CNN

I'm wondering if the people slamming Giuliani have any idea of what kind of wait you're going to be looking at in the future when the entire country has their "free" health care?

I wish I could say one good thing about this person..
What kind of a person marries his cousin / his first wife..
defames his loyal wife on national
TV at a press conference..thinks
that it makes sense..announces his intention to divorce her..no class
no shame / ugly ugly ugly
America's Devil..MO'C

Rudy has absolutely no shame to object to government health care for the poor when he enjoys the best health care available paid for by the taxpayer. What gall.

christian from selden, ny wrote:

"...and now you get health insurance but it costs you $1300 a month and your rent is $1400 a month and you and your wife's car payments and car insurance is $775, cable is $150, 2 cellphones are $170, credit card bills u used to help pay for your wedding are $300 a month in minimum payments. your sons preschool is $400 a month then you have groceries..."

Dude, you just layed out precisely why you "just can't" afford healthcare.

In one word, "priorities."

Maybe if you paid off your cars and hung onto them (rather than buy TWO new cars)... maybe if you ditched your TWO cell phones... maybe if you ditched CABLE TV... maybe if you decided NOT to spend so much on a wedding that you actually needed a payment plan...

It's called sacrifice. Try it sometime.

Me... no cell phone... in fact, I refuse to have one. Cable TV (and ALL TV for that matter) is a big, fat, square lazy-maker and designed for the purpose of disengaging your brain... stop parking your butt in front of it and spend some time with your kids.

Honestly bud, you listed a bunch of reasons why *I*, as a taxpayer, should NOT have to foot the bill for YOUR healthcare, if you're too ignorant or self-indulgent (and entitled) or simply lack the discipline to do so yourself.

CNN, can you give me a valid reason why you deleted my post? Oh yes, it didn't contain high praise for your girl Hillary.

I agree. Why would anyone say "oh it's not working- I know let's put the federal govt in charge of it !"

Instead, let's focus on a way to get the market to compete for health care contracts; let's focus more on making high quality services affordable and not have a knee-jerk reaction that the government will do better.

Isn't it basically a lie to say that Hillary would be in charge of each American's health care? Shouldn't he be more careful about – oh wait, it's McCain who's a Christian, not Rudy. My mistake.

Chris

Rome fell?? chris are you kidding? what do you know about communism?? if i get robbed and the cops show up to my house and ask me for $150 before they apprehend the target because taxes dont pay for that anymore i think people would have a problem. can you tell me its a different case with health? i went to the hospital a few months ago without any health insurance i was have sever abdominal pains for a long time and i felt i couldnt wait anymore for insurance. they took tests, didnt seem to answer any of my questions. as a matter of fact the nurses and doctors were in the middle of the ER talking about patients they had that smelt bad and laughing about it. joking about "office gossip" in the middle of an area will people are behing CURTAINS scared that something is wrong with them and these doctors acted like they were at the bar chatting. then someone would walk in every 20 minutes ask me the same question the last 8 other people asked me. then walked in my "cubicle" after the laughing died down and said "we couldnt find anything wrong" and i sat there in amazement because i felt like someone was stabbing me in my side and theyt said i was fine "have a good day" i got up after sitting their for 4 hours and just walked out of the hospital still in pain. a week later i got a bill for $3758.00 and it was due in 2 weeks then 2 days later recieved another bill for $678.00 for some physicians fee!!! so im sitting here unable to afford medical insurance and get a charge for almost $5000 due in 2 weeks. now if i get health insurance and have any abdominal pain they actually have the right to consider it pre existing and not cover it!!! its easy for people to say everything is fine when they live at home with their mom or they arent sick, but what do you do when you support a family and get sick or your son gets sick or wife and you stay up at night hoping something will change because you work 70 hours a week and still cant squeeze enough together the keep your families health safe???? and now you get health insurance but it costs you $1300 a month and your rent is $1400 a month and you and your wife's car payments and car insurance is $775, cable is $150, 2 cellphones are $170, credit card bills u used to help pay for your wedding are $300 a month in minimum payments. your sons preschool is $400 a month then you have groceries and you are trying to just save a little bit aside to put a down payment on a house, but you might not be able to handle a monthly mortgage payment....you get my point....a little pressure is good but when its all you wake up to and go to sleep to it makes it a little difficult to be the dad you always hoped you would be... and thats the problem with america. obviously there is irresponsible parents ALL OVER, but its us good parents that want more then anything to spend time with our children but cant that really eat away at what used to make america so great.

I'm not for G, but do you guys realize that universal health care is just the first step to communism? Don't get into semantics with me, but do the math. Rome fell when it started to take care of everyone. If you really want the government to take care of you, go ahead. It'll only be for a few years, then you'll live in a van down by the river. Your lives will be vastly different after the nation falls.

You don't have to vote for G, but please do some soul searching before you vote for a closet communist.

Giuliani, along with the other Republican candidates, know the plan is good for the country; but they can't admit it because they'll look bad and because they are too proud. Too bad for them it will happen, America will support it because there IS a HEALTH CARE CRISIS and Republicans are offering is some more of the same old. What's more, the plan will work, and all of them will look bad in the end anyways.

I like you plan Giulina. Keep the RICH people Healthy and Insured. And the people that cant afford health care and the poor. Well the hell with them.

RICH GET RICHER POOR GET POORER.

at least Hillary tring to do something about it.

People in charge of our health care what an stunning concept. Lets see doc, I disagree with your medical opinion, and the cost is way to high on the procedure that you have proposed. I think I will go and shop the treatment with a different "HMO" doctor.

A large consumer markey brings down the cost of health care and here I though t he was going to address free market and supply and demand. Silly me. Mr Giuliani when was the last time you had a choice in medical care other than will I go or will I not, will I accept the treatment the doctor wants given or not. Get real the only place that medical costs and care is debated and negoiated is in the hall of Congress and I guess we know who comes out on top there.

Under medicine in this country we have three distint groups.

Group1 I don't need to worry about medical care because I can afford to get what ever I want when ever I want and not worry about cost. What's this 1% but I bet each and everyone of them have medical insurance. Which means after the "insurance" companies neogiated price, the care providers write off, the authorized amount paid by the insurance company and what ever co-pays there may be, medical cost are substantially reduced and the individual expenses are relatively minor.

Group2-The middle class or at least the employer insured middle Class. Well, employee share of the cost of the insurance has risen, the coverage offered has decreased. The insured family needs to make sure that they become ill or need medical treatment from 9-5 Monday through Friday, try to plan it so if on Friday its early. If you could call in advance and make an appointment that would be great. Okay $20-30 dollars out of pocket each time you enter the doctors office for your 10 minute meet. After hours or weekend, put it off until Monday and see if they might be able to see you by Thursday. Just can not hang til Monday, hit the ER of course unless you are put in the hospital understand that your visit to the ER is going to cost you at least $100.00 per your your insurance plan (which is considered a very good one). Bottom line you are going to save costs by not going as often as perhaps you should, you are not going to see the doctor when you are in fact ill until it becomes serious, but you are goingto pay a "insurance" negoiated rate as does group 1 and your over all out of pocket cost are going to be okay for the most part, once again the medical care providers are going to receive a discounted rate for the services from all involoved.

Group 3 Either by choice or because they do not have insurnace, can not afford insurance what ever the reason. First off, this is the one group that can not afford to get sick, they are also the only group that are going to br billed 100% of the medical facities cost. Do you really think they can afford to pay it. They are also the main group that in case of illness do not have a family doctor, so where do they go, the ER regardless of time of day or day of the week. Once again 100% of emergency room cost billed to them.

Mediacl providers then in term raise their prices to make up for the non-insured which are passed on to the insured which are discounted by the contacts negociated by the insurance companies with the medical providers.

So lets see mediacl provider want profits, insurance companies want profits, people all we want is afforadble quality care that is accessable when we need it. Systems broke, it needs a fix, don't bash those with the back bone to present a fix, so Giulilani and the rest of you, put up or shhhh, whats you plan to bring medical care to the nation?

I've been reading all of the "wonderful" comments and I can honestly say you people are all ignorant. Government controlled healthcare is not the way to go. Anytime the government is in control of any social program, quality goes down and costs (ie: taxes) go up. All Hillary wants to do is RAISE TAXES. I'm not sure if you all are aware but the more government programs we have, the MORE TAXES we have to pay to cover all of these programs. WAKE UP PEOPLE!! If you want to give all your money to the government and let THEM decide how to spend it then, by all means, vote for Hillary. Just don't say I told you so when you're worse off in 3-5 years than you are now.

This coming from the man who did such a good job of ensuring the health and safety of the rescue workers and clean up crews at the World Trade Center site. Good Job Rudy. I know I'd want to put MY heath in your hands!

"Someone needs to tell the Republicans that a campaign whose foundation lies in bashing Hillary without producing ideas of their own isn't going to win them anything."

They do have more substance than just bashing Hillary. The problem is, you have to take the impetus to go find it. The main media outlets are only going to cover the mudslinging on either side and Hillary is pretty much the centerpiece of the press coverage because she's the 'frontrunner' and a woman. Her election would be historic so she gets the hype that goes along with it. The media also know that the mudslinging is what gets everyone fired up and we'll all tune in to get the juicy gossip of the day. Anymore, politics in this country has become tabloid. Read this 'Ticker' blog closely. There are some excellent posts that discuss merits of candidates but many are (and I'm guilty as well at times) emotionally driven and totally devoid of logic.

Let's face it, if most of us were to meet the candidates in person and have an opportunity to talk one on one, most would be civil conversations where you could probe them for answers and be able to formulate your assessment of their capability for the office they seek. But, we've been reduced to sound-bites. These debates they have are a joke most times. In several instances, the questions are as long as the time given to respond. Then you have 8 or 9 people up there trying to do the Mr. Universe body-builder pose off to win your vote. We don't get in-depth answers or any kind of insight because it has to be all shrinkwrapped. Would the American public sit down for a 6 hour marathon? Or would we watch 2 1/2 hours of candidate A vs candidate B, then the next week tune in to watch candidate C and D square off?

Most folks would flip the channel and watch Judge Wapner to get their daily dose of how the judicial branch should operate.

How bad is it when you can't name the district attorney where you live and the circuit court judge but you know that Fred Thompson was the DA on Law & Order and Judge Joe Brown runs a small claims court.

It appears to me that Giuliani is all about the almighty dollar and big business. While, on the other hand, Hillary is about saving lives. Health care in this country should not be for the rich only! The pharmacutical companies, insurance companies, and the AMA need to be brought under control as these companies/associations are only interested in the...need I say it?...almighty dollar! The system is broken and over 46 million (at last count) americans are without health insurance coverage. How would Mr. Giuliani like to be without coverage? Maybe he would be singing a different tune if that were the case! I for one, am sick and tired of the republican disregard for american citizens. If the present administration would cut down on its horrendous out of control spending, and stop sending the american taxpayers money out of this country then insurance coverage for all americans would not be an issue. The health care plans in Canada and France do work...regardless of what our present leaders are telling us!

Health care is not a constitutional right, then I am not surprised that Hillary and the libs do not care about the constitution. The Libs\democrats sound like Hugo Chavez. We need less government and TERM LIMITS. ******WE NEED TERM LIMITS*****

You betcha Rudy. Spoken like a guy who has been latched onto the government teat all his life. My question to you. If this universal healthcare is such a bad thing , why is it that the american taxpayers, many uninsured, are paying for universal healthcare for the oilrich Iraqis? Typical republican thinking. It doesn't have to make sense. It just has to sell on Fox and hate radio.

Hey Giuliani, instead of shooting your mouth, show us YOUR wonderful healthcare plan. Are you planning to base your entire campaign on 9/11 and bashing Hillary? Pathetic......

Guiliani doesn't have any real health care plan. His is the tough luck option... because very few would get any help and he just says, that too bad.

Rudy G. had better wake up to this issue and all the other "hot button" issues of this Presidential election.

In 2008 "It's the health care, stupid."

He and everyone else can pick apart each candidate's specific plan and probably make all the criticisms sound reasonable. But deep in the heart of America beats a painful and undying disgust at what we know exists - a health care system that supports the pharmaceutical and medical industry's high profit margins while it ignores the crying need and citizen's basic right to affordable health care. FOR ALL. With few restrictions.

Sorry, folks, call it massive entitlement if you want. But it's money far more wisely spent than the same massive entitlement our elected leaders have given to the rich and the corporations with tax and investment breaks. Sorry, it's payback time.

So listen to the congested heartbeat of America, my Dems and 'Publicans. This issue separates the insensitive and disconnected pols from those who are in touch with the people. I predict, any politician who opposes or curtails this universal entitlement for all in 2008, will lose.

Sadly, we have many other issues that need this same clarity, sensitivity and priority by our citizens - such as educating the bottom half of our students to success. But in 2008, health care will be the whole enchilada.

hey rudy, first off your a mayor, not a president, Secondly – HELP OPEN A NEW 911 COMMISSION INVESTIGATION ON WHY BUILDING 7 COLLAPSED WITHOUT A PLANE HITTING IT. STOP THE LYING RUDY..YOULL HAVE A HIGHER POWER YO ANSWER TO ONE DAY THAN BUSH &ISRAEL

Guiliani and the republican reaction to Hillary's health plan is stupid and ridiculous. It's no more a government-run health plan than the man on the moon. (By the way, getting a man on the moon WAS a government in action.)

How's he gonna spin this one into: "see, that's why we need a tamper-proof national ID card, to protect US. US?? This man's a joke, and his record as mayor was not that great. Remember, he bailed out of the senate race against then newcomer Hill Clinton. He knows he can't beat her which means the GOP is in trouble unless they get RP in there!!!

So glad I'm a Canadian.

I have no up front fees for my Medicare
Program. And I only pay from 6 to 12 dollars per perscription, I dont' pay a cent for a Doctor's Visit, XRay, MRI, C-Scan, Ultra Sounds, Births, Maternity Check ups, Surgeries, Blood Work, Hospital Stays, or Specialist Visits or Treatments.

I pay $100. per month for extra coverage which pays 80% on dental, 50% on eye exams and up to $150 on eyewear, 80% on Physiotherapy, 50% on massage therapy, chiropractics, speech therapists, Dietician Services, orthotics, etc. and covers me for a semi-private hospital room should I be hospitalized.

All HillaryCare is going to do is bring down the quality of Health Care. America is built on a Free Enterprise system not the government. We need to put the people in charge of health care. Individuals will purchase health insurance directly and the cost will go lower. It can and it will, supply and demand.

Of course, Giuliani knows Hillary's plans are Communistic. Most people with an iq over 95 know that!

Does anyone get it? More government involvement in healthcare means it becomes another talking point to get politicians elected…kind of like the millions of dollars spent to build the multi, multi, multi-million dollar bridge in Alaska to serve 50 people. (I'm not going to quote an exact # here, like most posters or mass media would to prove my point) Bottom line is all US kids should be covered with healthcare (not sure most aren't between state and federal programs) How long are we going to let politicians decide who gets the "pork", "earmarks", etc before the US Public has had enough? On some level, as a free society, this comes back on us…At what point do we decide health insurance for the US public is more important than the pork dollars our given US congressman or senator delivers? As for the US not having great healthcare…must be why every sick world leader is beating down the door to get healthcare here…i.e. Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, John Hopkins, et. al. The quality isn't goofed up like in most countries around the world, just the number covered…Can't we solve this problem of getting more covered without destroying quality and independece of healthcare? I'm not sure I want a politician figuring out how to shift that equation…THEY got us to this point.

Mr. Giuliani- I would love to manage my own health care, but I don't have any. Thanks for nothing.

Giuliani does have a healthcare plan, it's just not covered by CNN. So does Obama, Edwards...etc.

Is it a fair system that healthy people pay for sick people? Shouldn't people be rewarded for living a healthy life and not be punished for those that are sick? Any government system will be less efficient and more costly than a private plan. Why would I want any form of universal healthcare that prevents me from seeing my regular doctor?

Geez Rudy, enough with Hillary already! ...or is wife #3 just not doing it for you anymore?

Why don't you concentrate on telling us how you're going to fix the HUGE mess we're in or do you think everything's just hunky-dory?

Ignoring Hilary's plan for a second...where's Giuliani's? Someone needs to tell the Republicans that a campaign whose foundation lies in bashing Hilary without producing ideas of their own isn't going to win them anything.

What's with this guy? All he does is criticize. I don't especially like Hilary Clinton's plan, but at least she's proposing some kind of change. That's much more than he can say.

Christian in NY – I hear you, man. We spend so much in this country on health care and what do we get for it? Just more bills and then denial of coverage.

Giuliani, like most of these candidates is so out of touch it's ridiculous.

He did such a great job of insuring everybody in New York City when he was Mayor. What a laugh! He wouldn't know an original idea if it bit him.

Giuliani is a middle-schooler.

Perhaps Giuliani's time would be better spent with his children who don't want their father to be president. He is not presidential material. He is afraid of Senator Clinton, because she doesn't waste her time on Giuliani's rantings. I still think he needs speech lessons for that horible impetiment. Married three times, oh yeah, just the role model America needs!

yea my $1300 a month health care plan is sooo easy for me to pay and my $25 co-pay anytime me, my wife and my son go to the doctor is wonderful and the $30 i pay for prescription is greeeeeeat. 16k a year for health insurance plus co pays and prescription costs and they still wont cover everything....i get letters in the mail telling me they wont cover this because its experimental or it might be pre-existing and im paying out the rear for this service. yea why would we need a new plan. giuliani i can really tell you are about the people....you dont care about special interests right because this system is doing just a bang up job. it must be nice to be rich and not have to worry about the small things like money. when you have to hide the fact that your wife is pregnant because your insurance is not kicking in for a month and you dont want the insurance company to consider it pre-existing i think the people are the last thing on these insurance companies minds..and if a candidate is siding with this broken system i know my vote will stay faaar away from that candidate. hillary wants to change the system im all for it. giuliani can stick with his rich buddies and their interests i'll be over here working everyday for my family and voting for their interests