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Guinta: "I'm Not Familiar With This Group" (Really?)

by: William Tucker

Wed Aug 24, 2011 at 17:12:02 PM EDT

Last week, GreyMike wrote about a mailer that went out across the state from the American Action Network thanking Congressmen Bass and Guinta for "protecting" Medicare.

The mailer is one of the most deceptive pieces of campaign literature I've ever seen. It accuses President Obama of "trying to radically change the Medicare Prescription Drug Program with Medicaid-style price controls." Meanwhile, Guinta is praised for joining a "bi-partisan effort to block President Obama from balancing the budget on the backs of seniors with these drastic changes to Medicare."
William Tucker :: Guinta: "I'm Not Familiar With This Group" (Really?)

ThinkProgress addresses the deceptive allegations:

The Medicaid Part D changes are a reference to Rep. Henry Waxman’s (D-CA) proposal (and Sen. Jay Rockefeller’s (D-WV) companion Senate bill) to extend Medicaid drug rebates to dual eligibles — beneficiaries who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid. ... CBO estimates that if drug manufacturers provided the Medicare Part D program with the same prices that Medicaid receives, the government could save $112 billion over 10 years.

At his town hall in Greenland last week, state Rep. Rich DiPentima questioned Guinta about the mailer and the proposed legislation. Political Correction, a Media Matters project, found Guinta's response "interesting."

What is interesting about all this is Guinta's reaction to the mailer at the town hall where he denied knowing anything about the mailer and denied even knowing what the American Action Network is.

Considering the American Action Network spent over $26 million in the 2010 election cycle, and almost $1 million in New Hampshire alone, it's surprising that Guinta would be "not familiar" with the group. Either Guinta is woefully uninformed about political groups playing in his district or he is trying to distance himself from a conservative group that has a history of deceptive advertising.
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Guinta: "I'm Not Familiar With This Group" (Really?) | 2 comments
Both Bass and Guinta... (4.00 / 1)
voted for Paul Ryan's budget that would have killed Medicare as we know it.

'Nuff said.

JillSH

Half truths. (0.00 / 0)
Much of the controversy around Medicare has been generated by half truths, which are worse than lies because they are designed to be deceptive. Also, what "we know" is central.  Most participants in Medicare Advantage did not know this was the federal program which had been tapped by private insurance companies to siphon off funds for doing nothing but providing meaningless "options" and annual enrollments. The reason they didn't know was because the insurance companies sent out information telling them the insurance policies, for which they paid a premium that was subsidized by the federal program, was not a federal program.  Which was true, but deceptive.  The federal program paid out money and had no say.
Similarly, most participants in the drug subsidy program, which is being managed by pharmacies, are not aware that the funding to make their costs less is coming out of the public purse.  Because the pharmacies don't tell them.  They sign them up into "preferred customer" group or some such and pretend that the reduced costs are a present, like the discount for regular shoppers at the super market (which is actually a program that helps the stock manager determine what regular customers buy and what sells because of "specials" and advertising). Every merchandiser wants regular/invariable business so they can count on a sure profit.  Pharmacies now achieve that by refusing to transfer prescriptions.  In other words, if a customer is dissatisfied or moves away, the patient needs to visit the doctor and get a new prescription. Although Medicare is nationwide, people dependent on drugs can now be tied down.
Of course, sick people oughtn't to be running lose anyway, should they?

How to make people stay home where they are easy to pacify is the eternal question.  

Guinta: "I'm Not Familiar With This Group" (Really?) | 2 comments

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