The Obamacare Justification Syndrome ("OJS") is a new psychological condition afflicting liberal supporters of president Obama. While there is a longer clinical definition, the short description of the condition is that it causes seemingly rational people to offer up irrational excuses and distortions in an attempt to say that all is well with Obamacare. The malady first surfaced on October 1, 2013, when those afflicted told America that the problems with the exchange website were due to excess traffic from the excited throngs eager to get health insurance. Of course, when we learned a few weeks later that the system had crashed when about 50 people had tried to use it simultaneously in a prelaunch test, those suffering from OJS did not bother to change their story. The next major manifestation of OJS came with the use of the word "glitches" to describe the problems with the exchanges. We know that at the point where America was being told that there were only minor problems or "glitches" with the website, that construction of about half of the functions of the site had not even yet begun. Using glitches to describe the problems is much like describing dampness as the problem suffered by the Titanic.
Then we got a new onset of OJS when the tidal wave of Obamacare-caused cancellations hit the nation. As close to 7,000,000 policies affecting about 15 million people were cancelled, the crowd suffering from OJS told us that this was a minor problem, since it affected only about 5% of the American people. Only in the sick world of the OJS sufferers could 15 million people losing insurance be called minor.
A major outbreak of OJS occurred when the full magnitude of Obama's lie about the ability to keep one's insurance if one like it broke through into the national consciousness. Just think of Nancy Pelosi telling us that Obama's statement remained accurate when the whole world knew it was a lie. Or think of Obama himself telling us that he actually said something completely different despite there being video of Obama making the false statement on at least 30 occasions.
There are more instances of OJS, but there is a new one today that actually took my breath away because of its stupidity. Writing in The New Republic, Jonathan Cohn has a column explaining why it is a good thing that people can no longer keep their hospitals under most Obamacare plans. Cohn focuses on one hospital, Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, and points out that it is glamorous with expensive art on the corridor walls and huge suites for the wealthy in maternity. Real people don't need such hospitals according to Cohn, and all that Obamacare does is cut out the palaces that pass for hospitals these days. Really? To say the least, this is unbelievable!
Let's start with the simplest issue; many of the very best hospitals are no longer available under Obamacare plans. I will use my own situation as an example. I live in Connecticut, in the suburbs of New York City. Not surprisingly, the best hospitals in the regions are heavily concentrated in Manhattan. My local hospital is fine for many things, but not for everything. Over the last thirty years, family and friends have been treated for cancer at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital (by far the best in the region), had successful brain surgery at NYU (the only hospital performing the operation at the time), and had other high risk procedures at New York Presbyterian Hospital. None of these hospitals are covered by any plan available on the Connecticut healthcare exchange. That is not unusual for Obamacare plans. According to news reports, the great majority of Obamacare plans for sale in New York City also do not cover these hospitals.
Memorial Sloan Kettering has an advertisement that points out that the hospital where one first receives cancer care can make all the difference. That is true; I know it from first hand experience. The issue is not what sort of art is on the walls of some hospital in Los Angeles; the real issue is whether or not Americans will be kept from treatment in first class hospitals which could keep them alive and be forced instead into second class hospitals where they will be made comfortable while they die. Oh, and let's not forget that they will be charged more than before even though they will lose access to first class healthcare.
It really is time for the folks with OJS to seek treatment. Probably the best treatment would be to have Obamacare repealed.
Then we got a new onset of OJS when the tidal wave of Obamacare-caused cancellations hit the nation. As close to 7,000,000 policies affecting about 15 million people were cancelled, the crowd suffering from OJS told us that this was a minor problem, since it affected only about 5% of the American people. Only in the sick world of the OJS sufferers could 15 million people losing insurance be called minor.
A major outbreak of OJS occurred when the full magnitude of Obama's lie about the ability to keep one's insurance if one like it broke through into the national consciousness. Just think of Nancy Pelosi telling us that Obama's statement remained accurate when the whole world knew it was a lie. Or think of Obama himself telling us that he actually said something completely different despite there being video of Obama making the false statement on at least 30 occasions.
There are more instances of OJS, but there is a new one today that actually took my breath away because of its stupidity. Writing in The New Republic, Jonathan Cohn has a column explaining why it is a good thing that people can no longer keep their hospitals under most Obamacare plans. Cohn focuses on one hospital, Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, and points out that it is glamorous with expensive art on the corridor walls and huge suites for the wealthy in maternity. Real people don't need such hospitals according to Cohn, and all that Obamacare does is cut out the palaces that pass for hospitals these days. Really? To say the least, this is unbelievable!
Let's start with the simplest issue; many of the very best hospitals are no longer available under Obamacare plans. I will use my own situation as an example. I live in Connecticut, in the suburbs of New York City. Not surprisingly, the best hospitals in the regions are heavily concentrated in Manhattan. My local hospital is fine for many things, but not for everything. Over the last thirty years, family and friends have been treated for cancer at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital (by far the best in the region), had successful brain surgery at NYU (the only hospital performing the operation at the time), and had other high risk procedures at New York Presbyterian Hospital. None of these hospitals are covered by any plan available on the Connecticut healthcare exchange. That is not unusual for Obamacare plans. According to news reports, the great majority of Obamacare plans for sale in New York City also do not cover these hospitals.
Memorial Sloan Kettering has an advertisement that points out that the hospital where one first receives cancer care can make all the difference. That is true; I know it from first hand experience. The issue is not what sort of art is on the walls of some hospital in Los Angeles; the real issue is whether or not Americans will be kept from treatment in first class hospitals which could keep them alive and be forced instead into second class hospitals where they will be made comfortable while they die. Oh, and let's not forget that they will be charged more than before even though they will lose access to first class healthcare.
It really is time for the folks with OJS to seek treatment. Probably the best treatment would be to have Obamacare repealed.
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