Public Option: your premium goes to salaries and golden parachutes.

Protect Insurance Companies PSA from Will Ferrell

Jesus was a public option

Jesus apparently took some convincing that he should cast his pearls before swine, or in this case, his bread to the dogs, to make health care accessible.

“But Lord,” said the lowly Canaanite woman. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”

Jesus was pleased by her understanding. “Woman, you have great faith!” he said, astonishing the disciples. The disciples watched closely, and would later record this triumphant moment in the Holy Book. The Canaanites were the “dogs” of Israel, but this one—this “dog,” a far cry from one of the chosen—had great faith? Jesus told the woman that her request had been granted. And indeed from that very hour, the woman’s daughter was freed of her demon.

Likewise among the lepers, the outcast Samaritan - the immigrant - proved worthy of health care. Luke 17:11-19:

Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus asked, "Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well."

Jesus raised the dead and cured the sick, and took care of outcasts from outside his church and immediate community. How did the established interests respond? With a death sentence, which is probably a pre-existing condition.

Insurance company profiteers make US sick

Obama at College Park on Health care reform.

FDA Commissioner: Six new compliance initiatives

FDA Commissioner Hamburg today:

Compliant industry should support these intitatives that will prevent them from being undercut by firms taking illegal shortcuts:

• 15 days for FDA to issue Warning Letters. Warning letters will no longer be held waiting for firms to respond.


• No GC reviews unless the case presents a novel legal issue. The Bush adminsitration policy of having letters reviewed by anti-consumer activitists planted in the Agency offices is cancelled.


• State coordination where state law allows rapid response to seize products and correct issues.


• A Warning Letter or recall will trigger enforcement follow up. Cases will no longer be allowed to languish or remain open with incertain resolution. Firms will get a knock on the door and an inspection.


• No multiple warning letters. The second Warning Letter to a firm will trigger increased scrutiny and follow up actions.


• After Warning Letter is satisfactorily resolved, firms may be eligible for a "close out letter" to document the matetrs have been resolved, e.g., after an FDA inspection.

Also she mentioned FDA has asked for additional power to mandatory food recalls.

The full text of the speech will be available immediately following the event here.

A video recording of the speech will be available after 4:00 this afternoon here.

FDA Food Safety Changes Round up

The FDA food safety law is written by Big Commercial Farms to keep FDA out of dirty Food, Inc.

Find out what food safety requirements didn't pass here and here, here thanks to the commercial farms that contaminate the animals we eat.

Findlaw on Food Safety: In the wake of recent food recalls, foodborne illnesses, and reports of unhygienic food processing conditions noted in some factories, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Food Safety Enhancement Act this week in a vote of 283 to 142, significantly increasing resources for food inspection and quality control.

Although this article says FDA had no power over food imports, the law at Section 801 gives FDA MORE authority, allowing the agency to refuse to admit food that "appears" in violation, without having to prove that it is adulterated or filthy.

Here is a summary of the law.

See also foodsafety.gov/