Good Grief, Charlie Baker

Charlie Baker is going to have to do some serious spin on this on…

As Republican Charles Baker seeks to capture the independent vote that bolstered U.S. Sen. Scott Brown’s win, a Herald review shows Harvard Pilgrim tripled the former CEO’s annual salary as it hit consumers with a 150 percent increase in premiums.

Brown rode to victory as an independent voice on health care, a position critics say Baker will have a tough time following with those numbers.

Baker defends his record and argues that Gov. Deval Patrick is late to the health-care discussion. He said he’s been “shouting from the rooftops” about the need for hospitals and medical providers to make the cost of health care more transparent, and pushing for legislation that would control costs.

“My salary’s been a matter of public record for 20 years, and I’m probably the only candidate,” for whom that’s the case, Baker said. Baker’s salary as CEO of Harvard Pilgrim surged from $548,351 in 1999 to a high of $1.7 million in 2008. He earned $1.3 million in seven months in 2009 before he resigned to run for governor last summer, filings with the state Attorney General show.

Over the same period, premiums at Harvard Pilgrim went up by 100 to 200 percent.

When Baker took the reins in 1999, rates on Harvard Pilgrim’s most popular plans ranged from about $166 to $187 a month per member. Those rates soared to $425 to $483 a month, as of April, according to filings with the Massachusetts Division of Insurance.

Two months ago, the Commonwealth elected a Republican to the Senate due in part to his promise to be the 41st vote against the health care bill. With health care being at the front line of today’s political battleground, will those same voters ignore the fact that Charlie Baker was “part of the problem” with the health care industry?

“You have to look at him as the incumbent in terms of health-care costs,” said Democratic operative Michael P. Shea. “If you look at his salary and the increases that people are paying now, how can he say he did a good job? It’s absolutely fair to pin this on him. He hasn’t shown he’s part of the solution, he’s part of the problem.”

Patrick is expected to keep the focus on health care – and keep the heat on Baker – as he proposes a so-called soft cap on premium increases. His plan pits him squarely against health insurers in an intensifying three-way race that also features unenrolled candidate Tim Cahill, the state treasurer.

Baker said Patrick is trying to shift the focus.

“This probably beats talking about spending and taxes and unemployment if you’re him,” Baker said. “I’ve supported a lot of things that would put my organization and my industry at risk. I have no idea if it’s going to be good or bad for my company or my industry, but it’s the right thing to do for the people of Massachusetts. I got a lot of grief from people for doing that.”

Sooner or later, he will have to address the real issue, rather than playing the “I’m rubber and you’re glue” argument, just Deval Patrick will have to answer to his criticisms too. A guy making nearly $2 million a year, while us regular people are paying painfully high health care premiums…maybe, according to Harvard Pilgrim, he did deserve the salary bump…but anyone who didn’t see their salaries triple may think differently.

Just Say ‘No’ To The Pandemic Response Bill

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend…but enough with the pleasantries. Something scary is brewing on Beacon Hill.

The panic-like response to the swine flu has turned a lot of rational people into crazy people, and our legistlators on Beacon Hill are falling victim to the same false hysteria surrounding it. Case in point, the “Pandemic Response Bill” that has already made its way through the state Senate, and now rests in the hands of our state House of Representatives. What is the “Pandemic Response Bill” that we’ve heard… so little about?

This bill, S. 2028 (which passed unanimously in our Senate) would give Governor Deval Patrick a frightening amount of power in the event of an “outbreak.” Worse yet, this ridiculous legislation will be the model for legislation in other states.

S. 2028 will be used as a template for legislation in other states. The bill imposes a virtual police state and martial law on Massachusetts at the behest of the governor in the event of a flu pandemic this autumn. It gives the state health commissioner, law enforcement, and medical personnel wide authority to mobilize forces, vaccinate the population, enter private property with no warrants, and even quarantine people against their will in violation of the Constitution. The bill allows the state to enter property without a search warrant and destroy the property without a court order. It would force in-state health care providers to assist in the performance of vaccination.

Law enforcement authorities are authorized to “arrest without warrant any person whom the officer has probable cause to believe has violated an order for isolation or quarantine and shall use reasonable diligence to enforce such order. Any person who knowingly violates an order for isolation or quarantine shall be punished by imprisonment of not more than 30 days and may be subject to a civil fine of not more than $1,000 per day that the violation continues.”

Not scared yet? Here is another more complete list of authorities provided by this bill:

* to require the owner or occupier of premises to permit entry into and investigation of the premises;

* to close, direct, and compel the evacuation of, or to decontaminate or cause to be decontaminated any building or facility, and to allow the reopening of the building or facility when the danger has ended;

* to decontaminate or cause to be decontaminated, or to destroy any material;

* to restrict or prohibit assemblages of persons;

* to require a health care facility to provide services or the use of its facility, or to transfer the management and supervision of the health care facility to the department or to a local public health authority;

* to control ingress to and egress from any stricken or threatened public area, and the movement of persons and materials within the area;

* to adopt and enforce measures to provide for the safe disposal of infectious waste and human remains, provided that religious, cultural, family, and individual beliefs of the deceased person shall be followed to the extent possible when disposing of human remains, whenever that may be done without endangering the public health;

* to procure, take immediate possession from any source, store, or distribute any anti-toxins, serums, vaccines, immunizing agents, antibiotics, and other pharmaceutical agents or medical supplies located within the commonwealth as may be necessary to respond to the emergency;

* to require in-state health care providers to assist in the performance of vaccination, treatment, examination, or testing of any individual as a condition of licensure, authorization, or the ability to continue to function as a health care provider in the commonwealth;

* to waive the commonwealth’s licensing requirements for health care professionals with a valid license from another state in the United States or whose professional training would otherwise qualify them for an appropriate professional license in the commonwealth;

* to allow for the dispensing of controlled substance by appropriate personnel consistent with federal statutes as necessary for the prevention or treatment of illness;

* to authorize the chief medical examiner to appoint and prescribe the duties of such emergency assistant medical examiners as may be required for the proper performance of the duties of office;

* to collect specimens and perform tests on any animal, living or deceased;

* to exercise authority under sections 95 and 96 of chapter 111;

* to care for any emerging mental health or crisis counseling needs that individuals may exhibit, with the consent of the individuals

Excuse me…but what the hell is going on here? Force quarantines? Forced vaccinations? Forcible entry into private homes? Fines? Did I just wake up in the Twilight Zone? Where the hell am I?

This bill cannot be allowed to pass. This bill cannot become law. No one is going to force me to get vaccinated and put myself at risk for something far worse than a variant of the flu. Sorry, but I’ll take my chances with the flu before putting myself in danger of a killer nerve disease (something else no one is reporting much about).

To the powers that be that wish to pass the law, I promise you the following:

* You will not force me to get vaccinated.
* You will not enter my property without a warrant.
* You will not forcible quarantine me.
* You will not destroy my property.
* If you fine me $1,000 per day, I will not pay it.
* If you try to imprison me for violating your “orders,” you will have to chase me.

This is not Nazi Germany; this is the United States of America. I hope everyone who reads this fully comprehends what is going on here, and takes action before Governor Patrick starts knocking on your door and wants to cart you away into a concentration camp.

If this bill passes, we are going to need a new wave of Minutemen. The American Revolution started right here, and if it needs to, it can start again. This trumps a 25% increase in the sales tax; it makes gay marriage seem like a small insignificant blip on the radar. Call your legislators. Call your favorite talk radio programs. Write to your local papers. This is an important call to action. If Beacon Hill wants to quarantine us, I think it’s time we mobilize forces and forcibly remove the bums on Beacon Hill who want to go into our homes and tell us what to do.

This has to end here before it spreads to other states across the nation. Today, it would give Deval Patrick the power to go into your house; don’t let Barack Obama have that power tomorrow.

This bill cannot be allowed to pass. This bill cannot become law.

The “Swine Flu” Hogwash

The State senate passed the Pandemic Flu Preparation Bill a few days ago, 36-0.

The Massachusetts Senate has unanimously passed a pandemic flu preparation bill that has languished in the Legislature before the recent swine flu outbreak.

The 36-0 vote today sends the measure to the House. Both branches have taken it up in past years, but have not been able to agree on the details.

The new Senate version would allow the public health commissioner — in a public health emergency — to close or evacuate buildings, enter private property for investigations, and quarantine individuals.

The measure also requires a registry for volunteers that would be activated in an emergency and establishes fines of up to $1,000 for not complying with local public health orders.

Sen. Richard Moore, chair of the Health Care Financing Committee, says the swine flu outbreak provides added impetus to pass the measure.

What?

Let’s look at some facts here:

Number of confirmed cases of “swine flu” in Massachusetts: 2 (this represents 0.000031% of the population of Massachusetts)

Number of confirmed cases of “swine flu” in the United States: 109 (this represents 0.000035% of the population of the US)

Number of confirmed cases of “swine flu” worldwide: 236 (this represents a very, very, very, very small percentage of the world population)

One person in the entire United States has died from “swine flu”–in Texas (0.00000033% of the population of the US).

And what of the two cases in Massachusetts? Both boys are recovering, and should be able to return to school soon.

And the state senate passed a bill to allow the public health commissioner to close or evacuate buildings, enter private property and quarantine individuals?!?!? What happened to “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”

This seems wholly unnecessary and based on a false hysteria created to distract the American public from more important national issues that our attentions ought be focused on (like the growing deficit and the fledgling economy, or the Federal government trying to force reform on credit card companies).

We go through the same motions whether it’s West Nile virus, or Bird Flu, or whichever strange disease happens to be the manufactured scare of the season.

Sorry, but if you can count the number of deaths on one hand, that’s not a pandemic. The Craigslist killer ended more lives than swine flu has.

Please, write to your State Representatives, and tell them to vote against the Pandemic Flu Preparation Bill.

UPDATE: Fear of “swine flu” puts the kibosh on handshakes at Northeastern graduation ceremony–are they serious?

Your Kids Are Too Fat

The Massachusetts government wants to tell you how to parent your children.

Massachusetts health officials have approved regulations that would require sending children’s Body Mass Index measurements home to parents.

The Public Health Council voted unanimously Wednesday to calculate student heights and weights, which are already measured annually, into a Body Mass Index measuring their overall proportions.

The results will be sent home to parents for students in first, fourth, seventh and 10th grades in a package explaining what they mean and how parents can best combat obesity.

Department of Public Health Medical Director Lauren Smith says Massachusetts will join Arkansas in notifying parents about a child’s Body Mass Index. Eighteen other states require a BMI calculation.

The new regulations will be phased into schools over the next 18 months.

Sorry, but any time the Massachusetts government, or any government for that matter, wants to tell its citizens how to take care of matters of the home, I cringe.

How can a state government that can’t cut the fat out the budget be permitted to tell parents that their children are too fat?

Parents who very likely already take their child to see a pediatrician on a fairly regular basis would already know if their child is overweight or not (in some cases, no doctor visit necessary); so why should the Massachusetts government and its schools who already have to deal with budgetary woes (including cuts to physical education programs) take the time and money to tell parents their kid is too fat?

Sorry, but this is tantamount to Ted Kennedy giving a speech on the dangers of drunk driving.

Breast Intentions

[Pardon the cliché title.]

Starting today, women of the Commonwealth can breastfeed in public without fear.

Massachusetts moms who want to breastfeed their children in public won’t have to hide from the law any longer.

A new state law that goes into effect Thursday gives mothers the legal protection to breastfeed in public without fear of facing charges of indecent exposure or lewd conduct.

The law, “An Act to Promote Breastfeeding,” was passed last year and signed earlier this year by Gov. Deval Patrick.

Bill supporters say the law prevents moms from being forced to register as sex offenders had they been prosecuted before the legal protection.

State Representative David Linsky says now police officers won’t have the right to prevent a woman from breastfeeding her child.

I can just imagine that in some cases, a woman breastfeeding may cause a bit of a disturbance, perhaps to the magnitude of jeopardizing public safety. I hope these women consider that, but I hope that this now public “beautiful act” doesn’t lead to a sharp increase in fender benders and pedestrians walking into sign posts.

Has anyone gotten a comment from Jane Swift?