Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, Rahm's brother, tapped for White House health care policy advisor spot

[wyldwolf]

While the Obama White House is searching for a replacement for health czar Tom Daschle, policy work on health care reform--a priority for the administration--Is ongoing with one key advisor especially well connected.

The brother of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel, a noted bioethicist, is advising the Obama administration on health care reform.

Dr. Emanuel is the Chair of the Department of Bioethics at The Clinical Center of the National Institutes of Health and a breast oncologist.

Dr. Emanuel is a special advisor to the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget for health policy. He told me he is "working on (the) health care reform effort." He is "detailed" to the OMB spot and is still officially an employee of the NIH.

http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2009/02/dr_ezekiel_emanuel_rahms_broth.html

[slinkerwink]

1. fuck, that's bad news.

[4lbs]

4. Why is that?

n/t

[Thrill]

8. Why?

[slinkerwink]

9. he supported a health care voucher very much like McCain's

[Thrill]

14. And Obama has advisors like Neera Tanden who support Universal Healthcare

so I don't see this as a big deal

[stray cat]

2. Really mixed feelings on this - he seems qualified

[firedupdem]

3. Highly qualified guy. Good he's advising. He worked with Clinton

as well.

[Arkana]

5. Well, whatever...is Rahm his boss, though?

[madfloridian]

6. The Emanuels are faring quite well in the Obama administration.

Others who have contributed much to the party? Not quite so well.

:eyes:

[Occam Bandage]

10. self-delete, wrong place

[wyldwolf]

24. awwwww...

[Sebastian Doyle]

7. I don't think this is a good idea.

Dr. Emanuel may well be qualified, but the Bush Crime Family was known for their nepotism, and I really think the Obama administration should stay away from that.

[Dappleganger]

12. Should the Emanuel family be penalized for producing three

brilliant sons who are leaders in each of their respective fields?

Dr. Emanuel is fucking brilliant and will be perfect for the job.

[Sebastian Doyle]

21. So why don't we put Ari Emanuel in charge of the FCC while we're at it?

Because nepotism (Mikey Powell) worked so well the last time with that position. :eyes:

[Undercurrent]

28. .

:eyes:

Yeah, sure, and Bobby Kennedy was a terrible Attorney General.

( :sarcasm: of course)

[elleng]

31. Not relevant to his experience.

.

[Occam Bandage]

11. Well, it seems he's qualified, at any rate. Not sure how important this

particular advisory spot is.

[madfloridian]

13. Zeke's health care proposal with vouchers. Privatizing Medicare...

and its end as a government program.

The privatization of Medicare. That was the goal all along.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/zeke-emanuel/sustainable-health-care-r_b_114788.html

"The Guaranteed Healthcare Access Plan proposes to repair the health care system by giving all Americans a voucher to select a standard benefits package offered by insurance company. In most areas, American will be able to choose between 5 and 8 insurance companies. And the insurance companies will be required to enroll anyone who wants and cannot exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions. The standard benefit package is based on what Congressman and Senators receive, and is more generous than what most Americans currently have through their employers or government program. Americans will also decide if they wanted to buy additional services, say wider selection of doctors and hospitals, more mental health benefits, or coverage for alternative medicines.

The Guaranteed Healthcare Access Plan will be administered by a National Health Board and regional boards modeled on the Federal Reserve System with fiscal, administrative, and political independence to make tough decisions based on the merits, not special interest lobbying. There will also be an Institute for Technology and Outcomes Assessment to assess the effectiveness of new drugs, devices, procedures, and other interventions. It will also assess and make publicly available data on the clinical outcomes of patients in different insurance companies. This will permit comparative shopping based on real quality results.

No one (anyone?) receiving Medicare, Medicaid, or any other government program will not be forced out, but there will be no new enrollees. People who turn 65 will simply stay in the Guaranteed Healthcare Access Plan. The special tax benefits related to employer based coverage will be eliminated and most employers will stop offering health insurance."

[4lbs]

17. That's pretty much what President Obama campaigned on as part of healthcare reform.

He did say he wanted Americans to have access, without exclusion due to pre-existing conditions, to the same health care plan that Congress had.

[madfloridian]

19. Obama never said to end Medicare and Medicaid

as government programs. Sorry, but I think I would have heard that.

[4lbs]

26. I can't see why they would need to be around as the GHAP will be better coverage for the same or

lower cost as Medicare + supplemental plan.

GHAP = The ability to have Congress' health care coverage

GHAP >>> Medicare + Medicaid

My parents pay $150 monthly for Medicare coverage that covers both of them, and an additional $250 monthly for Kaiser. That completes their coverage. Medicare covers what Kaiser won't for them.

That's $400 monthly. They would save about $125 monthly since the federal government and the citizen split the premium costs (the $250 for Kaiser). Then, they really wouldn't need Medicare anymore, since the GHAP plan is all that's needed.

[madfloridian]

27. Now we will all start to support the end of Medicare and Medicaid

Because Zeke, an Emanuel brother, says so.

We fought Bush against changing Social Security and Medicare....and now our Democratic president and his advisors are going to be able to do it with our blessing.

Ain't we amazing? Yes, we are.

And I just read Greider's article about the possible Obama plans for Social Security, and I am really worried at how naive we all are.

[Sebastian Doyle]

23. Privatize Medicare? Oh FUCK this shit!

That is exactly the opposite direction of where we need to go, and where we need to go immediately. All the talk about infrastructure going on right now, it's time to admit that a decent health care system IS a vital part of this nations infrastructure, and that is exactly why it cannot be a for profit business, as no infrastructure should be.

[bertman]

15. How many thousands of competent, extremely bright, dedicated health care professionals

are there in this country who would be great for a position like this? Yet, we get another Emanuel in the upper echelon of the Obama administration. As Madflo points out, there's a method to their madness. And it is not populist. Rest assured.

This is political incest at its worst.

[AspenRose]

16. I can hear the screams of NEPOTISM now....

*sigh*

[Dreamer Tatum]

22. And they would be appropriate nt

[camera obscura]

18. Is this the same "health care czar" position Daschle had? That's pretty big.

[Jennicut]

25. No. Its an advisory position on health care, not the health Czar or head of H&HS

[MarjorieG]

20. I think appt. an urgency issue, as health care his next big and impossible thing.

[DFW]

29. Rahm's brother goes to DC and Howard Dean does not?

No matter what the inside dope may be on this, it certainly doesn't LOOK very good.

Nor does it make the Democrats look very good.

I thought not giving a shit what the country thinks was strictly a Republican trait.

[EFerrari]

30. Oh, brother. n/t