By Justin Duckham-Talk Radio News Service
For what has been described in the Wall Street Journal as the “worst bill ever,” Congressional Republicans certainly seem to be padding their list of grievances over the House health care bill with things that are less scary and more, well … sensible.
The House Republican Conference has kindly given reporters a directory of provisions in the bill found to be “egregious, questionable, or potentially absurd.”
Included in this list is a reference to page 872-Section 1433, which, in the conference’s words, “requires the director of food services at nursing facilities participating in Medicare and Medicaid to hold ‘military, academic, or other qualifications’ as determined by federal bureaucrats.”
Sans the editorial liberty taken to invoke the specter of spooky federal bureaucrats, one is left to wonder what about this requirement is particularly egregious, questionable or potentially absurd. After all, this is a warning from the party that has portrayed seniors as sacred cows throughout the entire health care debate, from threats that Obamacare would pull the plug on grandma to suddenly realizing that Medicare isn’t as bad as it was forty years ago. Wouldn’t it make sense to have the staff that tends dear old granny’s meals be qualified? Especially through an academic or military institution?
When asked for clarification, a staffer for a high-ranking Republican representative simply responded that it is a sign of more government intrusion into the lives of Americans.
Of course, the American people whose lives are being intruded upon by this provision are seniors living in nursing homes funded by Medicare. So to summarize: Medicare is an untouchable institution, but requiring
a director that either directly or indirectly benefits from Medicare funds to be properly trained is an intrusion.
Fair enough, if you perform adequate mental gymnastics. That is, until you consider how closely this resembles a provision included in No Child Left Behind, an act proposed by a Republican President and passed through a GOP-controlled Congress.
According to Part A, Section 119, “Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this part shall ensure that all teachers hired after such day and teaching in a program supported with funds under this part are highly qualified.”
All one needs to do is add “by federal bureaucrats” to the end of this sentence and voila: government intrusion.
In the film Citizen Kane, the character Leland tells Charles Foster Kane “You don’t care about anything except you… you want love on your own terms. Something to be played your way, according to your rules.”
This seems to embody the Republican mentality post-2006. So-called dithering on Afghanistan, appointing high-profile czars or, in this case, requiring recipients of government funds to fit the right
profile is fine if you’re in the right party, but try it as a Democrat and suddenly it’s egregious, questionable, or potentially absurd. It’s a double standard.
Either that, or the Republican Conference is grasping at straws.
