Ensign: U.S. Health Care Fine -- If You Don't Count Gun and Auto Accidents

[IncognitoShhh]

oh so americans are special for a brand new reason now. because they drive cars. how unique. i guess when there is NOTHING special about you, you need to make things up in order to remain feeling superior.

[Baronstone]

@IncognitoShhh The US has more cars than any other country. We have more drivers than any other country. Its not bragging, its just a fact.

[IncognitoShhh]

@Baronstone - It's also the reason you are invading the middle east. It's not bragging....just a fact

[thewritepassion]

Auto accidents don't have anything to do with health care? Did that moron seriously say that with a straight face? So when they are brought to emergency rooms its not health care any more? What a fucking dumb ass!

[Baronstone]

@thewritepassion Auto related deaths dont have anything to do with healthcare. Please listen to and look at the charts that were presented before you comment and look like an idiot

[mlawren7]

"We're just a more mobile society." "They do public transportation." Are you kidding me? What a moron this Ensign guy is! Where is he getting his figures from? Why don't Americans just save themselves a lot of time and money, pick up the Australian Medicare/PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) - 4% of GDP, total medical coverage for every man, woman and child. Easy.

[Baronstone]

@mlawren7 Why dont we save ourselves a lot of time and make the government the medical insurance provider? If we did that and then charged premiums based on annual income everyone could afford the insurance! This is a simple idea and very easy to figure out, but no, we Democrats had to push it through the way it is because we wanted to take care of the big unions!

[hadenufnow]

REPEAL the TAX & JAIL mandate bill nobody ever wanted..

[hadenufnow]

Kill the 3000 pg HC TAX & JAIL Trojan Horse Mandate Bill nobody wants..

KIll the bill..

Vote em out..

nobody wants it..

[Dysnomia303]

I hope we can count on Ensign's support when we put that new, totally bitchin' high-speed passenger rail system to a vote in congress. Public transportation in this country needs some love.

[GretchenDawntreader]

Duh Ensign...people injured in gun violence and auto accidents need HEALTH CARE!

Stick to fucking your staff's spouses.

[47f0]

Dammit - why don't these people ever get called out when they're lying about simple, much abused talking points?

This has been debunked six ways from Sunday. He's comparing apples to camels, to drive up our lifespan numbers.

But he doesn't do the same for the other countries. We have 14.7 auto fatalities per 100k people. Canada isn't that far behind, at 9.1 - that's a difference of only 6 per 100k. or 0.006%. That's all.

Republican math - the confused lying to the gullible

[LORDOFWARS8]

Yes, "take out" auto accidents and gun wounds... since habitable America is way larger than any country being compared (even Canada, though it is larger in size)...and hence ppl have to more mobile because of country's geography

[xylin3]

How can you "Take Out" auto accidents ?

ESPECIALLY if youre a mobile society ???

How can you take any accidents out of the equation ?

It is the medical MISFORTUNE that HC relies on to make a buck in the 1st place.

sorry, cant fool me buddy...

[Jeijo1]

wow, so lets see a car and gun free america then! Finally some fucking sense coming out of somebody!

[GretchenDawntreader]

exactly, can't wait for Ensign to stand up against the gun lobby.

[oneofonex1]

notice how confident ensign is, like "im making a really great argument"

[bleunt]

Maybe you shouldn't count Europe as a country...

[ipxzor]

So a heavy tax on fuel more public transport investment and strict gun laws will fix health care?

AHAHAHA i'd love to see him try and see how he goes next campaign as a republican.

How about we don't include treatment related to smoking, obesity and errrr.... black people. All their medical problems are irrelevant.

Sometimes these republicans can be a bit silly but this guy is a class A moron.

[bkarwin]

Well I would hope that the US has more effective health care than countries that spend close to 1/2 of what we do per capita on health care (US = $4271 per capita, France = $2288 per capita according to World Bank stats).

But do we have two times better health care? I don't think so.

[charlie44441]

More mobile? Canada drives their cars just as much, but we get to go to the hospital after an accident, without one consideration on whether we can afford it. How spoiled we are...

[mavaddat]

No, Canadians use public transport much more than Americans. I'm a Canadian who lived in America for 13 years (Southern California and Kentucky).

[charlie44441]

Alright then. So we drive less per capita then Americans. But we get to go to the hospital, being the socialist country we are. But don't tell McCain, lest he wants a regime change.

[clnmike]

Well of course! Because people who get into gun and car accidents dont go to the hospital. makes perfect sense. Brilliant!!!

[marniespeaks]

here to Ensign in an auto accident

[asphyxiafeeling]

I think he just means that our health care system is ranked a bit lower then it should just because we have different habits then Europe, and for some reason that is why we shouldn't have heath care reform...?

[sabboth42]

WTF! Yes...because...car accident victims don't need healthcare. Gun shot wound victims don't need health care. That's just silly.

[themarycity]

WTF is he talking about?? Take away auto accident and guns? WTH? Take out genetic diseases and fucking broken bones and we are basically superhuman. What an idiotic argument!

[CalexanderJ]

So I guess he's in favor of rigorous gun laws then.

[BayerLexan]

And a vast supporter of public transit.

[tankwfw]

Yes because dieing in an auto-accident is different from dieing of heart disease. Oh wait. No...it isnt

[miked860]

There is definitely a difference. You are either way to liberal or way to stupid to understand the difference.

[crtnyevans]

criminals are not subhuman or scum. Stop thinking like that. Thats the kind of thinking that allows cops to kill people that "look" like criminals

[Chibling]

What about Canada? We are even MORE mobile then Americans due to our sparse population density... and if the republican is going to talk guns he better watch himself haha

[SubmarinerAndroid]

Ensign has been a perfectly faithful husband, if you don't count that one affair he had.

[rocklee309]

bipartisanship at work! lol

[flowergirl1313]

He got that from the crazy chick who got fired after getting schooled on The Daily Show. The chick who started the "death panel" lie.

[Joddit]

Actually, come to think of it... If we stop counting deaths altogether, we have a perfect health care system!!

Don't you just love Republican reasoning!! :p

[jbess1985]

@Joddit

What does gun and auto accidents have to do with health care?

[Joddit]

@jbess1985

Actually, quite a lot! In any western society car accidents account for one of the most important causes of death and injury. Thus, it is quite a large health care issue.

Alternatively, gun accidents are less of a concern in most western countries, except perhaps for the US.

[jbess1985]

@Joddit

Does health insurance or auto insurance take care of auto accidents?

[Joddit]

@jbess1985

You can't be serious!! Auto insurance does NOT cover personal injury!!

If youre really from 1985 you ought to know this.

[jbess1985]

@Joddit

Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage pays for medical expenses and lost wages for you and your passengers who are injured in an accident. It also covers funeral costs. PIP is required in 16 states and Puerto Rico

[Joddit]

@jbess1985

Even so... That would still be the vast minority of the country...

[Baronstone]

@Joddit Uh wrong again. Your insurance will end up paying for the other persons medical bills if you're at fault.

[Baronstone]

@jbess1985 That would be auto insurance

[gnome33]

@Joddit its allot better than democrat reasoning.

[Joddit]

@gnome33 "its allot better than democrat reasoning."

This is the intellectual equivalent of saying: "I know you are, but what am I??"

Why don't you try to, ooh I don't know, make an argument...

[Baronstone]

@Joddit Because we dont listen when they do, we end up calling them names.

[ChunAsperEndao]

John Ensign just made a terrific argument for increasing funding for public transportation.

[437thx1138]

Muddy those waters Ensign and delay any action. I notice you have some sweet healthcare.

Sweeten the numbers even more and pull out A-hole senators too.

Hypocrite.

[L8nitedave]

Good point Mr Ensign, in addition to health care reform, we also need tighter gun control and to divert more funding towards public transportation.

[TheMadronas]

Nobody is 'entitled' to free or subsidized anything.

[greyflcn]

What do you bet the massive majoriety of US cancer/heart disease patients are on medicare or medicaid?

[437thx1138]

greyflcn by the time you get on disability for a serious / terminal illness it's too late. Your six month or longer wait kills you. or makes you not treatable.

[GeoliphicMedia]

this guy can afford his ambulance rides

[LarcheOsborne]

He doesn't need to -- we pay for his health care. He's a Senator. He has access to the medical care he wants to deny the rest of us.

[BayAreaLen]

Fuck it! If they crash their car, let them bleed to death.

[7jerryv7]

So, a Republican is making an argument for gun control and mass transit?

No, this is evidence for keeping a health care system that is only good if you are not one of the 45 million without health care.

This country has gone batshit crazy.

[iknewitalready]

Gun accidents

yay...2nd amendment

[mistergarth]

If you don't count gunshot wounds and auto accidents, the US healthcare system looks better.

If you don't count Republicans, the state of public discourse in the US looks better, too.

[junkforkaryn]

and we would have healthcare reform if we didn't count these dumbasses sitting around making up ludicrous arguments against it!

[KataVideo]

two life-saving heart surgeries could be paid for with the money that john ensign begged of his parents to pay-off the woman he was schtuping outside his marriage

[jimwal2008]

Gun accidents? As in 'I accidentally shot the liquor store clerk in the head'

[HiGuy505]

no as in "another child shot himself/his friend today when he found his parents loaded gun." or "i'm a big football star ill shoot myself in leg at a club."

[bilalparvaz786]

lol...thats like saying....well, we have a very low rate of murders if u take out gun "accidents"

[pseudolover]

no the radical republicans like to kill innocent brown ppl in other countries. Oh and however you put it a criminal is still HUMAN the only Subhumans I see are those such as yourself who are devoid of any type of humanity. PROUD TO BE A YANKEE LIBERAL

[PersonalJesus348]

why do the rockafellers have power in our government!!

[AJASNA0709]

ensign is stupid guy who had affair what happened to gop values. ha ha

[MrLesWhite]

Maybe this would be a good time to Ban Guns and Cars!! I agree ENSIGN. Let's improve public transportation and get rid of firearms!!

"Auto accidents have nothing to do with Healh...(brainfart)....we're just a more mobile society!"

[domulys]

Can someone explain to me why this is a dumb argument? Unless the new health care bill plans to reduce the # of auto accidents, I think he has a fair point.

Liberals should LOVE what this guy is saying - he's saying that guns are responsible for killing people! Republicans NEVER admit to that.

[pseudolover]

Radical Conservatives will pick and choose, but the fact that ppl don't have healthcare doesn't mean that auto accident didn't cause outrageous hospital bills.

[OlivierdeAthos]

Frankly, it was obvious that NEITHER of them had read the study they were talking about, which shows the U.S. ranking dead last in medically-preventable deaths among the developed countries.

Shootings and car accidents were not measured in the first place. Therefore, Ensign was full of shit when he claimed that the U.S. ranking would move up if you discount shootings and car accidents, and Conrad was equally clueless to concede the point.

[reeft]

That is one of the dumbest arguments i have heard in a long history of dumb arguments.

[Richardgwm]

And if you don't count infant mortality, life expectancy, rates of obesity, heart disease, etc.

Sure. If you don't count any of the things that actually kill us, then America has a great healthcare system.

The American healthcare system is a disastrous failure.

[oneofonex1]

LOL @ "Sure. If you don't count any of the things that actually kill us, then America has a great healthcare system.

Its safe to say that there are a lot of dumb asses in office... I really do wonder how they get elected.

[MrLesWhite]

Excellent point, BTW What HMO is he talking about? Where are the stats to prove this?

LOL @ Not counting auto accidents because we drive more, look at the death toll on the Autobound...foolish American pride

I guess if you don't count the obese and people without plastic surgery we are better looking too.

Hold on, lets not count the major banks and real estate market we are richer than ever!!

If you don't count interceptions Rex Grossman was the best quarterback in NFL History.

[OlivierdeAthos]

They were both quoting a recent study showing the U.S. ranking dead last (19th of 19) in "preventable deaths" among the developed nations.

reuters. com/article/latestCrisis/ idUSN07651650

Ensign tried to say that if you discount shootings and car accidents the U.S. would rank higher. Untrue, since neither the 2003 nor the 2008 counted those things to begin with.

Here's the 2003 study with the criterion in Table 1.

pubmedcentral. nih. gov/articlerender. fcgi?artid=261807

[Baronstone]

@Richardgwm No idiot, just take out the two things that he mentioned and the US has better mortality rates than most other countries. My party was trying to stack the deck and we lost. Now it looks like universale healthcare is going down in flames, like it should!

[koren1124]

Auto accents don't have anything to do with health care? haha

[GibbyLOLSTFUPLEASE]

Wait a second... Aren't republicans supposed to support guns? 2nd amendment etc. If you take out Gun crime, something that they support, we are safer and healthier? I don't get it... Republicans are retarded

[ochairball]

This guy shouldn't even be on the floor.

[EmperorAtahualpa]

LOL he would WISH the US health care system is better, but the simple truth is: it is just not...

[zndprophet]

Hey, isn't this the guy who fucked his friend's wife?

[bilalparvaz786]

lol..watta dumbass...i wonder if he knows wat hes saying......but thats like saying theres not a lot of murders if u take out gun murders....lol