healthcare

Diego Sanchez Is Rep. Frank's New Legislative Advisor

December 18, 2008 by PamsHouseBlend

I was very surprised to hear the news that my friend Diego Sanchez is going to by Rep. Barney Frank's (D-MA) new Legislative Assistant -- a senior policy advisor to the congressman. Mr. Sanchez is going to be taking over for Joe Racalto at Rep. Frank's Washington DC Congressional office -- Sanchez's new workplace is going to be a congressional office in Washington DC's Labor Building.

As Rep. Frank's Legislative Assistant, Sanchez will be responsible for tracking LGBT, healthcare, veterans, and labor issues, as well as issues regarding the 2010 census.

BLOGPOST :: Gov. Joe Manchin touts healthcare for all W.Va. workers: Now that he has won re-e.. http://tinyurl.com/66lln6 (via

November 10, 2008 by admin

October 15, 2008 by admin

VA and the McCain Health Tax Time Bomb

September 12, 2008 by Blue Virginia

Joe Klein has posted an excellent piece on what he calls "McCain's Health Care Tax Increase" but might be more simple (and catchier) if called simply the McCain Health Tax - which is what it is.

Basically, McCain's plan calls for taxing health benefits paid for by employers as if they were income for an employee.  He offers up a tax credit to cover the costs but it's not even close to enough.

What Joe Klein doesn't mention, but the Center for American Progress does, is that this tax also a ticking bomb.  And here's why: in many states, McCain's inadequate tax credit won't measure up to costs, even from day one.  But it will get worse as time goes on, because although that tax credit grows year-to-year along with inflation, the costs of healthcare are rising much faster than that - ~%7/year, compared with ~%2/year for inflation.  So every year, the McCain Health Tax is going to grow, and grow, and grow.

What does this mean for Virginia?

Barack Obama’s Statement on 9/11

September 11, 2008 by Jack and Jill P...

From Barack Obama’s blog today (emphasis mine):

Today, we honor the memory of the lives that were lost on September 11, 2001, and grieve with the families and friends who lost someone they loved in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. We will never forget those who died. We will always remember the extraordinary efforts of our firefighters, police and emergency responders, and those who sacrificed their own lives on Flight 93 to protect their fellow Americans. And we give thanks for the Americans defending us every day in our communities at home, and in our military abroad.

On 9/11, Americans across our great country came together to stand with the families of the victims, to donate blood, to give to charity, and to say a prayer for our country. Let us renew that spirit of service and that sense of common purpose. Let us remember that the terrorists responsible for 9/11 are still at large, and must be brought to justice. Let us resolve to defeat terrorist networks, defend the American homeland, stand up for the enduring American values that we cherish, and seek a new birth of freedom at home and around the world.