GOP Health Bill Would Cut CDC's $1B Disease-Fighting Fund

[Cattledog]

http://news.wabe.org/post/gop-health-bill-would-cut-cdcs-1b-disease-fighting-fund

A proposal to replace the Obama health care law would cut out a pillar of funding for the nation's lead public health agency, and experts say that would likely curtail programs across the country to prevent problems like lead poisoning and hospital infections.

The Republican bill calls for the elimination of a $1 billion-a-year fund created for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by the Affordable Care Act in 2010. The fund's goal: Pay for public health programs designed to prevent illness and, therefore, reduce health care costs.

Bureaucracy-slashing bills are nothing new in Washington, and many never pass. Introduced this week, the GOP's plan to overhaul former President Barack Obama's health care law is being hashed out in the House of Representatives before it goes to the Senate.

But some health experts say what's being discussed now is far graver than the funding debates seen in other years.

The results "will be a major turning point" in how the nation promotes health and addresses health care needs, said John Auerbach, president of Trust for America's Health, a Washington-based public health research and advocacy organization.

Some Republican legislators have championed the demise of the fund, equating it to a "slush fund." They say they want more control over how public health funds are spent.

[MFM008]

1. Next ebola type outbreak

Might make it in deep.

[enough]

2. They really hate Americans. They bring cruelty throughout the land.

Cut funding for human health, cut funding to protect our water, land, and air.

They seem to crave a hellish world.

[deminks]

3. There go the vaccine programs

and there won't be anymore Flints because we won't be monitoring anymore. Much like we do now with gun deaths. (The CDC is prevented currently from doing research into preventing gun deaths.) If you stick your head up your ass, you won't see any diseases.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/cdc-launched-comprehensive-gun-study-15-years/story?id=39873289

[Hoyt]

4. Christ, what is wrong with these folks besides just being GOPers?

[dalton99a]

5. Gotta make Russia great again by killing Americans