Kicktoons, with a sense of terrible loss for editorial cartoonists...

McClatchy Lays Off Its Three Last Cartoonists
Pulitzer Prize winners Jack Ohman, Joel Pett, and Kevin Siers



Ohman:



Pett:




Siers:



Thomas Nast on Boss Tweed:

Really need to save this Telnaes Toon re: Editorial Cartoonists. And Herblock...

Delicious. Here's to the DU guyz over the past 20 years who schooled me on gunz: few but annoying...

Thank God for the Gungeon.

We hold these truths to be self evident -- that every generation must re-interpret & renew...

… the Constitution and Bill of Rights for a changing age,
for these are not Holy writ but documents designed for flexibility and growth —
always recognizing that all humans are created equal,
and are endowed by their Creator (or inmost guides) with certain inalienable rights,
among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

What does not grow, dies.

Thank you grantcart. Our dilemma is tons of meds, which is not unusual for our age group....

Our great good fortune is that my husband is still employed at the age of 76 at work he loves, and is able to do it from home. We use the company’s insurance.

In the nature of things, this will not go on forever, and we will have to deal with Medicare.

The OP is alarming — but I noticed the lack of links and the very low post count. You, on the other hand, I know — and true to DU’s tradition of encouraging and even insisting on sources, you provided them. I will be giving your info the consideration it deserves.

Thank you & have a happy 4th of July.



(Copying your post into mine for ease of retrieval. )

❤️
(Although not a specialist in medicare I am a licensed insurance agent)

If the OP has any interest at all in providing accurate information as a PSA the OP will delete this OP.

Every statement I make will be backed up with a direct reference to a Medicare, .Gov source

To clear up some of the misunderstanding that is common here are the basics about A and B

Medicare A provides for hospital coverage for those eligible for Medicare @ 65 and there is no premium.

Medicare B provides for partial coverage of doctors and specialists fees. It has a monthly cost of $ 164.90 a month and you are automatically enrolled with A at 65



1) First of all Medicare advantage is Medicare Part C, not private insurance



https://www.medicare.gov/Pubs/pdf/12026-Understanding-Medicare-Advantage-Plans.pdf


Medicare Advantage (also known as“Part C”) is a type of Medicare health plan
offered by a private company that
contracts with Medicare. These plans include
Part A, Part B, and usually Part D. Plans may
offer some extra benefits that Original Medicare doesn’t cover.



Medicare Advantage is NOT privately funded insurance. Let me explain. The VAST VAST majority of Medicare Advantage clients choose a Medicare Advantage that has zero premium.

These plans are ADMINISTERED by private companies but the premium is PAID by Government.

Why was it set up this way? Medicare part C also known as Medicare Advantage has expanded benefits that involve more client management involvement than the simple reimbursement of A and B so it was decided to offer more Medicare benefit
but have it paid by the government.


Example: Medicare Advantage has a significant priority in incentivizing preventative health practices. For example they pay for basic gym membership (aka Silver Sneakers). My Medicare Advantage includes paid incentives if I do certain things:

Going to the gym $ 5 a month
Colonoscopy $ 40
Eye Exam $ 40
and so on

My wife gets additional incentive payments for

Breast exam
Bone Density

So not only does Medicare Advantage not cost me (and the vast majority) a dollar we actually get paid by the insurance company. Because of the detailed and individual nature of the benefits in Medicare Part C it was decided that it was better not to have a government agency administer it but to do it through private companies. All Medicare Advantage plans meet basic medicare requirements and are strictly controlled by medicare.

Some people choose to buy an Medicare Advantage Plan that has a monthly premium and offers additional coverage for prescriptions. For some people it is a big savings, for others it is an unnecessary expense.

The OP has it backwards, Medicare Part C are government paid plans (with some people paying for additional coverage).
Medigap helps pay for some office co pays but doesn't offer additional help on prescription drugs



https://www.medicare.gov/health-drug-plans/medigap/basics/how-medigap-works#:~:text=A%20Medigap%20policy%20is%20different,supplement%20to%20Original%20Medicare%20coverage.

A Medigap policy is different from a Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C). A Medicare Advantage Plan is another way to get your Medicare coverage besides Original Medicare. A Medigap policy is a supplement to Original Medicare coverage. When you’re getting started with Medicare, you can either buy Medigap or enroll in a Medicare Advantage Plan, but you can’t have both.

If you have a Medicare Advantage Plan, you can’t buy and don’t need a Medigap policy





To summarize:

Medicare Advantage is government paid insurance that is also known as Medicare C

Most people on Medicare C pay no premiums

You can actually get money back on most Medicare Advantage Plans

Medicare Advantage with no premium offers additional assistance on co pays and prescription drugs.

Medigap is paid by you, you pay the premium. The range for Medigap plans (aka Medicare part L, M and N)is between $ 59 and $ 310 a month. Again the average premium for Medicare Advantage is $ 0 for 70% of the recipients.



Seniors have 4 choices

1) Medicare A and B only

2) Number 1 plus a zero premium Medicare C

3) Number 1 plus a Medicare Advantage plan that has a premium and has additional prescription benefits

4) Number 1 plus a Medigap plan.


Which is best for you?

Even though I have been a licensed insurance agent for 20 years I could not answer that question and OPs like this one that prescribe one option is best for all are highly irresponsible. If I were an agent specializing in Medicare I would need a detailed list of prescriptions to input into the different plans to come to a conclusion.

What I can tell you is that there is no one who benefits most from option 1 (Medicare A and B only) because you can get (and most people do) a Medicare Advantage policy that has no premium but has additional benefits. Even though it is clearly preferable to get more benefits with no cost you will find DUers frequently post OPs discouraging people from getting Medicare Advantage even though it will cost them nothing.

What should you do to learn the actual facts and not be misled by someone who is completely uninformed about Medicare Advantage?

1) Read the links above which includes the official Medicare brochure that explains in detail what Medicare Advantage is.

2) Do not call the companies that advertise but find an independent medicare insurance agent that represents more than one company and ask for their recommendation. If they don't ask about your prescriptions, don't bother using them. If you are worried about finding the right one make an appointment with three different ones and pick the one that gives you the best plan.

3) Don't worry if you are not 100% happy with your Medicare Advantage. I am delighted with Humana but I know that they don't have many approved doctors in Yuma but have a ton in Tucson. If you are ever unhappy with your Medicare Advantage plan you can change in the next open season.

4) Don't get bummed out by all of the Medicare Advantage commercials. They advertise that way because the rules for client acquisition are very strict for Medicare part C. They can only respond to a query they cannot initiate the contact. I was in a Walmart once and stood next to an agent that had an approved table in the front. For three minutes I smiled at him and waited for him to say something. He smiled back but said nothing and I asked him if he could help me and invited me to sit down. He explained that he could not say anything to me until I made the first comment.



My experience with Medicare Advantage

I have Humana

My Medicare Advantage Premium is $ 0

My wife and I get about $ 200 every year back for participating in preventative incentive plans

I am an insulin dependent diabetic with diabetes, HBP and prostate meds and my total prescription cost is about $ 125 for three month refills.

Humana also provides very valuable guidance on health related issues. For example there is a severe doctor shortage in Tucson and after spending hours trying to find a doctor that would take an appointment before 2024 I called them up and had a doctor in 5 minutes. A call to get information about hearing aid options answered my questions in 15 minutes and it was better than the ENT doctors have been giving me for 20 years.


You wouldn't take medical or legal advice from a random poster on the internet so why would you take advice on Medicare insurance from a random poster with no links to government information on medicare. If you want to do it right find a Medicare agent that specializes in Medicare

I have been a licensed insurance agent for 20 years but don't specialize in Medicare and would not try to find the best solution without a licensed agent that specialized in it.

Kick. Rec. Bookmark.

From the OP:

Before Jack Smith was appointed, Merrick Garland:

Seized John Eastman's phone
Seized Jeffrey Clark's phone
Seized Scott Perry's emails
Seized Eastman's emails
Seized Epshteyn's phone
Seized Mike Lindell's phone
Seized Mike Roman's phone
Seized Scott Perry's phone
Got Kash Patel's testimony
Appointed Windom
Appointed Cooney
Subpoenaed the fraudulent electors
Subpoenaed 7 state's election officials
Subpoenaed Sidney's PAC
Subpoenaed Rudy
Opened IG probe into Clark
Opened IG probe into DoJ response to 1/6
Negotiated subpoena for Meadows
Battled the 11th circuit for classified docs
Subpoenaed trump for classified docs
Subpoenaed trump for surveillance video
Executed a search warrant on trump
Convicted Bannon of contempt
Indicted Navarro for contempt
Subpoenaed the speakers from 1/6
Subpoenaed the organizers of 1/6
Secured seditious conspiracy convictions
Subpoenaed records for any member of congress involved in 1/6
Subpoenaed info on Jenna Ellis
Secured testimony from Mark Short
Secured testimony from Jacob Engel
Secured testimony from Philbin
Secured testimony from Cippollone
Subpoenaed info on trump's PACs
Won privilege battles for Short, Engel, and the Pats
Negotiated for Pence's subpoena
Seized the phone records of Meadows
Secured the 1/6 committee transcripts
Subpoenaed 7 secretaries of state


https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1647043510544273408.html

I stand with Justice Ketanji ...

Hekate
Santa Barbara County Affirmative Action Commission
1989 - 2001

One thought came to me the night Diana died, and the week after, as the eulogies rolled in...

And that was: I had dismissed her as a lightweight, because she was beautiful and exceptionally well dressed, and had described herself as “thick as a brick” intellectually, and before Charles came along looking for a brood mare, her job experience was working in a pre-school.

I, on the other hand, was at that moment writing my PhD dissertation. Hurray for me. Coming into the kitchen at about 2a.m. to make coffee, I switched on the tv and saw the news of her death. All I really thought was that it was too bad she died so young, leaving two young sons behind.

Yet the eulogies over the next week, watched in snatches while I made coffee in the middle of the night, just about moved me to tears. She could have spent the rest of her days jet-setting around being decorative, as any number of well-off ex-wives have done.

But she went to a minefield and stood in it to champion the children who’d lost legs and hands in them. She embraced African children dying of AIDS when almost no one would touch them. Went to visit Mother Teresa’s hospital. And each of the people who ran the various organizations she championed said how genuine she was, and how much it meant that her presence shone a spotlight on their efforts, and how much good that spotlight had done their cause.

That’s when I realized that Diana had used the gifts she had. I think she’d been raised to think of herself as dumb, and living with Charles and the tabloids certainly didn’t help. But as an ex-wife she surely realized she had beauty and charm and star power, and she had a big heart, and she used all of those traits to do some good in the world. She was more than I ever thought she was.

I think in many ways Harry is “her” son — her older boy belongs to his father’s world and has pretty much performed to expectations. If the younger one stumbled, though, from a very early age the tabloids made a federal case of it. He didn’t ask for notoriety, but it’s always been there. So what is he to do? He’s the “spare,” and no longer needed even for that, since his brother spawned. I just think that, like his mother, Harry has decided to use the gifts he has to do some good in the world (Invictus) , and now to support his young family as well. And if some of that is what you call celebrity, so be it.

Well you're off to a provocative start, aren't you? I believe we are at a crossroads of persuasion...

…an opportunity provided by the extreme results of Dobbs.

Most people in this country, including a chunk of Republicans, support the right to abortion and are very disturbed by the overthrow of Roe after 50 years.

Pregnancy is dangerous, and every day there are disastrous pregnancies that threaten the lives of living women who have heartbeats of their own. Every day there are couples trying hard to get pregnant by IVF and part of that process involves the destruction of fertilized eggs. Every day there are women who miscarry and need a D&C or mifepristone.

People who think of themselves as pro-life have not had to contemplate these hazards as anything but events needing medical care, nor consider them as “abortion” for 50 years. Now they do, because the SCOTUS and pig-ignorant state legislators have defined it as such.

Time to rub people’s noses in this reality. Time to make it explicitly clear what the fanatics have wrought. It’s all well and good to visualize perfect little Gerber Babies and get gooey about being pro-life. But confront women and their partners with the reality of the events I mentioned, and the picture changes radically. Then they get it — it’s medical care.

P.S. Please don’t make this an opportunity for blaming “white women” okay?

I have never forgotten that pair of idiots -- entirely old enough to know better...

So gleefully pig-ignorant. My gods, what have we become, that half the population thinks this is a joke. A damn joke.