay on Friday to a temporary restraining order from the 6th Circuit Court that ordered her to provide a system for implementing voter fraud prevention methods.

The decision by the full court repudiates the lower court's ruling siding with the Ohio Republican Party and ordering Brunner to verify records of about 200,000 of 666,000 new voters this year whose driver's license and Social Security records don't match information in other government databases.

Hedging her bets, Brunner filed a motion late Thursday night asking the federal appeals court to extend or modify an earlier order to come up with a system to help counties verify voter eligibility.

Circuit Court Judge George Smith set the completion time for Brunner to come up with a method for validating mismatched voter registration data at midnight Saturday. Brunner, who filed a request for a stay of the order with the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday, asked for a two-week extension so she could be compliant if the high court didn't see her way.

The Ohio Republican Party filed the initial suit challenging the state's compliance with the Help America Vote Act, alleging that the state has no system to deal with mismatched voter records.

On Tuesday, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati sided with the GOP. Brunner responded with an appeal to the high court.

In its reply brief to the Supreme Court, the Ohio GOP said if Brunner needed relief from the temporary restraining order then she should seek it from Smith, who issued the ruling.

Here is California we don't qualify and my husband doesn't make anything close to $73,000 and we were a family of four. The only way to get anything in this state is if you are ILLEGAL or having babies out of wedlock then you can get free daycare, healthcare, private school, section 8, college for free etc....DISGUSTING! What happened to putting resources and effort in to children who aren't going to continue the cycle of welfare? How come there isn't a cap on to how much time people can be on welfare? I know they say there are but realistically there isn't. My brothers ex gfriend has 3 kids by 2 different guys and all she did was sign the kids over to her parents and they are collecting money for them every month while she lives in her parents house. The kids get free wic, healthcare, after school programs, etc. The parents own property even though the dad is on diability and can't work (a bunch of lies, he's perfectly healthy considering I see him carry those kids around all the time) and they came from Mexico and probably were granted citizenship from the amnesty in the 1980's. It just does not make sense and I am sorry but when my Mom was single with four kids after our Dad left and didn't pay child support after being married for 15 years she went to work and worked 2-3 jobs to support us and didn't ever get section 8 or help from the government. I think it's outrageous that those who sit on their butts doing nothing get everything while those who bust their butts with hard work get to pay for those who choose to sit.

I thought California had a "welfare to work" program....those on Welfare even got their College paid for...I got disgusted....

Originally Posted by grandmasmad

I thought California had a "welfare to work" program....those on Welfare even got their College paid for...I got disgusted....

The problem with the "Welfare to Work" programs.....which each state has some version of because it is mandatory under the Welfare Reform Act......is that one does not have to participate if they have children up to a certain age.

If someone has a baby once a year......like illegal aliens do.....they can avoid having to go to work.

Originally Posted by azwreath

Originally Posted by grandmasmad

I thought California had a "welfare to work" program....those on Welfare even got their College paid for...I got disgusted....

The problem with the "Welfare to Work" programs.....which each state has some version of because it is mandatory under the Welform Reforms Act......is that one does not have to participate if they have children up to a certain age.

If someone has a baby once a year......like illegal aliens do.....they can avoid having to go to work.

It's like if they tell them they can't collect welfare it's discrimination. And please, the only people who get welfare are those who do not deserve it. The ones who truly need it have to fight for it and in the end don't have the time or resources as they don't live with many families in 1 home they are struggling on their own.

Originally Posted by gemini282

Originally Posted by azwreath

Originally Posted by grandmasmad

I thought California had a "welfare to work" program....those on Welfare even got their College paid for...I got disgusted....

The problem with the "Welfare to Work" programs.....which each state has some version of because it is mandatory under the Welform Reforms Act......is that one does not have to participate if they have children up to a certain age.

If someone has a baby once a year......like illegal aliens do.....they can avoid having to go to work.

It's like if they tell them they can't collect welfare it's discrimination. And please, the only people who get welfare are those who do not deserve it. The ones who truly need it have to fight for it and in the end don't have the time or resources as they don't live with many families in 1 home they are struggling on their own.

You're right. And, personally, I don't understand this discrimination nonsense myself.

I was very small when the civil rights movement had become particularly nasty and violent, Dr. King and Bobby Kennedy were assasinated, etc. but I recall my mother trying to explain all of this to me in terms I could understand. And I particularly remember her explaining that a big issue was job opportunities for minorities were not what they should be, many of them had been forced onto welfare and into a cycle of poverty they couldn't get out of, and it had to end because it wasn't fair. It was an outrageous, intolerable assault, and insult, upon the basic human rights and dignity of providing for oneself and one's family the necessities in life.

The reason I remember that particular thing so well is because I just couldn't imagine other little kids having nothing because people wouldn't let their moms or dads work and, quite honestly, it scared the daylights out of me. It scared me to know this could happen to Americans at all, but also because, I thought, what if we WERE attacked by the enemy and they decided I didn't deserve anything just because I'm an American.

Seems rather ominous a thought, thinking about it now.

But, back to my point which is: NOW, what do we see but these same races screaming "discrimination" and "racism" if they are not provided food, cash, housing, utilities, child care, medical care, etc. by the government and asked to provide any type of proof whatsoever that they are eligible to receive it.

Where did this leap come from? How is it that, in the past, these groups being dependent upon welfare was discrimination and racist and they wanted OFF, but now it is discrimination and racism if they are not supported sum and total by the government and they not only want ON but MORE?

Where did this dependence on the system, due to racism and discrimination, go from being a national disgrace which must be ended to ENTITLEMENT, the national disgrace being if that"entitlement" is not granted.? When did no entitlement to fully subsidized living....especially by those with no legal right to be in this country.....become the benchmark of denying basic human rights to minorities?

And what makes even less sense to me is that we have politicians....like Obama.....who, on the one hand, go on and on about the "oppression of minorities", the conspiracy to keep them down and out, the "racist stereotypes" of minorities & social services, and how this MUST end.....yet, on the other hand, is promoting more and more social programs many of them to be minority specific.

I really just don't get it

It is way beyond time to revise or totally throw out the idea of births on US soil to illegals are automatically citizens. And, if I had my way, I would make it retroactive to Reagan's amnesty, if not earlier.

Originally Posted by azwreath

Originally Posted by gemini282

Originally Posted by azwreath

Originally Posted by grandmasmad

I thought California had a "welfare to work" program....those on Welfare even got their College paid for...I got disgusted....

The problem with the "Welfare to Work" programs.....which each state has some version of because it is mandatory under the Welform Reforms Act......is that one does not have to participate if they have children up to a certain age.

If someone has a baby once a year......like illegal aliens do.....they can avoid having to go to work.

It's like if they tell them they can't collect welfare it's discrimination. And please, the only people who get welfare are those who do not deserve it. The ones who truly need it have to fight for it and in the end don't have the time or resources as they don't live with many families in 1 home they are struggling on their own.

You're right. And, personally, I don't understand this discrimination nonsense myself.

I was very small when the civil rights movement had become particularly nasty and violent, Dr. King and Bobby Kennedy were assasinated, etc. but I recall my mother trying to explain all of this to me in terms I could understand. And I particularly remember her explaining that a big issue was job opportunities for minorities were not what they should be, many of them had been forced onto welfare and into a cycle of poverty they couldn't get out of, and it had to end because it wasn't fair. It was an outrageous, intolerable assault, and insult, upon the basic human rights and dignity of providing for oneself and one's family the necessities in life.

The reason I remember that particular thing so well is because I just couldn't imagine other little kids having nothing because people wouldn't let their moms or dads work and, quite honestly, it scared the daylights out of me. It scared me to know this could happen to Americans at all, but also because, I thought, what if we WERE attacked by the enemy and they decided I didn't deserve anything just because I'm an American.

Seems rather ominous a thought, thinking about it now.

But, back to my point which is: NOW, what do we see but these same races screaming "discrimination" and "racism" if they are not provided food, cash, housing, utilities, child care, medical care, etc. by the government and asked to provide any type of proof whatsoever that they are eligible to receive it.

Where did this leap come from? How is it that, in the past, these groups being dependent upon welfare was discrimination and racist and they wanted OFF, but now it is discrimination and racism if they are not supported sum and total by the government and they not only want ON but MORE?

Where did this dependence on the system, due to racism and discrimination, go from being a national disgrace which must be ended to ENTITLEMENT, the national disgrace being if that"entitlement" is not granted.? When did no entitlement to fully subsidized living....especially by those with no legal right to be in this country.....become the benchmark of denying basic human rights to minorities?

And what makes even less sense to me is that we have politicians....like Obama.....who, on the one hand, go on and on about the "oppression of minorities", the conspiracy to keep them down and out, the "racist stereotypes" of minorities & social services, and how this MUST end.....yet, on the other hand, is promoting more and more social programs many of them to be minority specific.

I really just don't get it

My grandmother was born in the 1930's in Mexico and worked from the age of 12 years old on. Then when she came here legally after her father had died and mother remarried she left everything behind and came here. She worked her whole life here and raised 5 kids, mostly on her own after my grandfather and her divorced. She never felt the prejudices that these minorities speak of and there was also work if you were willing to do it which I'm sorry but most didn't want to do it when they could live off the system while addicted to drugs or alcohol. Was there racism? Yes there was but the excuse that the white people kept these people from jobs and money is ridiculous because if one worked hard enough the doors would open wide, all you had to do was work a little harder. In some areas of the country there were hostilities towards blacks and other minorities but that isn't solely experienced here in the USA, it happens every single day everywhere in the world so to blame Americans for racism is a travesty since we are the most welcoming nation in the world. I am just sick and tired of the PC bull that these "minorities" spout all the while feeling entitled to hard earned money they haven't earned and yet there they are with their hands out expecting to be taken care of by the people they despise and blame for the evils of the world. Had they any dignity or self respect they would get off their butts and get to work because if I felt that way about someone there is no way I could accept one penny from them let alone having to hold my hand out to them for every little thing I needed in order to live.