Sounds like the usual bait and switch - the Bushies say the evacuees don't need the medical coverage because they'll have plenty of coverage from a "special fund," (which is quite possibly illegal). Needless to say, if they get away with this continued blockage of basic medical care coverage using this ploy, the "newly created fund" would either disappear or be grossly underfunded once the photo-ops were finished.
We've seen this before. It's "Leave no _______ behind" - with the blank filled in with
"sick evacuee" this time and the sound of giggling neocons in the background.
And it's that GOP "Culture of Life" - while they're striking their pious poses they just don't mention that they're only interested in saving
particular lives, lives belonging to rich GOP donors, cronies and enablers, and everyone else can die of neglect and good riddance.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050928/ap_on_go_co/katrina_congress_hk4TinyURL =
http://tinyurl.com/djct5Senators: Hurricane Aid Is Being Blocked
By HOPE YEN, Associated Press Writer Wed Sep 28, 1:04 PM ET
WASHINGTON - With Gulf Coast governors pressing for action, Senate Finance Committee members complained Wednesday that the
Bush administration is blocking a bipartisan $9 billion health care package for hundreds of thousands of evacuees from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.(snip)
Sen. Charles Grassley (news, bio, voting record), R-Iowa, chairman of the committee, said four or five senators have been blocking action on the bill after the Bush administration raised objections to provisions that would extend Medicaid coverage to thousands upon thousands of adults who otherwise would be uninsured, including those whose applications have been rejected in Louisiana.
(snip)
Administration officials contend the Medicaid extensions are not needed because a newly created fund could be tapped whenever health care providers care for uninsured victims of Katrina between Aug. 24th and Jan. 31, 2006.
But the administration has not revealed how much money will be in the fund, and senators questioned both the funding commitment and whether the administration has the authority to establish such a fund.(snip)