Media Matters - "Quick Fact: Perino falsely claims health care benefits would take years to start"

[TomCADem]

I have to say thank you to media matters for the effort and time they devote to addressing the avalanche of mis-information that is spread through the corporate media, particularly on Fox News. Here is the latest smack down of former Bush press secretary, Dana Perino who once famously asserted that terrorists never attacked the U.S. under George Bush (9/11?):

http://mediamatters.org/research/201003120064

Perino falsely claims benefits will take years to begin
Perino: People would "not see benefits for four to five years after" bill is enacted. On the March 12 edition of Fox News' On the Record, Fox News contributor Dana Perino said of the health care reform legislation, "people are going to be taxed for the next several years and not see benefits for four to five years after that."

Fact: Numerous benefits in Senate health care bill would "be available in the first year after enactment" of the bill
Senate Democrats note "Immediate Benefits" of health care bill. According to a document put forth by Senate Democrats summarizing the "Immediate Benefits" of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the bill includes numerous benefits that would "be available in the first year after enactment" of the bill. Indeed, Washington Post blogger Ezra Klein published the following list of benefits that the Senate bill would provide "before 2014":

1) Eliminating lifetime limits, and cap annual limits, on health-care benefits. In other words, if you get an aggressive cancer and your treatment costs an extraordinary amount, your insurer can't suddenly remind you that subparagraph 15 limited your yearly expenses to $30,000, and they're not responsible for anything above that.

2) No more rescissions.

3) Some interim help for people who have preexisting conditions, though the bill does not instantly ban discrimination on preexisting conditions.

4) Requiring insurers to cover preventive care and immunizations.

5) Allowing young adults to stay on their parent's insurance plan until age 26.

6) Developing uniform coverage documents so people can compare different insurance policies in an apples-to-apples fashion.

7) Forcing insurers to spend 80 percent of all premium dollars on medical care (75 percent in the individual market), thus capping the money that can go toward administration, profits, etc.

8) Creating an appeals process and consumer advocate for insurance customers.

9) Developing a temporary re-insurance program to help early retirees (folks over 55) afford coverage.

10) Creating an internet portal to help people shop for and compare coverage.

11) Miscellaneous administrative simplification stuff.

12) Banning discrimination based on salary (i.e., where a company that's not self-insured makes only some full-time workers eligible for coverage.

[flamingdem]

1. kr

[jmodden]

2. Perino makes less sense

than Pirina Sclerosa.

[metapunditedgy]

3. Before **2014**. n/t

[flyarm]

4. Perino was hired by Obama ..in Nov. 2009..to Broadcasting Board of Governors

Perino is an appointee of Obama!



http://crooksandliars.com/logan-murphy/obama-appoints-loyal-bushie-dana-peri

Obama Appoints Loyal Bushie Dana Perino To Broadcasting Board Of Governors
By Logan Murphy Friday Nov 20, 2009 8:00am

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has tapped a former top aide of his predecessor George W. Bush to a key post on a board overseeing government-sponsored international broadcasting.

Dana Perino, the first Republican woman to serve as White House press secretary, was appointed late Wednesday to the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG).

Created in 1994, the BBG oversees all of the US government's non-military international broadcasting outlets, including Voice of America, Alhurra television, Radio Sawa, TV Marti, Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe. Read on...

Where to begin? I understand that President Obama campaigned on the idea of bipartisanship, but this is truly an insult. Forget that he is appointing an intellectual lightweight who ran cover for, and spread propaganda for the worst president in American history. Dana Perino stood before reporters and routinely lied to them and the world -- even defending the use of torture, calling it "effective, safe and legal."

And now President Obama believes that she has the integrity to hold a key position in an agency that oversees government-sponsored, international broadcasting?

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November 19, 2009

Obama names Dana Perino to broadcasting board
President Barack Obama has named former Bush White House Press Secretary Dana Perino to Broadcasting Board of Governors, which oversees the U.S. government’s non military broadcasts.

From the White House release:

“Dana Perino is the Chief Issues Counselor for the United States at Burson-Marsteller and is a Fox News Contributor. She is the former White House Press Secretary to President George W. Bush - the first Republican woman to hold that position.

“Ms. Perino previously served in the United States Justice Department, was Director of Communications for the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and worked on Capitol Hill for Representatives Dan Schaefer (R-CO) and Scott McInnis (R-C).

“She holds a M.A. in Public Affairs Reporting from the University of Illinois – Springfield and a B.A. in Mass Communications from Colorado State University - Pueblo.”



Read more: http://blogs.mcclatchydc.com/washington/2009/11/obama-names-dana-perino-to-govermment-board.html#ixzz0iDl4bRoK



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then remember this:

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/30/perino-pentagon-puppets/

April 30,2008

Perino Defends Pentagon’s Propaganda Campaign: ‘It’s Absolutely Appropriate To Provide Information’
On April 20, The New York Times published an expose revealing the Pentagon’s secret program using retired military analysts to “generate favorable news coverage of the administration’s wartime performance.” Since that time, the media have been disappointingly silent on the story and their roles in the Pentagon’s program.

Today, a reporter finally asked White House spokeswoman Dana Perino about the Pentagon’s propaganda. In response, Perino attempted to defend the program:

But I would say that one of the things that we try to do in the administration is get information out to a variety of people so that everybody else can call them and ask their opinion about something. And I don’t think that that should be against the law. And I think that it’s absolutely appropriate to provide information to people who are seeking it and are going to be providing their opinions on it.

It doesn’t necessarily mean that all of those military analysts ever agreed with the administration. I think you can go back and look and think that a lot of their analysis was pretty tough on the administration. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t talk to people.

Watch it:


http://video.thinkprogress.org/2008/04/ppperino.320.240.flv>

The Bush administration, however, wasn’t a passive provider simply giving information to analysts who were “seeking it.” As the NYT reported, the Pentagon proactively pulled these retired military officers — many of whom had business with the government — into private briefings, provided with them classified information, and pushed administration talking points.

[berni_mccoy]

5. Too many DUers buy that crap as well. I'm glad Media Matters is setting the record straight.

Rove also made the same argument and they totally destroyed him for it.

[deacon]

6. k + r n/t