Current events

Got a tip from reader Kathy about a little business as usual at a health insurer in Cal that ducked $35.5 million in expenses by dumping sick people. Yeah, that's what the God-given Free Market does folks. The scandal, as far as the LA times is concerned, is that their head hit-woman was given the assignment of wacking 15 sick people a month, and paid a bonus for exceeding the goal. That's not a scandal, that's how insurance companies work. The scandal is that she only got 20 grand for screwing over 301 people and saving the company $6 million bucks. Come on, Health Net, have a heart.

In other news, the American Public Health Association wants you to know that a House-Senate conference committee has reached agreement on the FY 2008 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill. The bill includes increased funding for public health -- and remember, that's about 2% of what we spend on health care -- so the Occupant has promised a compassionately conservative veto. Enter your zip code and click on the capitol building right under Chimpy to let your Senators and Representative know that they need to make sure the bill gets a veto-proof majority.

And, in what may be the most important news in the history of the planet, or the least important news since Conan O'Brien was stalked by a priest, former Arizona Governor Fife Symington says the ETs have visited. You'll have to make up your own mind about that.