Obama’s Health Care Rationing Czar – American Thinker. – July 8, 2010

Originally posted at American Thinker. blog

The President of the United States took a Congressional recess opportunity to appoint another controversial czar.  Renowned for rationing health care, Donald Berwick was appointed to the position of Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Dare we ask: Why does Obama need a rationing expert to oversee these two programs?

While Nancy is funning and sunning, Obama placed Czar Donald Berwick, president and chief executive officer of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, in the position of deciding who lives and who dies.  Obama circumvented the traditional confirmation venue because Berwick’s nomination was an uncertain one. Democrats realized a permanent vacation awaited them in November if the unpopular Obamacare discussion was broached again. Let’s just say Berwick was a touchy nominee.

Thus, Obama dictated and denied America the opportunity to have dastardly Donald explain comments he made in an interview last year with Biotechnology Healthcare.  Berwick said “society makes decisions about rationing all the time,” and that the “decision is not whether or not we will ration care — the decision is whether we will ration with our eyes open. And right now, we are doing it blindly.”

Obama’s “blind” appointment spares Donald having to explain his praise for the UK’s National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).  Berwick said NICE “developed very good and very disciplined, scientifically grounded, policy-connected models for the evaluation of medical treatments from which we ought to learn.”

Emphasis on Berwick’s comment: “policy-connected models for the evaluation of medical treatments.”

Obama insisted on ruining 90% of the population’s health care to insure 30-million uninsured individuals.  Maybe those about to be herded toward life and death social policy mandates might like clarification on Berwick’s statement that “The social budget is limited — we have a limited resource pool. It makes terribly good sense to at least know the price of an added benefit, and at some point we might say nationally, regionally, or locally that we wish we could afford it, but we can’t.”

Berwick believes the “degree to which the knowledge base is linked directly to policy and decision is a matter of choice,” which will be Donald’s choice alone.  If Obama gets his way, which he always does, death panel Donald will decide by advisory, mandatory, or policy-based measures who gets to live and who makes the sacrifice for the common good and dies.

Thankfully Republican leaders are speaking up on behalf of constituents at the mercy of Barry and the soon-to-be “expert on rationing.” Like Barack, Berwick believes excellent health care includes “redistribution.” The world’s finest health care system, like everything else, is about to be redistributed by government-appointed czars whose socialistic dreams mirror Barry’s utopian nirvana.

John Barrasso (R-Wyo) called the appointment “an insult to the American people,” saying “Once again, President Obama has made a mockery of his pledge to be accountable and transparent.” Mitch McConnell (R-KY) agreed, underscoring the reality that “Americans’ worst fears about health reform are being realized every day.”

Democrat Max Baucus (D-Mont) joined the chorus from across the aisle and “blasted the Obama administration for sidestepping Congress.”  Baucus said “Senate confirmation of presidential appointees is an essential process prescribed by the Constitution that serves as a check on executive power …ensuring crucial questions are asked of the nominee – and answered.”

Maybe before Obama overturns the First Amendment, McConnell, Barrasso and Baucus still have time to hold a nightly update press conference on the steps of the Capitol.  It’s about time Americans are made aware of Obama’s covert actions, which ultimately stand poised to threaten lives.