New ad knocks Obama for Canadian-style health care

(CBS News) A new TV ad released Tuesday from the pro-Republican group Americans for Prosperity criticizes President Obama's health care law and urges voters to vote against him because of it.

The new ad, called "Replace," compares the law to Canada's health care system and features Shona Holmes, a Canadian who said she needed time-sensitive care and sought health care in the U.S. to avoid long waits in Canada.

In the ad, Holmes said a doctor told her husband that she wouldn't be alive long enough to wait for her Canadian appointment.

"The American system was there for me when I needed it," Holmes said. "It's time for American's to get engaged in this debate."

The ad pushes the false assertion that the U.S. health care law is government-run like Canada's. In fact, the U.S. law is insurance-based and runs through the private market, while Canada's is a public system largely run and administered by the government.

A narrator closes the ad saying, "To protect American's patient-centered care, we must replace President Obama."

The ad will run in 11 states - Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Virginia, Wisconsin, and North Carolina - and it completes a series of four television advertisements totaling $27 million. A previous ad highlighted former Obama supporters who say they don't think he deserves another four years.

The David Koch-backed organization is registered as a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt organization and can receive unlimited funds without having to disclose its funders.

[maysher]

Some facts. A recent Bloomberg survey ranked the US 33rd in the world's healthiest countries. Canada is ranked 14th. If the events described in this ad were widespread and characteristic of Canada's health care system as a whole then there is simply no way Canada would be ranked so much higher than the US in it's nation's health. Even Cuba beats the US in the Bloomberg survey and tends to beat the US in both life expectancy and infant mortality. In fact virtually all of the countries ahead of the US in the Bloomberg survey have some form of single payer government run system. Each side in the debate over health care can go on all day citing individual examples of poor care what they can not do is argue with the actual health statistics for the country as a whole and by those statistics the US falls short time and time again when compared to other industrialized nations. Clearly the US has some of the very best doctors and medical science in the world so then we are only left with access as the problem in securing the health of Americans.

[New_Inquisitor]

The Koch brothers are trying to create their own Plutocratic government by any means.

If we listen carefully to the Republican retoric and look at what they do (or are trying to do) in the House and Senate, we begin to realize that the true goal of the Republican party is to return to the Gilded Age, with its Laissez-faire and Social Darwinism. Back then, Big Business operated without regulation or taxes. The Republican party, as it exists today, has been hijacked by Plutocrats (someone who exercises power by virtue of wealth) and Paul Ryan is their "hired gun". Those Plutocrats are focused on the accumulation of profits by businesses and wealth by the very rich. In their view, taxes and regulations are expenses and restrictions that reduce wealth and profits. This Republican party wants to gain control of our government with the sole purpose of eliminating, or at least reducing to the absolute minimum, taxes and regulations. As Grover Norquist said "... our goal is to shrink the government to the size where we can drown it in a bath tub". This focused pursuit of wealth is completely amoral, in that they have absolutely no consideration for any possible negative effects of their actions in attaining these goals. This total lack of concern is reinforced by the protection against possible negative effects that wealth provides. With that focus in mind, here is an analysis of the Republican party's stand on controversial issues:
1. Reduction of Taxes:
(a) every dollar that is eliminated from taxes represents additional income and retention of wealth by businesses and individuals.
2. Reduction of Government Spending:
(a) Every dollar that is eliminated from government spending is to be offset by a reduction in taxes. In addition:
i. The elimination of Government regulatory agencies eliminates regulations.
A. Also related, increases in the minimum wage increase expenses for businesses.
ii. Shifting a portion of Social Security to private investment reduces expenditures and provides additional revenue for the investment industries.
iii. Shifting of Medicare to private insurance reduces expenditures and provides additional revenue for the health insurance industry while also eliminating cost reduction pressures on the health care industry.
iv. Elimination of the Affordable Healthcare Act also provides additional revenue for the health care industry while eliminating cost reduction pressures.
3. Increase in Military Spending:
(a) Although this increases government spending, that increase is more than offset by greater benefits:
i. Beyond personnel expenses, every increase in military spending provides additional revenue to military and aerospace industries.
ii. Increases in military spending are falsely equated to increased national security which gains votes.
4. Moral issues:
(a) The issues of abortion, contraception, stem cell research, and gay rights represent pandering to the religious organizations in order to gain votes and allow the Republican party to attain their goals through government control.
5. Gun Control:
(a) This is a major, wedge/divisive issue which has the potential to over-shadow many other issues. The Republican party is taking advantage of the Democratic party's virulent support of gun control legislation and opposition to 2nd Amendment rights legislation, and as a result, gain additional votes. In addition:
i. Decreased regulation of guns and ammunition has the potential to provide increased revenue for the gun industries, and
ii. Decreased gun regulations provides a basis to propose ATF reductions.
6. Voter Fraud:
(a) The "elimination of voter fraud", by the Republican party, is actually focused on voter suppression of those demographic segments of the voting population that statistically favor the Democratic party. This increases the potential for a Republican win in the next election, which would allow the Republican party to establish their goals through government regulations and laws, which will remain even if those voter regulations are over-turned in the future.

[New_Inquisitor]

This ad was A LIE 3 years ago when it was first run in 2009. Now the Republicans add a FALSE and BASELESS claim that the Affordable Healthcare Act creates a system that is the same as the Canadian government run healthcare system.

When did politics change from a rational considered selection to a belief system? A lo-o-ong time ago, it used to be that we could listen to the candidates' goals and positions and then make an informed decision. Now, all we hear are platitudes, exaggerations, misleading, and downright false statements; all financed by obscene amounts of money (estimates as high as $ 2 Billion for the current election). If this represents the ethics of the candidates and the political parties, then what is their real purpose in getting elected? Power and greed seem to be the only answers, since "working for the common good" or "to make the USA better" are in direct opposition to the lack of ethics and the amounts of money being used to get elected.

Do Not Vote for People Who Have No Ethics!

[rmonroe401]

Canadian style my a##, we could only wish to have health care as good as canada's. The only ones that hate the health care system in Canada are the 1%'s there, they think, like the 1%'s here that if poor people get sick they should just die, and if they are middle class they should give up the homes they live in and end up on the streets. You know, A##HOLES.

[josephp5]

David Koch is an enemy to America.

[josephp5]

It's a big improvement that news organizations like CBS are identifying Americans For Prosperity as a front group for billionaire David Koch. The article also reveals the fact that AFP is a tax exempt organization that does not need to disclose its donors.

David Koch has enough money to fund dozens---even hundreds!---of sham groups like Americans For Prosperity. And now, thanks to the Citizens United ruling, there is nothing to hold them back from saturating the airwaves with their lies.

The only hope for our democracy is that the mainstream media continues to identify these groups as nothing but fronts for billionaires, and that people become immune to their phony messages.

[TimeToEvolve]

Actually Canada has a universal single payer system that is higher rated and much cheaper than our ripoff system that does not even cover everyone.

[Eco99]

and as your name says ... it is TimeToEvolve but if neanderthal's like the GOP are running the show there is little hope for that to happen.

[retmw1]

And our rip off private insurance system can deny you and cancel you.

[76SpiritOf]

louiville223 September 4, 2012 2:54 PM EDT
""Despite government promises and the billions of dollars funnelled into the Canadian health-care system, the average patient waited more than 18 weeks in 2007 between seeing their family doctor and receiving the surgery or treatment they required," said Nadeem Esmail, director of Health System Performance Studies at the Fraser Institute and co-author of the 17th annual edition of Waiting Your Turn: Hospital Waiting Lists in Canada. "
-----------------------------
Hey Louiville,

How about you.

Doe you want to discuss the following issues with our great healthcase system...

How about the problems we have with malpractice.

Sky high drug prices courtesy of the GOP bill preventing medicare from negotiating prices.

How about doctors conducting procedures that are not required for medicare reimbursements.

How about developing products that are marketable because of medicare reimbursements?

A great example is stackable implants that are billed as multiples when a single piece will do the job.

Lets discuss this! As I stated before I have 10 years experience working with Medical devices. Whats your expertise?

[YourRearViewMirror1]

by ad_iudicium September 4, 2012 7:33 PM EDT
I wonder why so many Canadians come to the US for treatment then?

*******************************************

Hey ad_iudicium,

Stop listening to Rush Limbaugh and for once in your short life investigate the facts yourself....

I just created a new Corporation called "Quality and Cheap Healthcare, Inc." For $600 (versus $8,000 in USA) a year, you can have quality and extremely affortable healthcare in socialist India or Mexico or Canada. This exploding industry has already successfully served over 6 million Americans whom are extremely happy.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/10/18/health/webmd/main2104425.shtml

At our expense, we will fly you to India for all your operation/surgery/healthcare needs:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/03/27/india.medical.travel/index.html

OR

You can also fly south to Mexico for all your healthcare needs without killing your wallet.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/12/17/eveningnews/main5992969.shtml?

OR

Sunday offering: Surgery for the needy
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/03/04/cnnheroes.sunday.surgery/index.html?hpt=C1

OR

Stay tune, we are working on a similar package to Russia and China!

So hurry, this limited offer ends soon.

This was a free Commercial.

[petesis]

The press in this country, has been cowed by Conservative complaints about liberal bias. They lie outrageously and the press says.... "well, that is not exactly true". They have been intimidated. They are failing all of us.