Texas Attorney General Stands Up for Insurance Companies

Leave it to our Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, to finally get off his ass and take a stand. Unfortunately instead of standing for the citizens that he is suppose to be protecting, he is standing for the very insurance companies that have been screwing the consumers since he has been in office.

For those who know Abbott, it might seem a bit cold for me to say he has finally gotten off his ass and done something. Abbott was paralyzed after jogging under a tree that was being cut down. The tree fell. And like a good liberal trial lawyer, he filed a lawsuit and received $10 million in an undisclosed settlement (that was eventually disclosed). Abbott has since been a champion of tort reform limiting access to the courts and lawsuits. After Abbott got his, he doesn't want anyone else to have theirs. Rotten bastard.

So it doesn't surprise me that Abbott is one of the idiots Attorney Generals who will spend our tax dollars in filing a lawsuit to stop health care reform. If successful he will help the insurance companies continue to charge the highest rates in the nation, lead the Country with the highest number of uninsured, lead the Country with the highest uninsured chidren, and deprive Texans of the benefits of the bill including:

1. Adult children may remain as dependents on their parents’ policy until their 27th birthday
2. Children under age 19 may not be excluded for pre-existing conditions
3. No more lifetime or annual caps on coverage
4. Free preventative care for all
5. Adults with pre-existing conditions may buy into a national high-risk pool until the exchanges come online. While these will not be cheap, they’re still better than total exclusion and get some benefit from a wider pool of insureds.
6. Small businesses will be entitled to a tax credit for 2009 and 2010, which could be as much as 50% of what they pay for employees’ health insurance.
7. The “donut hole” closes for Medicare patients, making prescription medications more affordable for seniors.
8. Requirement that all insurers must post their balance sheets on the Internet and fully disclose administrative costs, executive compensation packages, and benefit payments.
9. Authorizes early funding of community health centers in all 50 states (Bernie Sanders’ amendment). Community health centers provide primary, dental and vision services to people in the community, based on a sliding scale for payment according to ability to pay.
10. AND no more rescissions. Effective immediately, you can't lose your insurance because you get sick.

Somebody has to said it. Greg Abbott is one sick rotten bastard.