Going To Sleep Is Free, But

""Any plan that expands Medicaid to include over 50% of the population - which is what the Kerry plan does - is a plan that involves government take-over of the healthcare system. There's just no getting around it.UPDATE: People are asking, "where does Kerry say he's going to put over 50% of the population on Medicaid?" His healthcare plan calls for expanding Medicaid coverage to children families that make up to 300% of the federal poverty level. According to the 2004 Federal Poverty Guidelines, 300% of the federal poverty level for a family of four would be a yearly income of $56,500. And according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median yearly income in 2003 for family households was $53,991. Assuming that the average family is a family of four, that means that over 50% of families would qualify for Medicaid. And believe me, employers won't foot the bill for healthcare insurance when they know their employees can get Medicaid. So a large segment of the population will be shifted to Medicaid, and that's a government healthcare program.""

"" New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer rolled out an expanded version of his drug pricing Web site yesterday, hoping to assist those New Yorkers lacking health insurance or prescription drug benefits to comparison shop. From Long Island Newsday:

The online reference guide includes the 25 most popular prescription drugs on the market, and, for the first time, has prices from pharmacies in all of the state’s 62 counties.

”With information from this Web site, consumers, especially seniors on fixed incomes, the uninsured and those lacking adequate prescription drug coverage, can comparison shop and keep their costs as low as possible,” Spitzer said in a prepared statement.

Under current New York State law, each pharmacy is required to carry an expanded version of this guide, known as the Drug Retail Price List, which covers nearly 150 prescription drugs, and customers are able to view it at any time.

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