Quick Roundup 10

Medical Crisis Map

Following up an earlier blog post, I direct my readers to this interactive map of the nation's medical liability crisis. Here is a list of summaries from three states clicked at random.

WA: Out-of-control medical liability costs have created a health care crisis in Washington. Escalating insurance premiums are causing doctors to leave the state, while others are retiring early or limiting "high-risk," life-saving treatments, including emergency care.

MS: In 2004, Mississippi [my home state --ed] enacted medical liability reform legislation that may just pull the state out of crisis. The action came none too soon, as doctors and hospitals have been cutting back on vital, "high-risk" treatments, such as emergency care, and many doctors were moving out of state or ending their medical practice altogether.

OR: Out-of-control medical liability costs have created a health care crisis in Oregon. Escalating insurance premiums are causing doctors to leave the state, retire early or limit the kinds of "high-risk" treatments they provide, including obstetrics, surgery and emergency services. Many Ob/Gyns have had to give up obstetrics altogether, and expecting mothers in rural areas often have to travel long distances to receive vital pre-natal care and to deliver their babies.

The Refugees Weren't Warned, Either

No sooner do I lament the fact that our city government failed to warn Houstonians about the impending Katrina crime wave do I learn the following.

New Orleans schoolteachers Charles and Wanda Ross found what they thought was an ideal apartment for themselves and their 19-year-old son, Christopher, in a complex off Forum Park Drive. The complex was recommended by the city staffer who provided the apartment voucher, Ross said.

But after a few nights -- evenings marked by a robbery, auto burglary and prowling prostitutes -- the couple was ready to move. So unsettling was the environment of his new home, that Ross, a high school coach, refused to use the laundry room situated in an isolated area.

Ross said he explored the possibility of transferring to another apartment, but opted to stay out of fear that the Federal Emergency Management Agency would not pick up the full tab for a new abode.

While it bothers me that a complex in this area was "recommended" by someone presumably familiar with Houston, I can where this might be heading a mile away. Stories like these will be used to pillory the government for "not doing enough (spending)" for the evacuees, while excusing the government for failing to warn about the criminal element arriving from New Orleans.

In the one case, if residents are already excused from having to take care of themselves financially after a disaster, why should they have to worry about living in "low-rent districts"? And, we have already seen that it is "politically incorrect" to warn citizens about crime from low-income groups. (And I suspect that it would have been illegal to tell someone that a given complex was "high-crime" or "low-income" anyway.) Thus the conclusion will almost certainly be that FEMA should give more money to evacuees in the future.

And so we will see pressure for the government to expand its paternalist role and continue to shirk its legitimate function of protecting our rights.

Refund Shenanigans

I recently mentioned a century-old tax (for the Spanish-American War effort) that appears on our cell phone bills. Vigilis reports that you can get a rebate -- if you're willing to jump through some government hoops for your own money.

Did you know you may claim a refund for up to 36 months of past taxes. However, a separate claim (Form 8849) is required for each calendar quarter of your phone bills. The process is cumbersome and time-consuming. The IRS continues collecting the 3% Federal Excise Tax from wireless users, despite the fact that nine federal courts have ruled the tax (dating from the 1898 Spanish American War) unlawful. [italics added]

That proves my original point quite nicely. Fortunately, there is a move afoot to repeal the tax altogether.

-- CAV